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CPAP Machines

Sleep apnea, CPAP machines and how do they work?

Why does having sleep apnea make you tired? When you experience snoring it is the upper airway becoming relaxed and this causes vibrations which are heard as snoring. When the upper airway becomes too relaxed, the airway collapses and stops you from breathing. This has the consequence of making your oxygen levels fall and your body reacts to that by waking or arousing you from sleep.

CPAP machines provide Continuous Positive Airway Pressure into your upper airway to prevent the airway from collapsing. If you think of a vacuum cleaner continually sucking air, that is a negative pressure and a CPAP machine is like a vacuum cleaner in reverse. It provides Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP)

Sleep can be divided into 5 stages of sleep. These are classified as stage 1, stage 2, stage 3, stage 4, and REM sleep. People who don't experience sleep apnea have good levels of the deeper levels of sleep ( stage 3, stage 4 and REM sleep) and this allows them to wake up feeling refreshed.

Sleep apnea disrupts your sleeping pattern and depending upon how many apneas you experience you may not get much stage 3, stage 4 (slow wave sleep) or REM sleep and this is why people wake up tired.

Use of your CPAP machine reverses this process and by putting your prescribed pressure into your upper airway the CPAP machine keeps your upper airway open. This allows your body to relax and experience all of the stages of sleep. CPAP machines allow your body to experience a normal sleep pattern.

Use of a CPAP machine is via a prescription and it is important to bring your script to your appointment.