| vctry7 |
Sleep apnea common with meth users?
When I was coming down from meth
and started to fall asleep I would jerk myself back awake every
few minutes. It was like I would forget to breathe. I even
remember a few times realizing that I was not breathing and be
trying to think to myself "breath! breathe!" I would wake up
gasping. My husband would do the same thing, only he would yell
so loud you could hear him outside.
Is this common among meth users? Does anyone know what exactly
was happening to cause this? I never spent any time around other
addicts that trying to sleep to know. Just curious. |
| Replies... |
Paws
from hell |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
I couldn't resist this
thread!
I don't suffer from sleep apnea, just insomnia, but my house
mate does. I can hear him snoring off the paint in his room down
the hall. He is recovering , 25+ years clean and it's still an
issue.
Seems like sleep apnea kept waking him up 60x an hour, = no
sleep.
He got put on the breathing apparatus with a humidifier, now I
can't tell he's in the house. |
| Loraura |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
Sleep apnea is a common
problem. Many people don't know that they have it until they go
see a doctor about sleep problems like insomnia, or excess
fatigue. People who are overweight or asthmatic have increased
risk.
I would imagine (aka this is my opinion) that crashing from any
stimulant would increase the risk, as the body has been run
through the wringer prior to finally crashing. The body has a
lot of things to "do" while we rest. If we don't rest, and we've
been on jet-fuel or days, the body may not have enough energy
left to do even the things it needs to do while we rest. Like
breathe. And pump blood.
Add in anything that might be taken to "make the crash easier"
and knock a person out and you are making it even harder for
your body to do the things it needs to do while you rest. |
| inkolb |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
CPAP works well but the
problem my husband had with it was that the water was not heated
and froze his nose and mouth. otherwise it was great and he woke
up well rested. |
| Penel0pe |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
I can remember waking up
and feeling like I was choking on my own face or something for
the first year or so clean.
Another weird thing that still happens (But not as often..)
When I blow my nose, I can feel my sinuses inflate like a
balloon inside my head (Obviously from so many years of snorting
various things.) It is a very bizarre sensation, makes a funny
noise that my kids think is hilarious, but it does seem to be
healing to some degree.
I found that sleeping on my side helped me out a lot with that
"Choking" sensation. I'd recommend seeing a doctor (If you can)
if you feel like you are having actual sleep apnea. |
| vctry7 |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
It only happened when I
was coming down and only when I got to using heavily. Never
since. Maybe it wasn't sleep apnea. I thought that was the word.
There was no snoring. It was just like the body forgetting to
breath. I though I was going to die in my sleep.
My husband started doing it first. He would tell me to stay
awake and make sure he didn't quit breathing. |
| billmaster |
Re: Sleep apnea common with meth users?
I was diagnosed as having
"severe sleep apnea" about a year ago during a sleep study. That
means that a person is waking up at least 100 times per hour!
Pretty scary. I tried to do the CPAP device, but couldn't
tolerate it, so I was fitted with a mouthpiece that opens up the
airway passage. It looks like a football players' mouthpiece. I
now sleep good, and my latest sleep study showed I now wake up
only 25 times or less per hour, which I'm grateful for. Oh yeah,
snorting meth for 10 years probably didn't help with the
breathing passages...you think? |
