A sure sign that you could be affected by sleep apnea is that when sleeping you suddenly finds yourself waking up and the reason is that you were not able to breathe for a short spell of time. The primary sleep apnea cause occurs when you are unable to get air into your lungs while asleep and this may be because of your throat staying open making you unable to breathe, or because of a temporary collapsing of your throat which makes you wake up at night because of having become breathless.
Lying On Your Back
Most times sleep apnea happens while sleeping on your back although it can happen in any position. Sleep apnea is usually caused when the tongue or throat muscles relax beyond the usual range and by sleeping on your back, the fact that the muscles have relaxed so much lets the tongue slip up towards the back on your mouth and you are unable to breathe.
Therefore sleeping on your back is the main cause of sleep apnea and it may be as simple to remedy the problem by changing the position you sleep in to get that great nights sleep. If you still have your tonsils and adenoids and they become enlarged it may also contribute to sleep apnea. This can easily be helped by your doctor and may involve surgery.
Even as simple a thing as being overweight can be described as a sleep apnea cause and this is because when you have too much body fat, it can spread to all parts of your body. Thus, the soft tissue within your mouth as well as at the rear of your throat will soon get some unwanted fatty deposits that will cause the collapse as well as blockage of your breathing while you are sleeping.
For mild sleep apnea you can use a mouthpiece that will control your tongue and keep you breathing consistently for a better nights sleep.
Finally, you can also add the size of your skull and neck bones as a possible sleep apnea cause because often these may be shaped in a manner that forces your muscles to close over your throat when you are lying down and thus will spoil your sleep at night.
The best way to treat this and other sleep apnea causes is by using the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure treatment which is most suitable should you suffer from an extreme case of sleep apnea.
