Why Women Are Underdiagnosed for Sleep Apnea

The picture doctors learned

Much of the early research on sleep apnea was done mostly in men, and the classic picture that came out of it is a middle-aged man who snores loudly and falls asleep during the day. Screening questions still lean on that picture. Women who don’t fit it can slip through.

How it can look different in women

• Quieter snoring, or none at all. A bed partner may never mention it.
• Insomnia rather than sleepiness: trouble falling or staying asleep.
• Fatigue and low energy more than dozing off.
• Morning headaches.
• Depression or anxiety.

What it gets blamed on

Those symptoms are easy to put down to something else: stress, depression, anxiety, hormones, perimenopause, or just getting older. When that happens, the sleep apnea underneath goes untreated, and women tend to be referred for sleep testing later, when the condition is further along.

Menopause changes the risk

Estrogen and progesterone appear to help keep the airway open during sleep. As those hormones decline around menopause, the risk of sleep apnea rises. New sleep problems at that stage of life are often blamed on menopause alone, when sleep apnea may be part of the story.

Getting tested is easier now

A night in a sleep lab used to be the main way to diagnose sleep apnea, and that was a barrier for a lot of people. Today a home sleep test can diagnose most cases of obstructive sleep apnea in one night in your own bed.

Why it’s worth finding

Untreated sleep apnea is linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, memory and focus problems, and mood disorders. Treating it can improve all of that, along with how you feel every morning.

Signs worth a conversation

• You wake up unrefreshed, even after a full night
• Insomnia that doesn’t respond to the usual fixes
• Morning headaches
• Low mood or anxiety alongside poor sleep
• Snoring of any volume, or someone has noticed pauses in your breathing
• High blood pressure

Take the sleep quiz, then talk to your doctor or to Dr. Sheri Love at Love Sleep in Wichita. If sleep apnea is the answer, a custom oral appliance is a comfortable alternative to CPAP. Request a consultation.