Sleep and Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) causes the airway to partially or fully collapse during sleep, briefly waking the brain (without full consciousness) to resume breathing — sometimes dozens or hundreds of times a night. The result is fragmented, unrefreshing sleep despite feeling like you slept a full night.

Loud snoring, witnessed breathing pauses, morning headaches, and excessive daytime sleepiness despite adequate time in bed are the classic warning signs. STOP-BANG is the standard screening questionnaire used to assess risk.

Risk factors include excess weight, a narrow airway, and sleeping on the back — losing weight and side-sleeping both genuinely reduce mild OSA severity, though they're not a substitute for diagnosis.

A sleep study (often done at home now) is the way to confirm a diagnosis, and CPAP (a machine that keeps the airway open with air pressure) remains the most effective treatment for moderate-to-severe cases. If you suspect sleep apnea, it's worth raising with a doctor rather than only treating the daytime sleepiness symptomatically.