My Life and Sleep Apnea

I used to sleep on my stomach before I had my back problems back in the 80’s. I know that I slept better; at least that's how I remembered it. Then I flattened a disc in my lower back and I found that the only way I could sleep was on my back. It was strange at first because my neck was strained in the morning. I guess it was because my neck was used to laying a certain way at night. Of course this wasn't very good for my sleep apnea. A few years later I was diagnosed with acid reflux. I have written a post on acid reflux earlier. Having this condition really affected the way I slept. I used to have just one pillow under my head but with the acid reflux my head and neck had to be elevated to keep the acid coming up into my throat. Even with the pillows and medication for the acid reflux it is still a problem. Of course with sleep apnea the best way to sleep with sleep apnea is to tilt your head back and your chin should be pointing upward. This presents a problem because w...

Many researchers believe that there is a connection between sleep apnea and acid reflux . I don’t doubt there is because of so many people who have both conditions. Check any sleep apnea forum and you will find many posts on acid reflux. I’ve had both for years and it makes it miserable trying to sleep. What happens to increase the acid reflux in sleep apnea patients? Sleep apnea sufferers breathe harder than most people when they sleep. This hard breathing increases the air pressure in the throat which in turn brings up the acid in the esophagus. The problems that occur, if this continues, can be serious. Besides damaging the lining of the esophagus, it can also lead to esophageal cancer among other things. It is bad enough to have to wake up with the taste of vomit in your throat but add the fact that serious consequences can occur makes this quite a problem. I take medications each evening before I go to bed to stop the acid reflux but sometimes even that isn’t enough to stop ...