Do you wake up several times during the night and have a hard time falling back into a deep sleep? Does this leave you feeling groggy and out of it during the day? Maybe you snore when you finally do fall asleep. If you have any of these symptoms, it’s possible you have sleep apnea.
I’m Dr. James Stewart, and I treat sleep apnea patients right here at my office in Livonia, Michigan. Sleep apnea is a medical sleep disorder that occurs when soft tissue in the throat or mouth block free airflow while you sleep. This causes you to take in too little oxygen to support normal breathing. If breathing stops for more than 10 seconds, your body will wake you to reinitiate normal breathing. This interrupts your sleep cycle and deprives you of the sleep needed to fully refuel and rejuvenate your body.
Believe it or not, your sleep apnea can affect more than just your nightly sleep. Sleep researchers at the University of Copenhagen and the Danish Institute for Health Services Research have examined the socio-economic consequences of sleep apnea and other sleep disorders. Patients with these disorders often visit the doctor more frequently than those who don’t have them. They also tend to have medical costs two to three times higher than healthier individuals. These visits to the doctor, as well as being groggy and unproductive at work, often cause sleep apnea patients to have to take time off of work, which can inevitably lead to the loss of a job, which in turn can lead to the patient being on welfare. As do other individuals who have health problems, sleep apnea patients can sometimes get extra welfare benefits to help cover the expense of medical care, which becomes a burden on the rest of taxpayers.
It is very possible for your sleep apnea condition to take over your life, but I am here to help you. I have years of experience treating patients with all variations of sleep apnea, and I want you to be next on my list. Take back your life and your health and schedule an appointment at my Livonia, Michigan office today.