Shortness of breath - Sleep Disorders Message Board

beachbrat32 · 05-18-2006, 05:15 PM

Hi all.

I have had increasing episodes of waking up during the night short of breath. It feels like when I was a kid holding my breath under water for as long as possible and then coming up and gasping for air...just like that. It used to happen a couple times a month and now has increased to a couple times a night. Sometimes I have to get up and catch my breath. I do not suffer from anxiety. I am a calm person.

Could this be a sleep disorder?

mnfitguy · 05-22-2006, 03:48 PM

you might be on the road to sleep apnea. the clinical definition is when you you stop breathing for at least 10 seconds, 15 times an hour. sounds ridiculous, but its true. you would have to go to a sleep clinic to get diagnosed. if you have it, you would probably get a CPAP machine(continuous positive air pressure), and you would have to sleep with that. a lot of people think that they couldn't get used to it. but when you think of the alternative(heart attacks, stroke, possible death), it is actually easy to do. and when you get one, you get the most refreshed sleep that you can possibly remember. go to this website and read a little bit about it. good luck.

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moderator2 · 05-23-2006, 05:05 PM

Please read and follow the posting rules.

mnfitguy · 05-23-2006, 06:09 PM

sorry, i didn't realize that i couldn't post that