Pregnancy can come with a whole array of different twists and turns — you might predict some of your side effects, and there might be others you didn’t anticipate or have never even heard of.
If something unexpected pops up, it’s not necessarily a huge cause for concern. Lots of pregnant women have symptoms in common. You belong to a community here that cares about you and wants to make your pregnancy journey the best it can be. Take a deep breath and ask your healthcare provider about your next steps.
Join HATCH as we chat about sleep apnea pregnancy.
What Is Sleep Apnea?
Feeling tired is nothing new when it comes to pregnancy, especially in those first trimester weeks and at the tail end of the third trimester when you’re just counting down the days until your baby’s due date.
But what if you’re continually feeling tired throughout your whole pregnancy? Daytime sleepiness is not conducive to decorating the most perfect nursery ever.
Many women who experience sleep apnea during their pregnancy don’t actually know they are being affected by it, and it often goes undiagnosed. Obstructive sleep apnea can cause difficulty breathing while sleeping due to your airways being repeatedly obstructed. What causes sleep apnea during pregnancy?
A couple of reasons behind this sleep disorder could be excess weight, throat anatomy limitations, hormone changes, and brain changes. These are just a few reasons that the throat may not be able to fully relax when sleeping.
Another sign you could be experiencing sleep apnea is if you or your partner keep getting woken up from your snoring. Loud snoring is a common sign that someone has obstructive sleep apnea, along with morning headaches, dry mouth, and abrupt waking throughout the night where you are gasping for air.
What Is Pregnancy-Related Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea during pregnancy, although it may sound a little scary, is fairly common and can be linked to changes in the body due to pregnancy. For instance, when your uterus expands and pushes all your organs up and against your lungs, you typically get out of breath more easily. Due to everything shifting and putting more pressure on your lungs, you have less lung capacity to take in oxygen.
When you’re lying down to go to sleep, this adds extra pressure on your lungs and can be a reason why you’re not getting enough airflow while you sleep, causing you to take more breaths each minute and eventually waking you up more often.
As mentioned before, hormone changes can be another reason that you could be having difficulty sleeping. Your hormones are continually changing throughout pregnancy. So, this change in your body can also contribute to what is happening in your body while you sleep.
Women who experience insomnia may be experiencing a sleep apnea pregnancy and may not even know it because they’re used to missing out on the critical zzzs. If you’re continually waking up throughout the night, not able to fall asleep, or feel tired throughout the day as your pregnancy progresses, it may be a good idea to explore the possibility of having sleep apnea.
How Is Someone Diagnosed With Sleep Apnea?
First, like a normal check-up, your doctor will most likely evaluate your symptoms and look at your throat, nose, and mouth. If they aren’t confident in diagnosing you with sleep apnea, they may refer you to a sleep specialist that can perform a sleep test called a
polysomnography.
A polysomnography test will record your brain waves, oxygen levels in your blood, heart rate and breathing, and body movements. This test can show if you suffer from sleep apnea by monitoring your sleep cycles and finding why they may be disrupted. The test would be able to show that you suffer from sleep apnea if your breathing repeatedly starts and stops while sleeping.
While this test may not be super fun, at least it’s not a test you need to study for, right? Plus, this might be one of the only tests where you can show up in your pajamas.
At-Home Treatment Options
If you’ve identified that you do indeed have a sleep apnea pregnancy, take a moment to celebrate that you know the cause of your symptoms. What you may have thought were just your typical pregnancy symptoms that you had to deal with, you can now possibly eliminate or lessen with some help from at-home treatment or help from your medical experts.
Begin getting in the habit of not sleeping on your back. If you keep waking up on your back, try sleeping with a pregnancy pillow that keeps you on your side.
Adhesive breathing strips can help open up your nostrils to help get more oxygen flowing through your nose while you sleep. A humidifier may also be helpful if you tend to get congested and have a hard time breathing through your nose or have drier air in your home. Essential oils such as lavender and peppermint are great for clearing congestion as well, so if you favor diffusing oils, try these.
Taking good care of your body and eating nutrient-dense, healthy foods is another active step to make sure that excess weight isn’t the factor contributing to sleep apnea. It is inevitable (and healthy!) that you will gain extra weight when you’re pregnant. Gaining weight while pregnant means that your baby is growing and healthy — yay!
So don’t stress out about it, but generally, trying to be mindful of habitual over-indulgences, especially in empty calories snacks, may help you stay your healthiest.
Possible Medical Treatments for Sleep Apnea in Pregnancy
If these at-home treatments are not enough to help you get a more restful sleep at night, your doctor may want to take a different course of action.
One therapy that may help you breathe better throughout the night is positive airway pressure. This approach is effective by using a breathing device called a CPAP machine that pushes air into your airways so that you’re getting enough oxygen while you sleep. This helps prevent the number of times you wake throughout the night because you’re no longer struggling to breathe enough on your own.
If a CPAP machine is not the route you want to go, you may try an oral device that is a mouthpiece that you wear in your mouth to keep your throat open, preventing snoring or obstructive sleep apnea. These devices would need to be fitted to your mouth by a dentist first; it can be effective for those with mild to moderate sleep apnea.
Fear Not: This Is Temporary
If you were not previously diagnosed with sleep apnea or having trouble sleeping, this could have been brought on by your pregnancy. Sleep apnea pregnancy is again more common than you think and usually goes away after pregnancy.
Your body is changing so much inside and out every day. It’s constantly working very hard to grow a human being and is doing its job to maintain your bodily functions at the same time. If anyone needs a little grace, it’s your body (and mind).
Knowing this is only temporary, you can be encouraged that with each passing day, you are closer to meeting your little bundle of joy and one step closer to not having to deal with this sleep apnea pregnancy anymore.
If the information above does resonate and you are diagnosed by a doctor with obstructive sleep apnea, now you know there are ways to lessen the symptoms and get better sleep at night. You need your beauty rest, mama, so cozy up in your maternity pajamas and see what works best for you.
Don’t Forget To Take Care of YOU.
Being a mama is hard work. Whether this is your first baby or your fourth baby, you do so much to keep everything and everyone else afloat. Having special self-care time for yourself is important, especially during pregnancy.
Do not feel bad for taking the time to take extra care of your body and mind. If you need to ask a friend or family member to watch the kids or help out around the house so you can rest or do your wellness and self-care routine, then do it! The ones who love you will be more than happy to help you where you need it.
Rest is so important and helps your body recharge for the day ahead of you. If you’re not getting adequate sleep at night, you won’t feel good throughout the day. When you’re pregnant, your immune system is also lowered and fighting extra hard so getting rest is so important to stay healthy and sick-free.
If you think you may be experiencing a sleep apnea pregnancy, seek medical help today to have a more restful tomorrow. It will get better; you got this, mama!
Sources:
