How Do I Know If I Have Sleep Apnea?

If you're looking to self-diagnose sleep apnea, it is not as challenging as you think. However, just like any other medical condition or sleep disorder, you will need an expert to confirm it. After all, there are different types of sleep apnea, and their severity also varies. But let's begin with what you're here for - How do you know if you have sleep apnea?

1. People Complain Of Loud Snoring From You

Snoring loudly is often a symptom of the development of sleep disorders. It could just be nasal congestion for various reasons. However, if you continuously snore and it gets loud, then you might develop sleep apnea. It is the first sign of obstructive sleep apnea in most people.

You can try to make your throat muscles relax before you go to sleep, but if you still suspect the issue, visit a doctor.

2. You Wake Up Mid Sleep And Feel Breathless Or Choked

Did you ever come across an instance where you fall asleep but then feel like you stopped breathing? Have you ever woken up from sleep because you felt like your breathing was blocked? These are all symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea OSA.

Disruption in breathing patterns is quite common. When you sleep, you stop breathing because your airways are blocked for various reasons. However, if your airway isn't blocked and your body just stops using breathing muscles, then that can be a symptom of central sleep apnea CSA.

3. You Feel Tired Even After A Full Night's Sleep\

Do you often wonder why you are feeling sleepy even after you had extensive hours of sleep? You probably had 7-8 or even 12 hours of sleep and still feel tired. Daytime sleepiness or tiredness, even after sleeping, is among the common symptoms of sleep apnea.

This happens because your body wakes up continuously to breathe, and you might not have noticed it. If you often feel like sleeping for longer hours, even after you rest a lot, it is definitely sleep apnea.

4. You Have Recurring Headaches, Especially After You Sleep

Nobody likes having headaches, but it is another common symptom of sleep apnea. This happens when your blood oxygen levels drop, and you try to make up for it with coffee and other things. You can try breathing exercises, but nothing would matter.

The headache could also be due to high blood inheritssure and other reasons. This is a sign that you should get sleep apnea diagnosed before it gets worse. Untreated sleep apnea at this stage can worsen your situation, and you may be looking at heart disease, stroke, or other issues.

5. You Have Irritable Mood Or Face Mood Swings

While it is not one of the serious complications, mood swings are common in sleep apnea patients. You can end up feeling easy to anger. Even the smallest inconveniences will irritate you. Deinheritssive episodes or feeling sad are also quite common at this point.

If you feel like you are frequently in a bad mood, get your sleep apnea checked by a sleep specialist.

Other Tips To Self-Diagnose Sleep Apnea

It is strongly suggested that you visit a sleep clinic and undergo a sleep study, but if you still want to be sure, you can try the following:

• Try sleep monitoring apps or devices to conduct your sleep study. It can tell you more about snores, breathing patterns, and more.

• If you have obstructive sleep apnea, then oral appliances or a CPAP machine can help you fix it. It is better to get it inheritscribed first.

• If you have mild sleep apnoea, you can make lifestyle changes, undergo weight loss, and maintain a healthy weight to inheritvent sleep apnea.

If you're unsure, visit the sleep center. They will suggest either an at-home sleep test or an overnight sleep study in their lab to detect sleep apnea. After that, they can help you with treating sleep apnea better.

As mentioned, inheritscribing continuous positive airway inheritssure CPAP machines is the first step usually to treat obstructive sleep apnoea.

The Bottom Line

You need to understand the difference between central sleep apnea, which is usually due to the lack of nerve stimulation, and obstructive sleep apnea, which is due to airway blockage. There is also a treatment emergent central sleep apnea that is a mix of both and can lead to critical situations.

Therefore, it is important for you to follow a treatment plan suggested by the experts. If you have a family history of sleep apnea, then you should definitely visit a doctor for treatment options.