I don't understand the connection between frequent potty trips and sleep apnea. I've read comments on here re: them but can't find out why this would be so.
Help!
Thanks!!

I dunno, but the important thing is to never sleep thru a potty trip...

sheep1234 wrote:I don't understand the connection between frequent potty trips and sleep apnea. I've read comments on here re: them but can't find out why this would be so. Help! Thanks!!

This link may give you some information on the topic.

http://www.sleepapnea.org/resources/pubs/noct.html

Prior to my CPAP I would make 3 trips to the bathroom a night. Now it's 0-1 per night. I think when your sleep is interrupted by apnias you are more restless and tend to feel the need to go, but when you are sleeping soundly you can usually go through the night.

Also, with sleep apnea, your blood pressure is likely to be high, which affects your kidneys (puts them into overdrive), but once on Cpap, the problem goes away as your BP comes down.

sheep1234 wrote:I don't understand the connection between frequent potty trips and sleep apnea.

Hi,

I am no MD, but what my MD told me is that when you have a hard time breathing and your blood oxygen drops, your body wants you to wake up so you can get up and start breathing again. It does that by secreting a messenger chemical. It happens to be the same chemical that tells you that you have to go to the bathroom.

For me, I was getting up like that every 60 to 90 minutes before starting on CPAP. I haven't gotten up once to go to the bathroom during the night in the year since I started using the machine. It was like a light switch was flipped inside my body.

-john-

My doc also said this to me. besides the bp thing, you wake up out of a sound sleep to being completely awake and your body says hmmm why did I wake up. Oh, I must have to go to the washroom. I would get up and not think about it just go. He said it's more complicated than that but it's easiest to explain that way.