Suddenly not breathing in your sleep?

[Matt King]

Anybody get this? I'm not sure if i actually stop breathing but i wake up every now and then after a stressful day and have to gasp for air. Pretty scary the first few times it happened but the doctor said it didn't concern him at all.

It's not really worrying me but it does seem to happen when i'm lying on my back so was a bit concerned about sleep apnea when it first happened.

I'm just wondering if anybody gets this symptom?

[Zingything]

Hi, I do know of someone who has the same thing, waking up gasping for air. His GP said that it was due to him being overweight and sleeping on his back made it worse. He now sleeps on his side or front and hasn't had any more episodes since. i think he is trying to lose wight too.
I hope you get to the bottom of it as I imagine it can be quite scary. x

[Danny_dingle]

Hi Matt,

This is called sleep apnoea, and is a very common problem. Don't worry you WON'T actually stop breathing properly with it, your body won't let that happen. My partner has it and although it can feel very strange it isn't harmful.

See your GP and they can have a look at the muscles in your throat to see if they might be doing it and can also refer you to a sleep clinic if you want to try to stop yourself from doing it.

Good luck and I hope this eases your worries with it,

Danny xxx

[Matt King]

Thanks for the replies. Ever since i've gotten the hang of dealing with anxiety it hasn't really bothered me but i thought it was worth mentioning. I seemed to get it more when i smoked, i'm not overweight or anything.

Might go see the GP if it starts happening regularly.