dreaming that I can not breath..maybe sleep apnea - Sleep Disorders Message Board

linedoz · 10-19-2003, 11:55 AM

I am waiting for results from a sleep test for sleep apnea. Ofter when I start to fall a sleep my heart feels likes it is pounding very hard and I am also out of breathe. Also I often dream that I can not breathe or suffocating my husband says that I make funny sounds so he wakes me up. When I wake up I am scared and feel drowsy it's a weird feeling. I also have high blood pressure, extreme fatigue, drowsy, etc..

Does anyone experience these symptoms

Line

Corinna_H · 10-19-2003, 02:14 PM

yes, line, just like you I woke now and then as out of breath as if I had just been running, and with my heart thudding away. I also used to dream that I felt soooo tired and sometimes blacked out during a dream, and that really scared me!

I didn't get feedback from my husband as his snoring has long since driven me out of earshot! but I was suspecting from the breathlessness, the sleepiness and the morning headaches not to mention the high bloodpressure, that I had sleep apnea, though I thought it only happened now and then.

I got quite a shock to see how often I actually stopped breathing during the sleep study, especially as it had been a night I thought I hadn't stopped breathing during.

I was amazed how quickly my blood pressure dropped to more reasonable levels once I got my CPAP, it may take quite a struggle to get used to, but the benefits are soon apparent.

You will find yourself feeling better in all sorts of ways if apnea is your problem and CPAP is started, not just the obvious ways, but also stuff like overweight, energy levels and even your libido perks up! Apneas can also cause depression and that disapears quickly as well. Concentration and memory also improve.

Good luck with it all

[This message has been edited by Corinna_H (edited 10-19-2003).]

saxgirl · 10-20-2003, 06:26 PM

Yeah, I have sleep apnea & I get nightmares that I'm drowning & can't breathe. I had a near-drowning experience when I was 4, but I've been swimming like a fish ever since. I'm not sure if the nightmares are from the near-drowning or the apnea.

luvmypap · 10-23-2003, 06:49 AM

I have severe sleep apnea. Prior to being diagnosed and starting cpap, I had many "suffocating" dreams. Sometimes I was drowning, sometimes an attacker was smothering my face the common dream thread was I couldn't breathe....my dreams were trying to incorporate what was the reality of my apnea.
Since starting cpap, I no longer have these dreams, nor do I awake in a fog with a pounding heart. I also saw an immediate decrease in blood pressure, and increase in mental function and daytime energy