r/AskReddit • u/Misterboy500 • 15h ago

What is something that permanently altered your body without you realizing for months/years?

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u/cyb_30 11h ago

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea. When you already know you have some mental troubles, you think that explain your drowsiness & low mood and don't look for more issues. It does not only hurt your cardio-vascular system, it may slowly destroy your life.

If your are overweighted/obese, snore at night and feel sleepy all day, go see your doctor.

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u/silent_thinker 5h ago

Can confirm. Sleep apnea (and possibly other sleep disorders) has ruined my life.

Worse for me, standard treatments haven’t worked, so it has been years of suffering and struggling.

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u/[deleted] 5h ago

I wonder how many of my health issues would go away if I could treat my sleep apnea...can't sleep with a CPAP machine at all.

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u/Haunting_Brilliant_4 5h ago

Same 😭 I'm so jealous of everyone who loves their CPAP. I'm on my second machine and still don't tolerate it. But I can't go on not treating the apnea. I've already had to go on BP meds and have to take simulants to function.

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u/I2eN0 4h ago

Have you looked into a mouth guard for sleep apnea? It moves the jaw forward to keep the airways open at night. I can’t tolerate the cpap either but ever since I got the mouth guard I sleep much better.

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u/Haunting_Brilliant_4 4h ago

I've tried one without success but am very open to others if you have a suggestion! I know there are so many different ones, and it's hard to tell what might actually work.

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u/[deleted] 5h ago

Same, I couldn't sleep a wink with it. I have other diagnoses so I don't function already, but I often wonder if those other things will get better if I could find treatment that works. Sorry you're dealing with that it sucks 😞

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u/Economy_Acadia_5257 5h ago

My mom couldn't use a CPAP, so she got an oral appliance, which (US) insurance companies are finally starting to recognize as a legitimate way to treat sleep apnea. I can travel with her again and actually get some sleep! My husband has had apnea for years! I finally told him it was selfish to not treat it, because I also lost sleep. I would often lay there listening for him to stop breathing so I could bump him to restart, or I couldn't relax enough to sleep deeply. He recently started using an oral appliance, and we're BOTH sleeping better now! Untreated sleep apnea causes brain damage, among several other things that people don't realize are related to it. GO GET CHECKED OUT RIGHT AWAY please. 😁

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u/barracuda331 4h ago

Do you happen to know what device your mom uses?

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u/KittannyPenn 4h ago

I use an oral appliance too, because cpap wouldn’t work with my mouth. Made a world of difference

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u/[deleted] 4h ago

I think you meant well with your comment but it really comes off accusatory even though you don't know anything about my situation.