What you are describing is the classic presentation of obstructive sleep apnoea, and it is far more common than most people realise. The snoring reflects partial airway obstruction; the apnoea episodes, where breathing pauses entirely, fragment your sleep without you being aware of it; and the exhaustion is the result of your brain being pulled back into lighter sleep stages to restore breathing hundreds of times a night. A sleep study, which can often be done at home, confirms the diagnosis and grades the severity. CPAP therapy, properly initiated and followed up, produces remarkable improvement in daytime function for most patients.
Written by Dr. Subhajit Sen, MBBS, MD (Pulmonology/Respiratory Medicine), Consultant Pulmonologist, West Bengal. 12 years of clinical experience. Phone: +91 8282857661.
