Did you know that feeling tired could be a symptom of an underlying health issue or sleep disorder? For some patients, that’s obvious; they can’t sleep, and therefore, they feel sleep deprived. However, for patients who suffer from sleep apnea, the fact that they aren’t sleeping well is often lost on them. Sleep apnea, a common sleep breathing disorder, is often mistaken for nothing more than a snoring habit because snoring is its characteristic symptom. However, the underlying mechanisms behind the condition make it one of the more discreet reasons behind chronic sleep deprivation.
Symptoms of Sleep Deprivation
To be specific, feeling tired in and of itself is rarely a cause for concern. However, if you’re always tired and it seems to get worse each day, or if you feel exhausted even though you think you sleep soundly every night, then you should be worried. Besides increasing tiredness, other signs of sleep deprivation can include:
- Erratic behavior
- Mood swings/increased irritability
- Depression
- Difficulty concentrating and staying focused
- Trouble with memory and problem-solving
- Chronic headaches and migraines
The Connection to Sleep Apnea
The problem with sleep apnea is that, despite the loud snoring that comes with it, patients often don’t realize that more than snoring is involved. Sleep apnea means that you stop breathing in your sleep because your airway becomes clogged by oral tissues. This is the same reason why you snore; as the tissues fall into your airway, your breath is forced through a tighter space. Like squeezing air through the end of a tightly held balloon, air makes noise when it’s squeezed through a small space. When the airway is completely clogged, your breathing stops, which forces your body to wake up constantly throughout the night before you can ever reach deep sleep.
Find Out if Sleep Apnea is Depriving You of Sleep
For many patients, sleep apnea isn’t obvious until they begin to show signs of sleep deprivation. To find out if sleep apnea is the reason why you’re feeling sleep deprived, call Houston Sleep Solutions in Spring, TX, at (281) 320-2000, or in Pearland, TX, at (832) 564-3508.
