Living with Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a common but serious chronic sleep related breathing disorder that’s diagnosed by a doctor. It’s when disrupted breathing—stops and starts that repeat throughout the night— deprives the body of oxygen and keeps people from getting enough of the quality sleep they need. Physical features and decreased neuromuscular function in the head and neck block the airway, causing people to snore or gasp for breath. The results: a poor night’s sleep, tiredness the next day, and risks to both physical and mental health. Did we say it’s common?  Yes, OSA is all too common, which makes it a public health concern and one of the top sleep disorders National Sleep Foundation (NSF) helps the public understand better. Over 50 million Americans are estimated to have OSA and 80% of those are undiagnosed. OSA affects individuals across all walks of life, impacting both males and females of all age groups, ethnicities, and weight classes.

How Does OSA Happen?

There’s a number of ways the upper airway can get blocked when we sleep: 

• Certain Anatomical Features: Some physical traits, like a narrow throat, large tonsils, large tongue, differences in head shape, a small lower jaw or a recessed chin can increase the risk of airway blockage. 
• Neuromuscular Disfunction: Having a dip in your upper airway muscles, caused by a relaxed muscle tone while sleeping can make it harder to keep your airway open. Your muscles may also be less responsive during periods of reduced breathing while having an OSA event. Neuromuscular dysfunction is present in everyone and reduces upper airway muscle activation during sleep, which can lead to airway collapse, especially in those with certain anatomical factors that further compromise airflow.
• Obesity: Excess weight, especially around the neck, can put pressure on the airway, making it more likely to collapse during sleep. 
• Age: As you get older, the muscles in your throat can lose tone, making it easier for the airway to collapse.

How Does Untreated OSA Affect Your Life?

OSA can have a big impact on various parts of your life both during the day and night, which is why diagnosis and treatment are so important. OSA leads to fatigue, daytime sleepiness, and cognitive impairment, which can impact quality of life, daily functioning, and productivity. 

Physical Health: Having OSA can put you at higher risk of developing serious health conditions like high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. 

Mental Health: Having OSA can make you feel tired during the day and also affect your mental health. You might experience increased irritability, mood swings, and even depression. By not getting enough of the quality sleep your brain and body need, the balance of hormones and neurotransmitters that regulate your body’s mood and stress responses don’t work as well. 

Family and Relationships

• Emotional Strain: OSA can cause constant sleepiness and irritability that impacts relationships, making it sometimes difficult to maintain healthy interactions with family members, friends, and colleagues.
• Snoring and Sleep Disruptions: Loud snoring can disturb the sleep of a bed partner, leading to frustration and insufficient sleep for them as well. No one wants to toss and turn because their bed partner is snoring or gasping for air all night! 

Safety

• OSA can contribute to sleepiness that increases the risk of drowsy driving. Falling asleep behind the wheel, slower reaction times, and decreased alertness cause crashes.

Work Productivity

• Daytime Sleepiness: Excessive daytime sleepiness can make it harder to concentrate and affects your memory and decision-making abilities. You can be present at work and still not perform well because OSA has caused you to have insufficient sleep. 
• Absences from Work: People with untreated OSA are more likely to miss work due to sleepiness and health issues that come from sleep loss.

Diagnosing OSA

OSA is a chronic medical condition that’s diagnosed by a physician, most often a professional who is trained in sleep disorders medicine (i.e., a sleep doctor). There are questionnaires and clinical tests used in both sleep laboratories and at home to help with diagnosis. There’s also a new generation of FDA-cleared consumer technology devices used in the bedroom, on the bed, or worn on the body to detect symptoms of OSA and help with the doctor’s diagnosis. 

Treatment Options for OSA

If you have OSA, getting diagnosed is a good thing. There are millions and millions of people like you. Treatment of OSA is individualized, based on working with your doctor, and it’s critical that any treatment is used appropriately. So, it’s important to have a range of available options from which you can choose:

• Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP): A CPAP machine rests by the bedside and delivers air pressure through a mask or nose piece, keeping the airway open during sleep. It’s the most common treatment used for OSA and is prescribed by a doctor.
• Oral Appliances: Mouthguard-like devices that reposition the jaw or tongue during sleep to keep the airway open. Dental specialists often provide these treatments. 
• Surgery: Specialized surgeons use procedures to reshape the jaw or mouth palate or remove obstructions like tonsils. A newer procedure, Hypoglossal Nerve Stimulation (HNS), also known as Upper Airway Stimulation (UAS), involves implanting a device like a pacemaker that stimulates the hypoglossal nerve to control movement of the tongue.
• Positional Therapy: Some people benefit from devices like supports, pillows, or even garments that prevent them from sleeping on their back. These products can often be found at retail sources and may even qualify for health savings account purchases.
• Lifestyle Changes: Weight loss, diet changes, avoiding alcohol and smoking, and sleeping on your side can help reduce symptoms. This is often the first place to start and supports other prescribed treatments.
• Medicines and Future Treatments: The landscape of OSA treatments is constantly evolving, which can help people with OSA find even more options. Recently an injectable form in the GLP-1 class of medicines was approved by FDA to treat OSA. New treatment options in development to manage OSA include an oral pill that targets the neurological dysfunction of OSA. 

A couple things are for sure: living with diagnosed and treated OSA can have its challenges, but living with undiagnosed OSA can lead to serious short and long term health consequences and even death. Fortunately, OSA is a fairly common condition, and there is a growing range of treatment options that can have a positive impact on your health and well-being. If you have concerns about sleep apnea, it’s always a good idea to consult a healthcare professional.

This content was produced independently by the National Sleep Foundation and supported by Apnimed, a Gold sponsor of the 2025 Sleep Awareness Week^® campaign. Sponsored content is educational and not intended to promote products or services or make medical claims.

Apnimed is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to breathing new life into the sleep-related breathing disease treatment landscape through innovation in oxygenation.