holding breath - is it apnea? - Sleep Disorders Message Board

chestersmom · 12-11-2006, 08:56 PM

My son holds his breath while sleeping. He doesn't snore, is not overweight, but sleep study says he has apnea. They only let him sleep for 6 hours and it seems his breath holding usually occurs in the later hours of sleep and he's thinking they haven't really seen the problem. I have been in the room with him when this occurs and he doesn't seem to wake--just holds breath and then lets it go. No gasping or struggling for breath. Anyone have this going on.

mkgbrook · 12-12-2006, 08:46 AM

Holding ones breath.. may actually be a pause or stoppage of breathing. This would fall under the sleep apnea definition. The body normally resets itself and resumes breathing in short order. My husband and I snore, but mine is only apparent when ill or under allergic irritation. Since my tonsils were removed and the inflamation is down.. I don't snore, just hold my breath and let it go... with the occasional gurgle or gasp due to drainage effects. My sleep apnea is severe. Hopefully your sleep MD has put your son on a CPAP... or is he too young? I am going to have my 4 year old evaluated in January. He sleeps like I do, but wakes like his Daddy.

Best of luck to you. Weight is not always an issue, there is the issue of sinus and throat structure as well. The larger your neck and head size... the more likely you are to have sleep apnea. My husband, and I exceed the std head an neck size for our body types and both have sleep apnea. My son at age 4 has a head size equivalent to mine and an above std neck size... this along with the snoring and waking tired and grumpy leads me to believe he is still suffering from sleep apnea after his T&A (tonsillectomy&adnoidectomy).

Best of luck to you. Hope my story helps.

MG

chestersmom · 12-14-2006, 04:06 PM

Thanks for your reply. My son is grown, so yes, he is on a CPAP. Has had it for about six weeks, but says he just can't deal with it, but keeps trying. He hasn't been able to sleep through a night with it, and as of a few days ago they gave him a new mask to try. I hope this one works better. If he could just sleep through the night with it and felt more rested the next day, I think he would be more prone to keep trying.

mkgbrook · 12-15-2006, 10:04 AM

Best wishes to you and your son.. tell him to stick with the mask, it will get better he just has to keep trying. My husband took about a month to get used to his.. I took to it like a duck to water, we are all different and it takes time and practice to find out what works best for each of us.

Sincerely,
MG

BrandyBobs Lady · 12-19-2006, 08:47 AM

Hi, I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea about 7 years ago but didn't get my cpap until about 5 years ago. I've been using it steadily since then although there are nights when it irritates the crap out of me and I rip it off my head. I remember the first time they put a mask on me at the sleep study center I freaked out and found it hard to regulate my breathing. After a while I calmed down and was able to breathe fine. It does take some getting used to. One thing I have found is that the cpap tends to dry my nose out and I wake up stuffy as hell and sometimes with a bloody nose. The mask is a gel one and it rubs on the bridge of my nose leaving a red bump and has started to wear a sore on it. I try wearing a bandaid on it to protect it but it still gets pretty sore. I am going in next week to Apria to be refitted for a new mask. I am going to ask them about a cpap that provides some sort of moisture for my nose.