One of the very strange challenges that the entire topic of snoring faces, is that, well, most people don't think it's all that big of a problem. As a result, many people are quite skeptical when told that snoring is a severe physical and emotional health problem.
It only takes a minute, or a cursory glance, at the list of physical symptoms associated with a snoring problem to quickly embrace this funny sounding noun/verb into the class of serious health problems.
Here is just an opening list of the health concerns that could occur from snoring problems (and remember, please, that we're just looking at physical snoring problems right now; emotional problems come later!).
Sleep apnea
Heart disease
Stroke
headaches throughout the day (due to poor quality sleep and poor airflow through trachea)
Night sweats
Heartburn
Swollen legs and arms (due to lack of oxygen flow)
An overall weakened immune system
Hearing loss (if the snoring problem is very loud; remember, snoring can be as loud as a passing jet!)
And more...
In addition, most of us assume that snoring problems are associated with adulthood; and, as such, that the physical ailments noted above are limited to adults. This is not the case at all, since many children and adolescents snore (particularly those with related airflow inhibiting conditions, such as asthma).
If you, the reader are not a snorer, but have lived with (or currently live with) a first class snorer, you might find yourself shedding a tear or two as Treatment of Sleep Apnea Page 25 of 49
you read this section. That's because often overlooked in the whole snoring discussion are those people who don't snore.
These are the husbands, the wives, the kids, the nanny, the siblings, the in-laws, and even the neighbors who have found themselves on the receiving end of a chain saw, or a lawn mower (the sounds of a snorer), that tended to start at around 10:00 pm, and continued - unabated! - Until about 7:00 am the following morning.
For such people, trying to fall and stay asleep was not merely an exercise in stress coping; it was an exercise in crisis management!
The Emotional Symptoms:
It's not at all overly dramatic to suggest that the emotional costs of living with someone with a snoring problem are as severe, or possibly even more severe, as the physical toll associated with snoring problems. This is because snoring can lead to a disturbing array of emotional problems, including: Lack of sleep, leading to depression and anxiety
Marital breakdown and divorce, due to lack of sleep and lack of empathy (remember the partner with the snoring problem doesn't often know the pain that they are unwittingly causing!)
Eviction by a landlord and the resulting humiliation (this may sound funny, but some people have literally been kicked out of their homes because of their snoring problem!)
Warring roommates and neighbors
Job loss, due to inability to concentrate and focus (because of sleeplessness) Memory and retention problems due to sleeplessness
And within these problems (and this just a simple list, an entire book can be filled to document the real life emotional damage caused by snoring) are a host of painful mental states that infect both the guilty snorer, and the enraged non snorer.
These unproductive emotional states include:
Frustration
Anger
Feelings of violence
Helplessness
Desperation
Frustration
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Exhaustion
Growing resentment
Lack of confidence and self-esteem
And let's not forget the millions of non-snorers who drive cars or operate heavy machinery; without a solid night of sleep, some of them can (and regrettably do) put both themselves and others at risk.
Indeed, the emotional problems associated with snoring are, unfortunately, less discussed; especially since the snorer himself or herself isn't aware that he/she is causing so much unintentional emotional damage! Yet, as you can easily see (perhaps even in reflecting upon your own life), the emotional costs of being a snorer or living with someone who has a snoring problem Snoring by Nature Is...
There are over 300 anti-snoring devices invented since the first innovative tennis-ball-in-a-sock which by the way primarily helps prevent patients from sleeping on their backs. Other devices however, initiate unpleasant stimuli every time a person snores. However, it must be noted that snoring is not subjected to our voluntary faculties. If one device really does stop you from snoring, then it might be credited to the fact that you were kept awake all night...without one sweet dream.
It all lies in the abnormality of the air passage. Free flow of air is needed to facilitate regular breathing. With problem snoring, it is likely that any part of the area at the back of the mouth and the nose strike constantly. Thus, the vibration in breathing.
It may be that some people consider snoring as a non-serious condition but in fact, the opposite is true. People who suffer from snoring normally have disrupted sleep that deprives them of having normal and comfortable sleep.
And when the condition gets aggravated, the snorer normally will have long-term health problems including obstructive sleep apnea. And besides, this actually causes patients embarrassment and oftentimes affects another person's sleep.
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Obstructive sleep apnea, on the other hand, is the condition by which snoring is constantly interrupted with total obstruction of breathing. This occurs at an average of ten seconds long and may happen at around 7 times in an hour.
Thus, the patient may suffer from 30 episodes up to 300 episodes in one night alone.
Such episodes will reduce the level of oxygen in the blood, which drives the heart to pump harder.
Immediate effects include a forced light sleep so that he may keep his muscles in tensed state. This will help facilitate a regular flow of air in the lungs. This then results to unrelaxed rest. Thus, throughout the day he will become sleepy which causes him not to function well. This then will contribute largely to the enlargement of the heart and raised blood pressure.
There are various contributors on the severity of snoring. These include: Mouth Anatomy
Snoring usually concerns the tissues involved in breathing. There are a couple of reasons why the air passage is narrow, which is itself, a good contributor to problem snoring. This may be due to enlarged tonsils, elongated soft palate and thick soft palate, and abnormality in the tissues at the back of the throat. These can all cause obstruction in the air passage.