Sleep

[Timetobreath]

When I go to bed and get to sleep in an hour or so my breathing wakes me up I am having a full on can't breathe gasping at inhaler a hand fan blasting in my face. This can happen 3 or 4 times a night. Anyone else get like this.

Cheers Rob

[MELNEL]

Hiya, this sounds not very pleasant to get while sleeping, It could be sleep apnea, I would definitely get in touch with your GP or consultant, it should get sorted out if you have trouble breathing. Please take care of yourself, and hope that you getting better again, best wishes 🌺🌺🌺

[Timetobreath in reply to MELNEL]

Morning Melnel thanks for that I never thought of sleep apnea I did tell my gp and consultant all I was given was morphine. And told to make appointment for August. But nurse us coming on Friday so can ask her. Cheers Rob

[MELNEL in reply to Timetobreath]

That's good I would definitely ask her about it. 👍😃 Best wishes 🌺🌺🌺

[Timetobreath in reply to MELNEL]

Cheers Melnel will do cheers Rob

[Spacecat1]

Check with your respiratory nurse that you are not retaining 02 . I do and if I don't wear my mask my breathing is all over the place

02

[Timetobreath in reply to Spacecat1]

Morning Spacecat1 the nurse is coming on Friday so I ask then. Cheers Rob

[Biker88]

Yes, try sleeping in a semi sitting position it works for me. I use a pillow support but I know a lot of people with lung problems use adjustable beds. Can take a bit of getting used to but worth it for a good nights sleep

[Timetobreath in reply to Biker88]

Morning Biker88 I try that but end up flat again on my back had pillows down sides. slept on sofa last night had 3 hours sleep not good. Cheers Rob

[peege]

, further to the above reply you can also purchase bed raisers to place under the head end of bed to try before you spend ot on an adjustablebed, some people find it helpful . Do speak to your gp ASAP, you can't go on like this. You need to be sleep monitored for a diagnosis. Good luck, P

[Timetobreath in reply to peege]

Morning Peege the nurse is coming on Friday so be asking her I did have bed wedge but didn't like it very hard. Thanks for that. Rob

[peege in reply to Timetobreath]

I think you can put the bed wedge under the top of the mattress Rob

[Timetobreath in reply to peege]

Hi I will give it a try thanks.

[Ian1967]

Hi Rob, you say that you’re waking unable to breathe multiple times a night, are you also a heavy snorer or falling asleep in the morning, if so you should speak to your GP or Respiratory Specialist about it, you might be suffering from Sleep Apnoea CO2 retention and if so you need to get a Sleep Study done, either in hospital or at home, this measures your SATS at bedtime.

If you are suffering from Sleep Apnoea or CO2 retention this can be treated with a CPAP or BiPAP machine, I use BiPAP and oxygen at bedtime for CO2 retention, I was rushed into hospital in April 2017 suffering from Type II Respiratory Failure and put on oxygen 24/7, I had a Sleep Study at home in October 2017 and my SATS were very low, I was told I needed to use BiPAP probably for the rest of my life, I didn’t mind because I had already used BiPAP when I was in hospital in the April.

Since being on BiPAP I now only have to use ambulatory oxygen and oxygen at bedtime with BiPAP. As Spacecat1 said get yourself checked out if you are suffering from Sleep Apnoea or CO2 retention CPAP or BiPAP therapy will change your life for the better, since being on BiPAP I haven’t had any colds, flu or respiratory infections.

I hope I have been some help.

Ian.

[Timetobreath in reply to Ian1967]

Morning Ian my consultant said my oxygen level is fine its lung tissue I am missing as an x smoker. Have a hand fan blasting in my face most of the time. Yes I am a heavy sleeper and told I do snore so the apnoea could be right nurse is here on Friday so be asking her about it. Thanks for the reply. Cheers Rob

[2greys]

Hi Timetobreath, I note you have Emphysema. One of the symptoms of Emphysema is a stiffening of lungs, this makes it hard to breath out, to expel all the stale air. If you do not expel all the stale air, called trapping, then you take the next in breath it inflates your lungs more and you retain more of that breath as well. Eventually your lungs get full of stale air and there is no more room for the next breath, you can't breathe in again. Shallow breathing during sleep can make this worse.This wakes you up, understandably, in a state of panic. This drives a loop of anxiety that makes matters even worse. You need to learn to relax, easy to say but hard to do under these circumstances. Concentrate only with breathing out breathing out, the in breath will take care of itself. After a short while your breathing WILL return to normal. Once you have reasonable amount of breathing in you can start to take your inhaler.

The way I relax to deal with this is to imagine lying on a pebble beach as an imagined wave comes crashing ashore I breathe in. As the water slowly recedes, filtering through the stones with a hissing sound, I breath out slowly, controlling it through pursed lips, make sure you are breathing out for at least 2 or 3 times as long as breathing in.

Although these episodes scare the pants of you, be reassured that you will not die from it.

It is this over filling of the lungs that causes hyper inflated lungs they stretch out but the elasticity of the lungs has gone so they do not shrink back to normal size and tend to get floppy and collapse on itself, trapping co2. Just like a balloon, once blown up full and then you let the air out again it is all crinkly and does not regain it's former size.

[Timetobreath in reply to 2greys]

Morning 2greys yes that makes sense I do panic and in the last few weeks getting hand fan helps loads and do what you said try to breath slowly in and out. One time I ended up on bedroom floor for 30mins and felt I'll. I had ambulance come out before but couldn't do anything just calm me down. So I sit and think of a holiday we been on sitting by the pool. But never been on holiday as bad as this. But looking forward to it still flying maybe good. But thank you for your reply. Cheers Rob

[Boeta in reply to Timetobreath]

Thank you for this...God bless!

[Boeta in reply to 2greys]

Hi.....Thank you for this....God bless!

[Ergendl in reply to 2greys]

Thanks, so much for that explanation, 2greys. A couple of days ago, the air was so heavy, I was struggling to breathe out on my daily walk with my husband. I have emphysema, so that explains it clearly. As you suggested, I concentrated on breathing out during the walk, and then changed our route to a cooler more breeze avenue.

[Kristicats]

Hi Rob have you tried breathing exercises in bed . I do a few every night . Breathe in through your nose and count to 10,( or as many as you can)hold for 5 then blow air out through mouth as if blowing a candle out steadily counting to 20 (or double than you breathed in)

This conditions your breathing pattern and expands your lungs. It’s a good habit to get into. Emptying the lungs is the main issue with copd and the breathing exercises help if done regularly. Laying propped up enables you to breathe better during times of exacerbation and cuts down the length of time of the exacerbation. Please talk to your doctor if things don’t improve and he/she may assess your situation and offer something to help at night.

[Timetobreath in reply to Kristicats]

Hi Chriskho yes I will give it a try. And the nurse is here on Friday so I will tell her. Thanks Rob

[Hidden]

Hi check your pillows out I had feather pillows and struggled to breath when I first came down with c.o.p.d I changed to fibber pillows problem solved , now I can't lay down at all because of my breathing and I have become an expert in sleeping sat up 😂😂

[Timetobreath in reply to Hidden]

Morning Davey1963 I got 4 pillows but ended sliding down them lol.cheers for the reply. Rob

[Keem59]

Hi. Do you mean you have a fan blasting in your face?If so, maybe if your sleeping with your mouth open, your drying your throat out, causing this. Or maybe your sleeping with your mouth open causing the dryness to build up.

[Timetobreath in reply to Keem59]

Morning Keen59 I only use the hand fan when my breathing kicks off I sleep with my mouth shut, plus I got a water bottle in bedroom. Cheers for your reply. Rob

[ninelives]

Morning Time to breatheCan sympathize as it's jolly unpleasant.Some fabulous replies from previous posts.

Before your respiratory nurse appointment tomorrow may I suggest you write down your symptoms ,if anything excerbated them or anything that helps and don't be shy about wanting answers /tests or whatever is appropriate.

Let us know how you get on and wishing you well.

[Timetobreath in reply to ninelives]

Morning Ninelives yeah I will do I started a list of things to ask tomorrow, and yes I let you guys know the outcomes. Cheers Rob

[Lutontown]

Sleep apnea? Get it checked out.