Sleep Apnea

May 23, 2009 - 8:08am | 2 posts

rgeorgia

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05/23/2009 - 7:52am

Sleep Apnea

I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea a number of years ago. My husband has been very concerned with not just the snoring, but the resulting difficulties in breathing. After my second Back Wellness class, he mentioned to me (unsolicited) that I was no longer snoring. I have asked him since then about his observations. He told me that after about four difficult breaths I seemed to self-correct. Can you explain what is happening?

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May 23, 2009 - 8:47am | 1 post

Esther Gokhale

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09/10/2008 - 8:36pm

A part of stretchlying is that you lengthen your neck and change the angle that your head joins your neck. For some people the resulting shift in the throat and neck architecture immediately and entirely fixes their snoring/sleep apnea problem, even when sleeping on the back. Sounds like you are in this category - good for you! For other people, it takes a little more restructuring in other activities (learning to sit, stand a and walk with healthy form) to reach the threshold of healthy neck architecture that prevents snoring. Unfortunately, in some people there are other factors (like excess weight) so that healthy posture alone cannot solve the problem.

How curious that it takes about four breaths for you to settle into a healthy breathing pattern. It sounds like there is a tight muscle involved that takes about that length of time to respond to the stretch you are encouraging.