Sleeping with breathing problem

I am a 55 year old male sleeping on a chair for over 2 years. I start to go to sleep, and then I awaken suddenly...and so on...It makes me miserable every night, Finally realized that my throat was closing up as I became relaxed, making me stop breathing and awakening with a loud snorting gasp. It happens when I am deeply relaxed, even before I start to fall asleep. It happens in any sleep position, my throat closes upon exhalation, not inhalation. I am wondering if perhaps the insomnia problems I have been having for the last six months are actually related to difficulty relaxing because my body "knows what will happen if I sleeps too deeply? It is getting worse now that even during the day my throat closes on me. Doctors have given me every breathing medication from asthma pumps to every pill in the market-it still happens. I am living a meserable life awakening not rested in the morning, abnormal daytime sleepiness, including falling asleep at inappropriate times and becomming very restless. I am really scared, I don't know how long I can take not getting any sleep. Someone please help me with this throat Problem. Thank You

[deucewild]

sleep apnea , o toa sleep clinic and do the test..i got a cpap machine..night and day

[idesofmarch]

DITTO on getting to a sleep study done. You most likely have sleep apnea and if you think you wake yourself up a few times a night it really is more like 60 times a hour.  It could cause your death or someone elses because you do not get the right kind of sleep and you should not be driving like that.  Do you ever take off in the car towards work or home and get there and not remember the entire trip.  You are sleep driving.  God be with you until this problem is taken care of.

[marie50]

If it also happens during the day while you are awake it has to be more than sleep apnea. I have great sympathy for you because I have a similar problem. I did extensive research on the internet and came across a website that finally gave me an explanation for my problem.
   Please visit:  http://cantbreathesuspectvcd.com/ or research "vocal cord dysfunction" in the internet using google.

[idesofmarch]

A person with sleep apnea can fall asleep many times during the day just from the lack of correct sleep at night.  You won't know that it is happening until something (like breathing stopped) happens or something startles you.  Even then you don't know that you were sleeping.  You would have to have someone witness the event prior to the throat closing up on you. Believe me it has happened to me and I have been a sleep apnea patient for over 4yrs now and have had 5 or 6 sleep studies done. I still have some problems because my c-pap gear can't tolerate the high preasure that I need to keep me breathing.  I have gained weight in the last 4 years due to many illness' and the preasure has to be adjusted with weight gain because my throat(neck)gets fatter.

[Jabber]

No need to live liek this.  Go to the doctor, don't be afraid, it is most likly so easy to fix but if you let your fair keep you from seeing someone, you will be sleeping in that chair a long long time. I did that for 2 years to and I got so depressed and thought I was going to lose my mind.  I went to a specialist and I got my life back.  You have to take control, do the research and go see a specialist ASAP.  Good luck.