Sudden Inhalation While Sleeping

[denise]

I recently noticed that occasionally while I'm sleeping or just before I drift off, I will suddenly inhale sharply. Of course since I'm sleeping (or nearly so) I don't know what event in my body preceded it (e.g., apnea). I do know that the few times I've been partly awake when it happens, I've been on my side, mouth closed, and breathing freely (no congestion or tongue obstruction or anything).

Any ideas what could be causing this?

 

[Mad]

I recently noticed that occasionally while I'm sleeping or just before I drift off, I will suddenly inhale sharply. Of course since I'm sleeping (or nearly so) I don't know what event in my body preceded it (e.g., apnea). I do know that the few times I've been partly awake when it happens, I've been on my side, mouth closed, and breathing freely (no congestion or tongue obstruction or anything).

Any ideas what could be causing this?

This sounds like sleep apnea to me.
I think I have actually done this a handful of times myself and it always seems like I must have not been getting enough air either due to sleep position, mouth posture, etc.

 

[Johnson Bagfoot]

Training default co2 levels in the body with buteyko totally eliminated this tendency for me. Your body will basically try to regulate the same total volume of air intake per minute. Sometimes before/during sleep, volume will decrease due to the relaxation of the diaphragm. There will then be an impetus to suddenly take a larger breath to maintain the breathing volume per minute.

You could also have something functionally/anatomically obstructive going on, due to mouth breathing, nasal airway obstruction, a huge fat walrus neck, or otherwise.

But I'd guess probably not. I'd also guess you probably mouth breathe at night and might hyperventilate to some degree in the day.

Try this test: Buteyko practical elements

What do you get?

 

[Mr. God of Cars]

It's possibly the fact that your breathing-related muscles relax, allowing the natural flow of respiration to happen. It proves being sleeping is way healthier than being awake.

 

[Prosper]

It proves being sleeping is way healthier than being awake.

I wonder if being dead is even better

 

[Mr. God of Cars]

I wonder if being dead is even better

Being dead does not increase the sharpness of respiration.

 

[Prosper]

Being dead does not increase the sharpness of respiration.

It does induce a state of deep relaxation though.

 

[Mr. God of Cars]

It does induce a state of deep relaxation though.

Funny, but my point was explaining the fact the the poster, when sleeping, sometimes experiences a sharp inhalation (which means being awoken is not synonym of being relaxed [since the poster didn't mention experiencing that type of inhalation during awakened state] ...), while your point was to jest my reasoning (sorry for what I wrote if that was no your intention).

 

[Mr. God of Cars]

It does induce a state of deep relaxation though.

Dead state does induce a state of relaxation, but not for so long, because ATP production is stopped, and when ATP in muscles is gone, so is the relaxation of muscles (Rigor mortis). The muscles get relaxed again by enzymes which will soon break the muscles down, so death is a state of deep relaxation only for about 10 hours.