Sleep Apnea anxiety related?

My husband has had problems sleeping for the past two weeks now. As he falls asleep he is woken gasping for breath. The most he can sleep is about two hours before he wakes up with a feeling of being unable to catch his breath. Sleep apnea has been suggested but unfortunately living in South Africa without medical insurance it's not possible to visit a sleep clinic or buy a cpap machine.

He does have PTSD and has always had problems when sleeping; bad dreams, shouting, kicking and snoring. Once five years ago he had this breathing issue but it only lasted a week. This time he has become so anxious about it, googling his symptoms, testing his oxygen levels and focusing on it constantly which I feel is making it worse.

He's convinced he has a physical disorder but I feel it's anxiety related. It's difficult to convince him that anxiety can cause many physical symptoms.

He's trying everything I suggest; quitted smoking and caffeine, eating healthy food only, no screen time at night, two pillow instead of one, chamomile tea, honey. Anything that we've read that could help. But I know that unless his mind accepts that this is anxiety related it won't go away.

Of course he's absolutely exhausted from not having a decent amount of sleep, just catnapping here and there and sleep deprivation causes a whole lot more symptoms which in turn cause more anxiety and question marks for him.

He has seen a doctor but without medical insurance there's not a lot they can do. He can't afford specialist treatment.

I'm posting here in the hope that I can hear from fellow anxiety sufferers who have experienced this problem and how they dealt with it. Also i feel that if he can read other people's stories it might convince him and reduce his anxiety.

This honestly sounds less like sleep apnoea to me and more like sleep paralysis - I had it for years and still get it occasionally.

Thank you for replying. I had to look up sleep paralysis as I've never heard of it. It seems to be an interference in the REM sleep cycles and although I noticed that one symptom mentioned was the inability to catch ones breath upon waking, the main symptom seems to be actual paralysis of the entire body for a short time upon waking.

My husband's main symptom is that as he falls asleep, almost the moment his body relaxes I suppose, he seems to stop breathing and this wakes him up. Other times he can sleep for up to two hours and then the same thing happens as he wakes up.

May I ask what your symptoms were/are? Any treatment that has helped?

I'd wake up physically unable to move or breathe - at one point this happened every night for about three months, I'd go to sleep, wake up like that and scream. I never sought treatment and it doesn't often happen now. Oddly, I get it in the mornings occasionally and find it a genuinely delightful experience to not know who or where I am.

Thank you. What you've been through sounds extremely challenging.
But these are not the symptoms my husband has. As he falls asleep he is woken gasping for air.
I'm pretty sure its obstructive sleep apnea aggravated by anxiety.
I was hoping someone who has similar symptoms could share how they cope or what treatment they found to help.