Concerned about DH and sleeping and memory

[hedgehogsdontbite]

Can anyone advise?

DH has always had a problem staying awake when he's not mentally engaged. He can drop off from wide awake to fast asleep in a second. In church, in restaurants, in work meetings, watching a film etc. It doesn't seem to be related to tiredness more lack of stimulation.

I don't know if it's relevant but he also talks in his sleep. You can have a conversation with him but it quickly becomes apparent that he's actually asleep. He has no memory of this the next day. He also rarely remembers anything said to him after about 9.00pm

I don't know if the memory issue and sleep issue are connected but over the last few months both have got so much worse. I have to tell him stuff over and over again because he can't remember that he's already asked me, sometimes just 5 minutes later. He's started falling asleep in the middle of reading a story to DS. Yesterday he fell asleep sat at the table while collecting my daughter and wasn't even aware that he'd done it.

But the real worry is that on Saturday for the first time ever he fell asleep while he was driving. There was no warning, no tiredness, no feeling sleepy. On minute he was fully awake and the next he was asleep. I screamed as we veered across into oncoming traffic and he woke and managed to swerve back in time. It was terrifying. It's also terrifying that he has no recollection of being asleep. He thinks he just blinked.

I don't know what to do now but I'm very worried.

He needs to go to see his GP asap, I would say.

And not drive until he has had investigations/diagnosis.

Thank goodness you were in the car with him when he fell asleep.

GP appointment and no more driving until the problem is identified/sorted.

My goodness. Yes he absolutely must not drive. And go to the GP as soon as possible to start investigations.

Will he take it seriously - can you make sure he won't drive?

Sleep apnoea - I'd put money on it. Recongnise it from personal experience.

Off to GP who should refer him to a sleep clinic.

He can fill in the Epworth test if he wants confirmation.

The biggest killer of people with sleep apnoea is driving accidents.

When I was treated it was like getting my life back - it's like living in a cloud

He definitely won't be driving until we know what's going on. It's not worth the risk. I've told him to see the GP. Hopefully he'll remember to make the appointment today. I think he's scared himself.

He hasn't really taken it seriously before, but he's very shaken about the driving incident. He'll take it seriously now.

Has he ever been to the doctor about this problem? Sounds like he really needs to get it checked out. I think it sounds as if he has narcolepsy.

People with normal sleep patterns take a while to get to REM sleep but people who have narcolepsy can jump into this kind of deep sleep very quickly.

I really think that he should not be driving at all until he has had this investigated.

Something else I've just remembered, which he's always done, he holds his breath in while he's asleep then lets it out in big loud breath. Drives me potty as it wakes me up.

SLEEP APNOEA!

He doesn;t hold his breath. HE STOPS BREATHING!

Sleep apnoea i would bet my dh had it he would fall alsleep mid conversations, watching tv, in the cinema, reading with the children, always as a passenger in the car but never when he was driving strangely (I normally do all the driving anyway other than very short distances). He now has cpap and although he still nods occasionally late in the evening he doesnt do it in the day time anymore.

I'd write all these different symptoms down to make sure they all get remembered when you go to the gp - I'd go with him if you can as you are witnessing events he cannot recall. So I think your report of symptoms and events will be very relevant to his diagnosis.

Also he was advised to advise dvla and only drive short distances in his case while he was having tests

Sounds like apnoea. The breathing you described is a classic symptom. He needs a sleep study done. If confirmed, they may give him a cpap machine which will solve the problem. Though it may take some getting used to...

Sounds like sleep apnoea to me as well - my dh has it very severely, but it is totally controlled using a CPAP machine at night which is small and vvv quiet.

Go with your dh to the GP so you can describe his sleep noises, and record them - I think there are snoring apps you can use. Then be firm that he needs to be seen by a Sleep Specialist, not an ENT surgeon.

He saw the Dr this morning. He's had some blood taken to rule out any physical underlying cause and has been referred to the sleep clinic at the hospital. The Dr suspects the same as MN, sleep apnoea.

It's more than a suspicion! He has the classic symptoms...

BTW if bloods come back with anaemia still go to the sleep clinic, my bloods came back with iron and B12 anaemia and so they stopped looking and treated me for that - it was only after 3 months of treatment with no improvement that they realised I had Sleep apnoea AND anaemia!

Well done for getting him to go though - the cpap machine if he's given one is hard to get used to but if he persists then life improves immeasurably.