struggling to breath when he is sleeping. maybe not apnea?
Hi
First off I know about sleep apnea but I was wondering if it was something else?
When my boyfriend is dropping off to sleep he can basically be in bed for less then a minute when it is like he is in a deep sleep. He struggles to breath but his body still moves like he is, him chest and stomach rise, these movements are very laboured and execrated and then he will snore, take a gasp and this goes on for about half an hour and not all night.
i don’t know if struggling to breath or just not breathing is a symptom of sleep apnea.
i am begging him to go to the doctor but he wont so i don’t know what to do but just to have an idea or what it is would be great.
thanks.
Hi Thank you.
Is there anything I can do as he will not see a doctor! There is nothing I can do to make him go to the doctor – god knows why he won’t go, he knows he has this problem.
Your description of your bf is classic sleep apnea. The chest appearing to rise & fall is his body trying to breath even tho his airway is basically blocked. It goes along with the snoring. He probably takes a very loud gasp type snore and stirs like he partially woke himself up too. Doesn’t he? Does he do this when he is on his back? All classic sleep apnea. Any snorer is a prime suspect too. They are often very tired and sleepy during the day because they actually do wake themselves up several times each night out of a deep sleep. My father has the condition and wears a cpap type mask and my hubby needs to go in for a sleep study, which is what you bf needs to do to. It’s not a big deal. He just goes into a clinic or hospital and goes to sleep while they monitor him. Without any intervention in this condition these people are at risk for serious problems.
And if you want to know for sure….no he isn’t breathing during those periods. Let him fall asleep with the lights on and watch. That is why the gasp. Get a watch with a second hand and time those periods that he stops breathing. That is the ‘apnea’ period. If you watch his throat especially you will see his body struggling to breath. It’s when the Carbon dioxide level builds up that it wakes him up. If he drinks, it will get worse. If you have video camera, tape him. That might get his attention.
