Posted by SleepyTimeGal on January 11, 2002 at 17:05:30:

In Reply to: since on CPAP I am yawning all day, but not tired posted by Eddie on January 11, 2002 at 13:58:36:

Just a layman's guess, but I believe yawning is triggered by a buildup of CO2. Many people, myself particularly, develop the habit of very shallow breathing which does not support our oxygen needs. All during sleep apnea, I had episodes, particularly at night, where I was gasping and feeling I couldn't get enough air. This carried over into the daytime as well. These have all but disappeared with the CPAP.

The partial solution for me was the breathing exercises I did for singing which expanded my lungs coupled with consciously reminding myself during the day to inhale deeply. It didn't do away with the gasping entirely, particularly at night, but daytimes were better. Along the way, my voice teacher commented that he knew I was not getting the lung expansion I should be getting and he didn't know why, since it was obvious to him I was trying my best and doing the exercises correctly.

My first few nights on CPAP, I truly felt I was getting air in portions of my lungs that hadn't been used for a long time and my diaphragm was sore as if I'd overdone the breathing exercises. My conclusion was that for whatever reason, I needed that extra pressure from the CPAP to completely fill my lungs with air.

I don't know if this helps you or gives you any insight in your own case. But check yourself and see if your normal breathing is very shallow.

Follow Ups:

• Re: since on CPAP I am yawning all day, but not tired addy 20:28 1/11/02 (0)
• Re: since on CPAP I am yawning all day, but not ti westernjoe 18:14 1/11/02 (0)

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