Coughing at night and no sleep

[Matilda_1922]

For the last week I have been coughing a lot at night which has disturbed my sleep. I don’t cough much during the day.

I need at least 8 hours sleep and at the moment getting about a quarter of this. I just feel drained. I’m tired most of the time anyway but now it’s far worse. I’m being investigated for sleep apnea.

I’m really fed up I know it’s only been a week

Can anyone give me any tips to aid sleep. I already build up my pillows and also have a corner pillow too.

[Bella395]

At a guess, I would say that you need to address your lung hygiene/clearance because it sounds like sputum is building up. It would be helpful if you could post back listing your medications and mucous clearance techniques.

[Matilda_1922]

Hi bella365

I have checked all this out with physio in Friday. Says I doing it alright.

[Bella395 in reply to Matilda_1922]

Yes but what are you doing right? The reason I asked for more detail is that in my experience hospital staff sometimes do not address this issue thoroughly. The usual advice is just active cycle breathing/huffing and it is simply not enough for some people with bronchiectasis. All of the clearance techniques that my caree has learned have been instigated by ourselves.

Do you have a clearance device? Are you using a mucolytic? How often and when are you scheduling your clearance sessions? Have you recently sent a sputum specimen to the laboratory for culture? Do you have a consultant who specialises in bronchiectasis? Do you have post nasal drip? If so, are you clearing your sinuses? All these things are important in managing your condition. In my experience coughing during the night can be minimised but you need to pinpoint why it is occurring because it can indicate there is something amiss management wise. Sending a sputum specimen off might be a good place to start.

Sorry to ask so many questions but I don’t see how anyone can advise without more information.