Sleep Apnea and Valium

Sleep is absolutely essential for normal, healthy function. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, about 40 million people in the United States suffer from chronic long-term sleep disorders each year and an additional 20 million people experience occasional sleep problems. There are many sedatives being introduced that serve as depressants and relaxants, enabling a calm state for individuals to achieve a successful nights sleep. However, long-term use should be avoided in many cases where a sleep disorder has been diagnosed. There are more than 70 different sleep disorders which are generally classified into one of three categories:

1. Lack of sleep (e.g., insomnia)
2. Disturbed sleep (e.g., obstructive sleep apnea)
3. Excessive sleep (e.g., narcolepsy)

In most cases, sleep disorders can be easily managed once they are properly diagnosed.

Sleep Apnea Defined

Sleep apnea is interrupted breathing during sleep. It usually occurs because of a mechanical problem in the windpipe, but it also can indicate a neurological disorder involving nerve cells (neurons). As people age, muscle tone relaxes which may cause the windpipe to collapse. This condition called obstructive sleep apnea, results in loud snoring and blocked airflow through the windpipe that lasts from 10 to 60 seconds. It may appear that the person is gasping or snorting. When this occurs, the brain quickly reacts to the sudden lack of oxygen, the muscles tighten and the windpipe opens.
Narrow nasal passages, enlarged tonsils and obesity are factors that may contribute to obstructive sleep apnea. The condition may also be related to the use of alcohol, tobacco or sedatives.

Patients with sleep apnea lose sleep because every time the windpipe closes, the person has to wake up enough to contract those muscles and resume breathing. As a result, the sleep cycle can be interrupted as many as 100 times a night. In addition, every time the windpipe closes, the brain is deprived of oxygen. This lack of oxygen eventually can cause morning headaches and decreased mental function. People who have sleep apnea are at increased risk for heart disease and stroke.

Sleep Apnea and Valium Use

Patients with severe sleep apnea are often tempted to use Valium or other benzodiazepines because it allows them to sleep through the apnic episodes without waking to consciousness. Benzodiazepines are central nervous system depressants that can affect the control of ventilation during sleep. The tranquilizer allows the person to think they received four hours of uninterrupted sleep, and they may even feel more refreshed upon awakening from such sleep. But that is only an illusion.

During the drugged sleep, the patient exerts considerable unconscious physical effort in overcoming the obstruction, eventually finally gasping and falling back into a deeper sleep until the next attempt at breathing occurs. This effort comes at a huge physiological price due to the lack of oxygen in the system during the effort. While the patient wakes after the effects of the drug feeling like he got some sleep, he really has suffered quite a bit of long-term damage.

It is axiomatic among physicians that benzodiazepines should NOT be given to patients with obstructive sleep apnea because of the long-term damage the prolonged apnic episodes cause. Long-term use of benzodiazepines in patients with sleep apnea causes elevated blood pressure, which may lead to stroke, heart attack and even early death.

However, the saving grace to benzodiazepines is that at normal doses, the patient can still muster the muscular effort necessary to eventually take a breath or at least to awaken sufficiently for this to happen. That is, benzodiazepines will prolong the apnic episode but not indefinitely.

Valium use can alter the sleep architecture by reducing the amounts of restorative rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and increasing the non-restorative sleep patterns. This can result in daytime drowsiness and poor cognitive function. Valium also depresses the tone of respiratory muscles, leading to sleep apnea.

Weight loss, decreased alcohol, tobacco and sedative use, sleeping on one’s side, elevation of the head or breathe right strips are all remedies that can help in reducing sleep apnea.

Sleeping Pill Alternatives over Valium

Patients with treatable conditions such as enlarged tonsils or a large deviated septum may benefit from surgery. Patients with sleep apnea should never take sleeping pills because they can prevent the person from waking up enough to start breathing again.

However, as the medical world continues in their research of sleep disorders, a big breakthrough in sleeping pills of medications is beginning with drugs such as flurazepam (Dalmane). These medicines were an important discovery because they did not pose the dangers of the anesthetic medications nor did they have the side effects of the older medications. However, all of these sleeping pills were derivatives and “distant cousins” of Valium. They are still on the market and may be very effective for certain populations.

Presently there are two sleeping medications that have proven to be advancements in the category of sleeping pills and as improvements over Valium: Ambien and Sonata. These are improvements on the Valium derivatives because they are effective without having the sedating or addicting qualities of the older sleeping pills.

Valium Help

If you or someone you know is struggling with a Valium addiction, we can help. Please call our toll free number at (888) 371-5703. We are available 24 hours a day to answer your questions on Valium addiction help.