Obstructive Sleep Apnea or OSA is a condition of sleep disorder that is characterized by loud snoring and frequent cessation in breathing. The cessations are called apneas, they occur while people sleep at night, and obstruct normal breathing, hence the amalgam ‘Obstructive Sleep Apnea’.

There are obvious health hazards to having sleep apnea. When there is a cessation of breathing, carbon dioxide builds up in our bloodstream, and when that happens, the brain signals the sleeper the need to breathe and in effect awakens them. Once the awaken person starts to control breath and get things back in shape, they will fall asleep subsequently, even as the cessation repeats. Needless to say, OSA would make peaceful sleeping hard and that may cause fatigue in people felt immediately when they wake up in morning.

Sleep Apnea and its Primary Symptoms

Snoring itself is not a giveaway symptom of sleep apnea. Since your bedfellow won’t tell you to stop snoring at night, and daytime fatigue alone cannot be a clear symptom, the best way to diagnosis sleep apnea is always to consult with a sleep specialist.

If your bedmate happens to notice that you wake up several times at nights and gasp for breath, then there is a chance that you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Sleep specialists say that severe headaches that last well into the next morning and throughout the following day may also be a symptom of OSA among overweight people and in those who are above forty years of age.

Sleep Apnea in Children

Shockingly, sleep apnea pervades among children just as the condition does with more than eighteen million adults in the US. Symptoms of Obstructive Sleep Apnea among children include nighttime sweating, suffering from frequent nightmares, or wetting the bed. These symptoms may also be symptoms of other conditions, hence OSA is tough to diagnose in children than in adults – which is why consulting with sleep specialists becomes even more important.

Snoredoc specializes in a mouthpiece that helps to stop snoring and even clear sleep apnea. If you or your bed partner snores heavily and too often, then it can gradually turn worse and might even lead to Obstructive Sleep Apnea. As prevention is always the best cure, take the necessary steps to stop snoring and reclaim your peaceful night’s sleep.