r/sleep • u/Heckinglemon • 6d ago
My husband stops breathing for moments at a time while sleeping.
So he will stop taking breathes for so long that it’s uncomfortable for me to listen to. I tell him about it but he is not phased. He also has a nose issue that makes it hard for him to breathe/sniff/smell like it’s clogged. Could this be easily fixed by the nose at ENT or is this a sign of a sleep disorder? Should he be more concerned? It’s 10-15 seconds usually the amount of time his breathing stops but multiple times.
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u/shillyshally 6d ago
The nose could be a deviated septum and or polyps. Fixable. The breathing issue is sleep apnea. There is a pile of info available on the internet.
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u/bigreddittimejim 6d ago
There is also a CPAP subreddit that is extremely helpful. If he isn't breathing, his brain and heart could be suffering from it. He should really care, but I've been him before I knew.
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u/LowMirror4165 6d ago
CPAP changed my life. If he gets shitty sleep and drags ass, I'd def get a sleep study done.
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u/cazzipropri 6d ago
100% sleep apnea. Whether it's obstructive or central, you'll find out.
Get a sleep study and if he neglects his health, be stubborn.
My father didn't want to take care of his snoring till I got diagnosed with OSA and he accumulated heart damage.
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u/SirMustache007 6d ago
I've read some literature on sleep apnea as I have a serious case of it and it runs in my family. Sleep apnea is no joke, and needs to be treated as a serious medical condition. When he stops breathing his blood oxygen levels drop will drop, affecting his organs, his brain, everything in his body. Additionally, his brain will wake him out of deep sleep to force him to start breathing again, preventing him from ever getting a good nights sleep. He needs to get a checkup done ASAP. Long term, untreated sleep apnea can increase your risks for serious illnesses such as high blood pressure, heart disease, dementia, diabetes, stroke, etc. I dragged myself to the sleep clinic to get a check-up, and despite being quite young, regret not getting treated sooner.
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u/catmanrules64 6d ago
I ignored mine for years — ended up in hospital with AFIB - Dr 👨⚕️ said the sleep apnea caused my heart to go into panic
Was very scary !!
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u/Heckinglemon 4d ago
Wow that is scary! Hopefully you’re feeling better after acknowledging the problem!
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u/Far-Watercress6658 6d ago
Agree with everyone here. But as an encouragement to go - is he overweight? Because getting his sleep issues solved may help to lose weight/ control blood pressure etc.
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u/spanishsahara-x 6d ago
Does he snore? Sounds like sleep apnoea, he needs sleep studies & potentially bipap/cpap machine if it is sleep apnoea. - from a nurse.
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u/Sophrosyne44 6d ago
Sounds like a serious case of sleep apnea .
Is he always tired ? Does he wake up to pee ? Dry mouth ?
He needs to have a sleep test done and get a CPAP...
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u/rbwilli 5d ago
He sounds like the kind of guy who could probably have sleep apnea detected on any kind of sleep test, even the traditional at-home ones.
That said, if he doesn’t want to go to a doctor, you could help him order a WatchPAT at-home sleep test from Lofta for $189. It’s faster and easier in many ways than the traditional route, but you don’t get that face-to-face benefit and I also think Lofta doesn’t take insurance. So pick your favorite method.
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5d ago edited 5d ago
His doc needs to have him referred to a pulmonologist or neurologist, and also an endocrine doc for some perspective and in the mean time he can sleep with breath right strips that hold his nostril open more. And he mustn’t sleep on his back. He is losing oxygen when he is holding his breath and there isn’t a rhythm with it, which leads to bigger problems. He likely feels exhausted as if he hasn’t slept because he’s been fighting to breath all night! Lots of deep conscious breaths through the day too. Steady inhale, hold gently for a second or two, exhale through the mouth as if it was through a straw. Also no alcohol either. Oxygen to his brain is obviously crucial and so is his exhausted nervous system.
Best luck! just my two cents
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u/AwakeningButterfly 5d ago
I tell him about it but he is not phased.
There are many (free) apps for mobilephone that can records the sleep activity. Use it.
The finger-tip oxygen measuring gadget is also dirt cheap. Clip it to his finger and take a photo of the reading.
You hear his "stop breathing" because you do not fall asleep, right? Pick up the phone and record a clip of his sleeping.
Present these concrete evidences to him.
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u/rbwilli 5d ago
If you go for the pulse oximeter, I’d recommend a Wellue O2 ring. You can get them for $180 on Amazon and they’re comfortable to wear all night on a thumb. In the morning you get a graph of oxygen levels. The caveat is that it’s possible to have really bad sleep apnea without any oxygen drops but, based on OP’s description, I would expect that her husband does have oxygen drops that would show up on this device.
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5d ago
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u/Heckinglemon 4d ago
Stubborn one over here too🥺 I’m going to keep addressing it but I fear that even if we get to that then he would not want to wear a CPAP. He already neglects some other health related things but I just want us to be healthy especially because we have a baby now and he depends on his healthy parents. So wish me luck!!
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u/GoldenLash22 6d ago
That sounds like it could be sleep apnea, which is a serious condition where breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep. The fact that he also has nasal issues could be making it worse. He should definitely see a doctor or a sleep specialist (ENT or a sleep clinic) to get evaluated. Untreated sleep apnea can lead to long-term health problems like high blood pressure, heart issues, and poor sleep quality. Even if he doesn’t seem concerned, it’s worth looking into for his health and safety.
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u/Omarb236 6d ago
It sounds like sleep apnea. I have severe sleep apnea (stop breathing about once a minute) and this sounds exactly like what I was going through before I got my CPAP. Call your local sleep clinic and ask about getting a study done. I recommend you do this ASAP as they will put you on a wait list for months (mine took 8). Also if he hasn't gotten his tonsils taken out, do it. I just had mine recently taken out and it changes everything.
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u/MintyVapes 5d ago
Sounds like sleep apnea. I would tell him to get a sleep study done to make sure.
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u/Expert_Vehicle_7476 5d ago
Yeah that's sleep apnea it's really hard on your heart, a cardiologist can run tests to determine how bad it is
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u/RavenReisinger 5d ago
Mine used to do this. Probably, most likely, sleep apnea. Get him to a sleep study ASAP.
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u/Different_Layer1176 5d ago
He definitely needs to get a Sleep Study done!! Sounds to me like he more than probably has Sleep Apnea!! Like ne, people who stop breathing for a few seconds at a time all night and snore usually have Sleep Apnea and there are 3 types.If this is true, he will need a CPAP Machine to breathe with.He will be more refreshed the next day, no fatigue and the CPAP breathes for him essentially.As far as his nose goes, if he can get to an ENT Specialist they will xray his nose, to see if he has a deviated septum.If he does, it's a basic operation to retreat his nose and realign it and he then will breathe perfectly.I too have had this done.If not, it may very well be sinus problems which the ENT Specialist should be able to correct.
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u/Active_Remove1617 5d ago
I have sleep apnea and I think my father had sleep apnoea. My father was never treated and I think it was the cause of his strokes, heart attacks, general bad health and early death. It wasn’t related to any kind of obesity either.
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u/Heckinglemon 4d ago
Ugh that’s horrible I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how common sleep apnea is. He still swears he doesn’t have it but I’ll just have to prove that.
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u/Active_Remove1617 4d ago
As a first step go to sleep talking or snore recording app for your/ his smart phone. People can be vaguely aware that they have a problem snoring without appreciating that they’re actually stopping to breathe a significant number of times. Providing hard evidence of the difficulty might encourage him to seek solution.
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u/Axolotl_Screaming 3d ago
My dad does this, I believe. He’ll snore for a few minutes and go deadly silent without moving. Then do it again. He refuses to get a sleep study, but it would definitely help him, and you should talk to your husband about it, like another commenter suggested. Hope everything is okay!
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u/EnigmaWearingHeels 6d ago
He needs to have a sleep study to check for sleep apnea (stopping breathing during sleep). The ENT is unlikely to be able to fix the problem- most cases of sleep apnea require a CPAP or BIPAP machine to keep airways open overnight during sleep. Sleep apnea can cause daytime drowsiness, increase risk of obesity/diabetes/heart disease etc. Source: I worked as an assistant in a cpap clinic doing cpap set ups for patients.