“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.”
- Dalai Lama (Leader – 1935 - )
Stop Sleep
Disordered Breathing (SDB) causing insomnia, hypoxia and REM sleep issues by
seriously considering using BiPAP and Bilevel auto adjusting pressure machines.
A person may be able to treat these issues and Awake Bruxism which may lead to
REM Sleep Behaviour Disorder causing a diagnosis up to some decades later of Dementia,
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
To avoid confusion, BiPAP is a Registered Trademark owned by Philips Respironics. Bilevel refers to all other brands such as ResMed.
The explanation of how I treated and stopped Sleep Disordered Breathing causing many issues is going to be done on a practical level based on my own personal experience. I am not a medical doctor and there will be others with more knowledge and a medical background who can explain better from a technical point of view.
Many people will need to take action themselves to wake up feeling refreshed, energized and happy each day. It is going to be up to you to educate yourself on how the various BiPAP and Bilevel machines truly work!
There is ample evidence showing that there are up to an estimated 80% or more than 15 million people who are non-compliant, failing and non-successful on sleep apnea therapy! Further details are on the blog pages Why is CPAP Compliance Rate Low? and Secrets to Success: Answer is FREE.
On the blog post Coronavirus Deaths using Ventilators, BiPAP and CPAP, I detail the lack of education and training of the sleep and respiratory medical specialists and that the majority of sleep specialists do not regularly use the sleep apnea machines themselves. In addition, a number of the specialists are arrogant, have a lazy attitude to educating themselves and their patients and are not willing to really listen to the patient and the issues that they may be having using the sleep machine.
From personal experience having had the symptoms of Dementia and currently cleared of those symptoms; I believe the issues together being hypoxia or oxygen desaturation, REM sleep issues, obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia and Awake Bruxism may be very early warning signs or markers of various neurodegenerative disorders. Note that Awake Bruxism may not be applicable for all people. Awake Bruxism involves tooth clenching or tapping while you are awake which may drive you crazy and frustrated.
It is my belief that it is possible by treating these issues together as early as possible, a person may be able to stop or at least prolong the onset of REM Sleep Behaviour Disorder (RBD). By doing so, may prevent up to some decades later, RBD leading to a diagnosis of Dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and other disorders. Further details are on the previous four blog posts (listed at the end of this post).
On the previous blog post Stop Hypoxia, Alzheimer's, Bruxism using CPAP and BiPAP, I mention my Awake Bruxism was caused by hypoxia occurring BEFORE obstructive sleep apnea during the REM sleep period between 4 and 5 hours of sleep. In addition, it is the event of hypoxia occurring that has subsequently caused obstructive sleep apnea and insomnia during REM sleep.
By stopping hypoxia due to Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB), I was able to overcome obstructive sleep apnea and insomnia occurring during REM sleep between 4 and 5 hours of sleep. As a consequence, I was able to stop Awake Bruxism and eliminate the symptoms of Dementia!
Emphasis is put on the word “BREATHING”. Bring order and control to your Sleep Disordered Breathing during REM sleep when your breathing may become erratic, irregular and shallow. I believe from personal experience for many people that you will stop and eliminate hypoxia and the later issues that may arise including the symptoms of Dementia.
To bring order and control to your Sleep Disordered Breathing, you first need to know what the sleep pattern looks like that caused hypoxia.
Understand how hypoxia arose and you will be able to take action such as by adjusting the sleep apnea machine settings and/ or change the sleep machine that you are using. For example, change to BiPAP or Bilevel machines from CPAP. By doing so, you may be able to stop hypoxia causing the whole sequence of later issues from occurring.
Note that hypoxia occurred even though I have been successfully using a bilevel auto adjusting pressure machine for many years. This is a critical point as many millions of people are using sleep apnea machines. It is the settings on the machine and the type of machine that you are using that are critical in stopping and preventing hypoxia.
What does the sleep pattern look like using sleep reports from SleepyHead/ OSCAR software? (Software is FREE! Links on right hand side)
Below is an example of one night showing details of sleep data obtained from the machine. Note the AHI (apnea-hypopnea index) is only 0.53 and I slept for 7 hours 22 minutes. Ignore the 22 hours 50 minutes that is showing.
The medical specialists use an international benchmark of 5 AHI or lower using the machine at least 70% of the time over a 30 day period, for at least 4 hours every night. Further details are on the blog post Why is CPAP Compliance Rate Low?
My results on this night are much better than the international benchmark! You may have already noted that using the sleep machine with an international benchmark of 4 hours every night is cutting off before what I believe is the absolutely critical REM sleep period between 4 and 5 hours of sleep.
For those people who have seen a sleep specialist; what did the specialist advise when you showed your sleep data with an AHI of 5 or lower and that you had slept for 4 hours every night?
Did they say “All fine, see you in 12 months?”
The chances are that the medical specialist sent you home after a few minutes. You can see other sleep apnea patient comments on the various sleep apnea forums. Links are on the right hand side.
The next report is showing further data obtained from the machine for the same night as above. The report includes the time that each apnea occurred and the length of time for each apnea. For this night, I only had 4 apneas with the longest one being 33 seconds. Note that Obstructive and Central Sleep Apnea are only classified as an apnea when the apnea is 10 seconds or more.
As explained on the previous blog post, Sleep Disordered Breathing may be due to “little” apneas of less than 10 seconds, flow limitations and respiratory/ breathing issues. These issues may not be included in the AHI; however they can cause disruption to your breathing and sleep especially when there is a cluster of them occurring during REM sleep.
Have you seen anything from the report that may cause concern?
Did you notice at 5.00 am after 4 hours 30 minutes of sleep, the ZERO Minute Ventilation, Respiratory/ Breathing rate and Tidal Volume?
Should the medical specialist send you home and not review the data in more detail and ask further questions; it is my belief that the medical specialist may have just missed a critical clue in the early warning or marker of various neurodegenerative disorders including Dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
As previously mentioned, from personal experience having had the symptoms of Dementia and currently cleared of those symptoms; I believe that by seeing this critical clue as early as possible will enable the medical specialist to stop and prevent the various issues being hypoxia or oxygen desaturation, REM sleep issues, obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia and Awake Bruxism.
On the next report, I show the 5.00am segment in more detail. The segment shows 6 and half minutes and the sleep pattern that caused all the above issues and the symptoms of Dementia.
The Report is showing a declining Minute Ventilation with both components being Respiratory/ Breathing Rate and Tidal Volume of air declining ending in a “waterfall” decline to ZERO!
Minute Ventilation is the total volume of air entering the lungs in one minute.
Note the following:
1. The obstructive sleep apnea was 33 seconds long and ended at 5.01.30am.
2. The decline in minute ventilation and tidal volume started at 4.55.43am, more than 5 minutes before the obstructive sleep apnea started. Hypoxia or oxygen desaturation is occurring during this time due to insufficient minute ventilation and tidal volume of air below 400 ml per breath. Normally my median/ average tidal volume is just over 400 ml per breath based on 6 ml/kg Ideal or Predicted Body Weight not actual body weight.
3. The tidal volume of 680 ml per breath at the start of the decline was higher than the median or average of 420 ml due to a small flow limitation at 4.54am. It is just noticeable on the flow limitation diagram on the first report.
Flow limitation is when the airway experiences resistance and there may be only a small reduction in breathing of say 10%. This can still trigger sleep fragmentation and oxygen fluctuations.
https://www.sleeprenewal.co.za/sleep-disordered-breathing
4. Respiratory/ breathing rate stayed at ZERO for 8 seconds.
5. At 5.01.25am, tidal volume surged to 880 ml per breath from ZERO in just 9 seconds after the obstructive sleep apnea due to lack of oxygen!
Together with an increase in pressure has caused me to wake up and as a consequence led to insomnia for a long time. After some time, I will drift in and out of sleep for the rest of the night waking up tired, feeling exhausted.
As mentioned previously, during REM sleep your breathing may be erratic, irregular and shallow. Some nights I have woken up with rapid breathing and heart palpitations. In addition, I may wake up from a “bad” dream with my arms moving to defend myself from an attacking animal.
6. My “layman’s” understanding is that when minute ventilation, respiratory rate and tidal volume are all ZERO means that I have had a total collapse of the airway with 100% obstruction. In addition, a few more seconds of ZERO readings and I will begin to go unconscious!
How Long Can the Brain Go Without Oxygen? A Timeline
Between 30-180 seconds of oxygen deprivation, you may lose consciousness.
At the one-minute mark, brain cells begin dying.
At three minutes, neurons suffer more extensive damage, and lasting brain damage becomes more likely.
At five minutes, death becomes imminent.
At 10 minutes, even if the brain remains alive, a coma and lasting brain damage are almost inevitable.
At 15 minutes, survival becomes nearly impossible.
https://www.spinalcord.com/blog/what-happens-after-a-lack-of-oxygen-to-the-brain
Why is the REM sleep period of 4 to 5 hours of sleep absolutely critical
to your health and wellbeing?
There is considerable evidence that cardiac function may be stressed
during sleep. Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, in particular, may redline the
system with increasing risk in morning. There also seems to be a circadian
pattern of cardiac dysfunction, with problems often occurring late in the night
and near the time of waking. It is recognized that in the electrical storm that
makes the heart’s main pumping chambers suddenly begin to beat erratically in a
way that stops the flow of blood to the brain and body termed ventricular
fibrillation, the condition causes Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD), in which the
victim instantly becomes unconscious and dies unless CPR or a defibrillator is
available to shock the heart back into its steady beat.
But why most death occurs between 3 am to 4 am in early morning. There
is no certain time for death and that can come at any time. Yet, some reports
say most death occurs during night while the time span between 3 am to 4 am is
the most vulnerable. According to a research most hospital deaths occur between
3am to 4am.
Silent Deaths
At Night Why? - Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute & Research Centre
(rgcirc.org)
https://www.rgcirc.org/blog/silent-deaths-at-night-why/
However, waking up at 3 in the morning has nothing to do with supernatural
activity and everything to do with your sleep cycle.
Around 3 in the morning, most people are in the middle of the REM cycle,
which is the deepest sleep you experience during the night. When in REM sleep,
your heart rate drops, your breathing slows, and your body temperature
decreases. In addition, many functions in the body are reduced or stopped altogether,
including movement of your limbs. The body goes through these changes to help
you get as much quality sleep as possible, but it can be concerning when you
wake suddenly during this time.
https://naturalform.com/blogs/wellness/the-witching-hour
Everybody sleeps, but bedtime habits vary from person to
person. Sleep Cycle analyzed data from millions of users of its sleep
pattern app and found that the average American goes to bed at 11:39 p.m.
A study of sleep patterns across 10 countries (via Withings) came to a similar
conclusion, placing the average bedtime at 11:40 p.m. on weekdays and 12:10
a.m. on weekends.
https://www.healthdigest.com/636579/the-best-time-to-go-to-bed-according-to-science/
If the average bedtime is 11:39 pm, then the period of 3 am to 4 am coincides
with the REM sleep period of 4 to 5 hours of sleep when I am having ZERO
readings!
I strongly urge anyone who has declining Minute Ventilation, Respiratory Rate and Tidal Volume ending in ZERO, to urgently consider changing the settings on their sleep machine and/ or changing their machine to BiPAP or Bilevel from CPAP.
After a few months with ZERO readings every night during the REM sleep period of 4 to 5 hours of sleep, my medical condition deteriorated very fast. This was despite my AHI being 0.5 to 1.5 on most nights and far lower than the international benchmark of 5.0. I was very tired suffering fatigue after waking up in the mornings and the Awake Bruxism worsened very quickly and the symptoms of Dementia appeared.
Note that I had ZERO readings in other REM periods during the night. Fortunately these events did not seem to cause or increase any issues with the symptoms of Dementia. At the moment, I have very little Awake Bruxism which may be due to waking up in the REM sleep period after 6 hours of sleep. Further details are on the blog post Stop CPAP REM issues and Sleep Apnea causing Dementia: use BiPAP.
Most people experience mild cognitive changes and memory loss as they begin to move into their 50s. One of the clearest indicators of dementia is the speed of progression. Regular mental decline associated with aging is usually a slow and gradual loss of memory or attention span. Dementia, however, is often characterized by rapid, sudden, and severe changes in memory and cognitive ability.
https://www.dementia.org/symptoms
On the next blog post, I will show using sleep reports how I stopped hypoxia and the various issues mentioned above including the symptoms of Dementia.
Further details of the combination of REM sleep issues, obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia and Awake Bruxism and how they may be early warning signs or markers of a diagnosis of REM Sleep Behaviour Disorder (RBD) and subsequently Parkinson's disease, Dementia and Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disorders are on the following blog posts:
Oct 20: Use BiPAP ST machines with iVAPS or AVAPS for REM sleep issues
Nov 20: Use BiPAP and CPAP to treat REM sleep and OSA issues which may cause Parkinson's and Dementia
Dec 20: Stop CPAP REM issues and Sleep Apnea causing Dementia: Use BiPAP
Jan 21: Stop Hypoxia, Alzheimer's, Bruxism using CPAP and BiPAP
Mar 21: Use BiPAP to prevent Alzheimer's Dementia caused by REM sleep issues
Apl 21: What BiPAP Settings prevent Alzheimer's due to REM sleep breathing issues?
May 21: Can Different BiPAP Machines prevent Alzheimer's Dementia?
Jul 21: Stop Alzheimer's Dementia using BiPAP with AVAPS or iVAPS
Aug 21: Can Alzheimer's be due to Sleep Position on Back using CPAP?
Feb 22: How to stop Alzheimer's Dementia and Amyloid Protein using BiPAP?
Should you be having side effects and issues with your sleep apnea therapy; CHANGE what you are doing so that you can wake up feeling refreshed and energized each day.
“Have courage. Be adventurous and Go for it! Overcome your fear.”
- Mrhelpful
