Are you sure it's your nose that's the problem? It shouldn't be hard to rule out a deviated septum, but it doesn't make sense that you only have trouble when you're lying on your back. This sounds...
Are you sure it's your nose that's the problem? It shouldn't be hard to rule out a deviated septum, but it doesn't make sense that you only have trouble when you're lying on your back.
This sounds more like sleep apnea to me, and instead of an ENT you should be getting a sleep study. You're going to need to see your primary doctor for a referral, though.
That's their job. You wouldn't be a bother. Also I went and did a sleep study when I was referred by an ENT office. They told me I have sleep apnea when I lie on my back. I do have a deviated...
That's their job. You wouldn't be a bother. Also I went and did a sleep study when I was referred by an ENT office. They told me I have sleep apnea when I lie on my back. I do have a deviated septum and allergies. You need to talk to your doctor about this though. It can cause all kinds of serious health issues if it isn't properly addressed. Like @vakieh said:
Doctors and dentists are like lawyers. The longer you avoid them, the more they cost.
I have a lot of anxiety around doctors (and especially dentists) due to not having medical or dental insurance growing up, and so rarely interacting with them until adulthood. So I can definitely...
I have a lot of anxiety around doctors (and especially dentists) due to not having medical or dental insurance growing up, and so rarely interacting with them until adulthood. So I can definitely relate to being hesitant to bring something like this up out of fear it'll be dismissed or ignored.
You're paying them (even if it's indirectly through insurance) to take care of you and your health, so you should absolutely feel free to bring up any concerns you have. Most doctors have heard and seen every symptom under the sun before, I doubt they'll see yours as out of the ordinary. And most doctors enter the profession because of a genuine desire to help people, so I think they'll really want to help you get better sleep.
Oh buddy, not OP here, but some doctors are down right shady about it. My last doctor's office gave me a single piece of paper when I asked for my full record. I had been with them >15 years....
Oh buddy, not OP here, but some doctors are down right shady about it. My last doctor's office gave me a single piece of paper when I asked for my full record. I had been with them >15 years. Needless to say I got pretty upset and after some choice words with one of the office managers they printed out about 50 pages but I never did get any of the doctor's notes or actual charts from them, just computer records.
I've got sleep apnea, this doesn't quite sound like it. Sleep apnea affects the throat more than the nasal passages. In fact, what he's describing might actually prevent the use of some CPAP...
This sounds more like sleep apnea to me, and instead of an ENT you should be getting a sleep study. You're going to need to see your primary doctor for a referral, though.
I've got sleep apnea, this doesn't quite sound like it. Sleep apnea affects the throat more than the nasal passages. In fact, what he's describing might actually prevent the use of some CPAP devices. There are a couple of days a year when my allergies are so bad that I can't breathe through my nose—those are the nights when I also can't use my CPAP.
Seriously. Hasn't had a good night's sleep in over a decade. Doesn't feel like going to see a doctor. Spends time on the Internet asking random people for help. WTF? My wife is a nurse and tells...
Seriously. Hasn't had a good night's sleep in over a decade. Doesn't feel like going to see a doctor. Spends time on the Internet asking random people for help. WTF?
My wife is a nurse and tells me how often she sees people who are suffering from some chronic but treatable illness, but don't bother to take simple steps to improve their health. Baffles my mind.
Well, for one, a lot of people simply can't afford it. Not in the US anyway. Even something relatively simple can easily become prohibitively expensive, even with insurance.
Well, for one, a lot of people simply can't afford it. Not in the US anyway.
Even something relatively simple can easily become prohibitively expensive, even with insurance.
Sounds like it could be sleep apnea, of which deviated septum can be one of the causes. Easy / simple thing to try would be strips that hold your nose open while you sleep. Those are available at...
Sounds like it could be sleep apnea, of which deviated septum can be one of the causes.
You don’t require a prescription for a CPAP machine, you can buy them direct from medical supply companies. Much better to go through your insurance though, I think the price of mine was...
You don’t require a prescription for a CPAP machine, you can buy them direct from medical supply companies. Much better to go through your insurance though, I think the price of mine was approximately $1500
Ever see someone sitting start to doze off? If they have apnea, it goes like this. A dozen seconds after they nod off, they'll start to snore - and not the cute/good kind, the chainsaw variety,...
Ever see someone sitting start to doze off?
If they have apnea, it goes like this. A dozen seconds after they nod off, they'll start to snore - and not the cute/good kind, the chainsaw variety, it'll sound like air is being torn through their airways. It starts pretty small, just a short noise and they get their breath. Over a minute or two, as they relax, the snores get louder, further apart, and eventually stop. You can see them trying to inhale, and failing, and even start to flail around a bit in their sleep, usually arching the back. They'll have relaxed to the point where their air intakes are now blocked, and they are suffocating.
They'll stir/move, emit a glass-shattering snore, gulp a massive amount of air, briefly open their eyes and look around like a frightened animal, then immediately pass back out and go right back to repeating this cycle. They won't remember anything they say or do during these brief non-awake moments of coming up for air. They have to 'wake up' to take a breath.
People with sleep apnea don't get more than five minutes of sleep at a time, period. No REM sleep, no completed sleep cycles. They can sleep twelve hours and still feel like they haven't slept at all. It's extreme, decades-long sleep deprivation unless it's dealt with. It rots your brain, makes you tired, slow, inattentive, unfocused all the time.
I had it for years. Losing 150lbs did the trick just fine. If anything is fucking up your sleep at all, get it fixed and do not wait. Real, deep sleep is critical and people shrug the lack of it off far too easily.
I can't speak to how common it is, but I have a somewhat severe case. @Fin, if there's even a possibility you have sleep apnea you should go to a doctor ASAP. Take it from someone who put it off...
I can't speak to how common it is, but I have a somewhat severe case.
@Fin, if there's even a possibility you have sleep apnea you should go to a doctor ASAP. Take it from someone who put it off for years and years. My treatment hasn't been perfect but even so it has made a huge difference for me.
Much more than anyone realizes. Pretty much anyone who snores could likely have it, especially if they seem to be tired throughout the day, or feel like taking a nap often enough.
Much more than anyone realizes. Pretty much anyone who snores could likely have it, especially if they seem to be tired throughout the day, or feel like taking a nap often enough.
Someone else mentioned sleep apnea but I don't think that's quite it, not based on what he's describing. I've got both sleep apnea and some pretty killer allergies and what he's describing sounds...
Someone else mentioned sleep apnea but I don't think that's quite it, not based on what he's describing. I've got both sleep apnea and some pretty killer allergies and what he's describing sounds more like what happens when my allergies are really bad than anything my sleep apnea has introduced or caused.
On the nights when my allergies are at their worst and I can't breathe through my nose at all, I also can't use my CPAP device so I'm pretty much in for a relatively sleepless night.
Apnea just means "not breathing", sleep apnea is that happening during sleep and causing wakefulness. If that's what's happening to OP it is sleep apnea, regardless of the underlying cause.
Apnea just means "not breathing", sleep apnea is that happening during sleep and causing wakefulness. If that's what's happening to OP it is sleep apnea, regardless of the underlying cause.
What I'm getting at is that the usual sleep apnea treatments won't really work with the symptoms he's describing. It's not as 1:1 as it sounds on paper.
What I'm getting at is that the usual sleep apnea treatments won't really work with the symptoms he's describing. It's not as 1:1 as it sounds on paper.
I agree that this sounds more like allergies than apnea. Have you tried antihistamines? Benedryl is a great one to try at bedtime (and safe/non-habit-forming). Good luck, (wo)man! Yes I am a...
I agree that this sounds more like allergies than apnea. Have you tried antihistamines? Benedryl is a great one to try at bedtime (and safe/non-habit-forming). Good luck, (wo)man!
Yes I am a medical professional. No, not a doctor.
Other suggestions: get checked for adnoid blockage. They're kind of like tonsils in your nasal passages and can do weird things to your ability to breathe through your nose. Also, does it happen...
Other suggestions: get checked for adnoid blockage. They're kind of like tonsils in your nasal passages and can do weird things to your ability to breathe through your nose.
Also, does it happen when you lie down but not on a pillow/cloth surface? It could be a dust (mite) allergy. A new pillow and allergy cover could help.
Have you tried those nose band/nasal strip things? I have broken my nose a couple of times and can barely breathe through one of my nostrils and they helped when I used them. I'm not a doctor or...
Have you tried those nose band/nasal strip things? I have broken my nose a couple of times and can barely breathe through one of my nostrils and they helped when I used them. I'm not a doctor or any type of medical person, so I'd be loathe to suggest anything more than that.
I had a similar problem, however, for me it was constant, I wasn't able to breathe through my mouth in the daytime for ages, but I didn't consider it a problem until it started interfering with my...
I had a similar problem, however, for me it was constant, I wasn't able to breathe through my mouth in the daytime for ages, but I didn't consider it a problem until it started interfering with my sleep at night. I was stopping breathing for a good 20 seconds before my brain kicked in woke me up enough to force breath through.
The last time I went to my doctor's and stated about this form of sleep apnea, they gave me a small bottle of Avamys (fluticasone furoate)to try for a week/month. Works wonders. I clean my nose out with a saline spray, then use the Avamys spray, and my nasal passage clears up and I can breath fine through my nose. I use three sprays once a day. Perhaps you can get it over the counter there if you're really opposed to seeing a doctor?
Waking up a number of times a night can lead to extreme sleep deprivation. Personally I found it something that has massively affect and damage my health, and my ability to concentrate on...
Waking up a number of times a night can lead to extreme sleep deprivation. Personally I found it something that has massively affect and damage my health, and my ability to concentrate on any-sized workload.
Doctors and dentists are like lawyers. The longer you avoid them, the more they cost.
Are you sure it's your nose that's the problem? It shouldn't be hard to rule out a deviated septum, but it doesn't make sense that you only have trouble when you're lying on your back.
This sounds more like sleep apnea to me, and instead of an ENT you should be getting a sleep study. You're going to need to see your primary doctor for a referral, though.
That's their job. You wouldn't be a bother. Also I went and did a sleep study when I was referred by an ENT office. They told me I have sleep apnea when I lie on my back. I do have a deviated septum and allergies. You need to talk to your doctor about this though. It can cause all kinds of serious health issues if it isn't properly addressed. Like @vakieh said:
I have a lot of anxiety around doctors (and especially dentists) due to not having medical or dental insurance growing up, and so rarely interacting with them until adulthood. So I can definitely relate to being hesitant to bring something like this up out of fear it'll be dismissed or ignored.
You're paying them (even if it's indirectly through insurance) to take care of you and your health, so you should absolutely feel free to bring up any concerns you have. Most doctors have heard and seen every symptom under the sun before, I doubt they'll see yours as out of the ordinary. And most doctors enter the profession because of a genuine desire to help people, so I think they'll really want to help you get better sleep.
This is a dumb question, but: doesn't your PCP know about your breathing issues? If not, why haven't you told her?
And you weren't able to get your medical records transferred? That sucks.
Oh buddy, not OP here, but some doctors are down right shady about it. My last doctor's office gave me a single piece of paper when I asked for my full record. I had been with them >15 years. Needless to say I got pretty upset and after some choice words with one of the office managers they printed out about 50 pages but I never did get any of the doctor's notes or actual charts from them, just computer records.
Your health is never a bother - medical professionals are there for a reason. You have to advocate for yourself so you can find a solution.
I've got sleep apnea, this doesn't quite sound like it. Sleep apnea affects the throat more than the nasal passages. In fact, what he's describing might actually prevent the use of some CPAP devices. There are a couple of days a year when my allergies are so bad that I can't breathe through my nose—those are the nights when I also can't use my CPAP.
And this is why you shouldn't crowdsource medical advice. :)
Seriously. Hasn't had a good night's sleep in over a decade. Doesn't feel like going to see a doctor. Spends time on the Internet asking random people for help. WTF?
My wife is a nurse and tells me how often she sees people who are suffering from some chronic but treatable illness, but don't bother to take simple steps to improve their health. Baffles my mind.
Well, for one, a lot of people simply can't afford it. Not in the US anyway.
Even something relatively simple can easily become prohibitively expensive, even with insurance.
Sounds like it could be sleep apnea, of which deviated septum can be one of the causes.
Easy / simple thing to try would be strips that hold your nose open while you sleep. Those are available at almost any drug/grocery store.
There's also a heavyweight option called a CPAP machine but that would require a prescription AFAIK.
Sleep apnea is known to be underdiagnosed, so you might have success going to a doctor and saying "I think I have this, can you test for it?"
You don’t require a prescription for a CPAP machine, you can buy them direct from medical supply companies. Much better to go through your insurance though, I think the price of mine was approximately $1500
I get that it's a serious condition but the only place I've heard of sleep apnea is as the butt of a joke in an American movie. How common is it?
Ever see someone sitting start to doze off?
If they have apnea, it goes like this. A dozen seconds after they nod off, they'll start to snore - and not the cute/good kind, the chainsaw variety, it'll sound like air is being torn through their airways. It starts pretty small, just a short noise and they get their breath. Over a minute or two, as they relax, the snores get louder, further apart, and eventually stop. You can see them trying to inhale, and failing, and even start to flail around a bit in their sleep, usually arching the back. They'll have relaxed to the point where their air intakes are now blocked, and they are suffocating.
They'll stir/move, emit a glass-shattering snore, gulp a massive amount of air, briefly open their eyes and look around like a frightened animal, then immediately pass back out and go right back to repeating this cycle. They won't remember anything they say or do during these brief non-awake moments of coming up for air. They have to 'wake up' to take a breath.
People with sleep apnea don't get more than five minutes of sleep at a time, period. No REM sleep, no completed sleep cycles. They can sleep twelve hours and still feel like they haven't slept at all. It's extreme, decades-long sleep deprivation unless it's dealt with. It rots your brain, makes you tired, slow, inattentive, unfocused all the time.
I had it for years. Losing 150lbs did the trick just fine. If anything is fucking up your sleep at all, get it fixed and do not wait. Real, deep sleep is critical and people shrug the lack of it off far too easily.
Hoof making me anxious just by reading it.
Yeah wow, much more common then I expected.
I can't speak to how common it is, but I have a somewhat severe case.
@Fin, if there's even a possibility you have sleep apnea you should go to a doctor ASAP. Take it from someone who put it off for years and years. My treatment hasn't been perfect but even so it has made a huge difference for me.
Much more than anyone realizes. Pretty much anyone who snores could likely have it, especially if they seem to be tired throughout the day, or feel like taking a nap often enough.
Someone else mentioned sleep apnea but I don't think that's quite it, not based on what he's describing. I've got both sleep apnea and some pretty killer allergies and what he's describing sounds more like what happens when my allergies are really bad than anything my sleep apnea has introduced or caused.
On the nights when my allergies are at their worst and I can't breathe through my nose at all, I also can't use my CPAP device so I'm pretty much in for a relatively sleepless night.
Apnea just means "not breathing", sleep apnea is that happening during sleep and causing wakefulness. If that's what's happening to OP it is sleep apnea, regardless of the underlying cause.
What I'm getting at is that the usual sleep apnea treatments won't really work with the symptoms he's describing. It's not as 1:1 as it sounds on paper.
I agree that this sounds more like allergies than apnea. Have you tried antihistamines? Benedryl is a great one to try at bedtime (and safe/non-habit-forming). Good luck, (wo)man!
Yes I am a medical professional. No, not a doctor.
Other suggestions: get checked for adnoid blockage. They're kind of like tonsils in your nasal passages and can do weird things to your ability to breathe through your nose.
Also, does it happen when you lie down but not on a pillow/cloth surface? It could be a dust (mite) allergy. A new pillow and allergy cover could help.
Good luck!
Have you tried those nose band/nasal strip things? I have broken my nose a couple of times and can barely breathe through one of my nostrils and they helped when I used them. I'm not a doctor or any type of medical person, so I'd be loathe to suggest anything more than that.
I always sleep on my side now. That seems to have made all the difference. It took awhile to train myself to do it.
I had a similar problem, however, for me it was constant, I wasn't able to breathe through my mouth in the daytime for ages, but I didn't consider it a problem until it started interfering with my sleep at night. I was stopping breathing for a good 20 seconds before my brain kicked in woke me up enough to force breath through.
The last time I went to my doctor's and stated about this form of sleep apnea, they gave me a small bottle of Avamys (fluticasone furoate)to try for a week/month. Works wonders. I clean my nose out with a saline spray, then use the Avamys spray, and my nasal passage clears up and I can breath fine through my nose. I use three sprays once a day. Perhaps you can get it over the counter there if you're really opposed to seeing a doctor?
Waking up a number of times a night can lead to extreme sleep deprivation. Personally I found it something that has massively affect and damage my health, and my ability to concentrate on any-sized workload.