Sleep Apnea and bad dreams?

Question

I have sleep apnea.
I have a horrible time with bad dreams. I've only been using my Auto-pap since february and often I tear the mask off my face when I am sleeping.
I have the dreams all the time but they seem worse when I wake up without the mask. My dreams are of family and friends who have died. They are either in a dilapidated house with lots of creaky stairs and hidden rooms, or in the house I grew up in. I wake up scared to death.
My question. Do you think when I stop breathing it triggers the dreams?

Answer 1

Are you on any medications? Some medications can increase dream activity, and make the dreams of a worse kind.
If you are on meds, ask pharmacist about possible side effects including dreaming.

It's also possible that wearing the mask is triggering a response at a deep level. Ask your doctor about this or consult a counselor.

If it continues, and you can't find other answers, do consult a counselor/therapist, as they may be able to help.

Answer 2

You can NOT diagnose sleep apnea from dreams. You MUST snore to have most sleep apnea, but if you sleep alone, you may be snoring and not know it. What you ARE is 'afraid of sleep apnea' to the point that your 'imagination' is coming out in your dreams and these horrible things happening in them. You can not roll your eyes and see your brain in your dreams. Your teeth hurt because you were clenching your jaw, not because you were biting something real. HOW do you know your heart rate was high ... did you wear a watch and count the beats, or was this only your 'impression' after your nightmare. My 'experience' with sleep apnea is that my husband had a stroke, and it was discovered that his sleep apnea was the DIRECT CAUSE of it even though he was sitting up at his comoputer playing a game when he had the stroke. My husband is FINE after his stroke, but part of that is because I know that his snoring was bad even before the stroke, and took steps to get him to stop snoring, and to breath all night long. There is a way for you to STOP these nightmares, if you are willing to pay the expense ... go to a sleep disorder doctor and be tested for sleep apnea. My husband had insurance that paid for the testing ONLY because it was considered to be a 'possible cause' of his stroke so your insurance may not pay for the test. Meanwhile, have a friend spend the night and monitor your breathing ALL NIGHT ... if you don't snore, and don't 'stop breathing' then you don't have sleep apnea ... or, when you wake up EVERY morning for the next three months, go to the mirror and LOOK CLOSELY at your eyes. If the skin around your eyes looks BLACK, as if someone had socked you and given you two black eyes, then you may have sleep apnea. You can get this 'black eyed' look from other medical conditions, too, but they tend to go away during the day ... when you have sleep apnea, they stay black for several days. These are the ONLY ways to tell if you have sleep apnea. Your dreams are just you 'worrying' about having this disfunction, not you having this disfunction. I think you are probably FINE, but if you are seriously worried, look in the mirror and/or get tested at a sleep disorder center.

Answer 3

I don't have any problem like that anymore. Since I got my Cpap I am actually sleeping through the night most of the time. Since there is a continuous flow of air through the mask, you shouldn't stop breathing anymore.

Answer 4

NO you dream when you finally reach that deep sleep state. It sounds like you need to be reevalated for the ox rate and you may need a small amount of muscle relaxant to relax before attempting sleep.I have the same condition and my cpap has saved my life.

Answer 5

that sounds like a question you should be asking a proffesional docter...not people on the internet lol

Answer 6

i use a cpap also,,here watch this
http://www.starterupsteve.com/flash/html/jingle_bells_reversed.shtml