BREATHING PROB POSSIBLE LINK TO BEHAVIOR PROB

[Doodles_Mimi]

MY GRANDSON IS NOW SIX. HE WAS A HAPPY HEALTHY BABY/TODDLER.
OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS HIS DISPOSITION HAS BECOME IRRITABLE AND UNCOOPERATIVE AND ANGRY : (  LAST WEEK WHEN I WENT TO VISIT FOR A FEW DAYS, I HAPPENED TO WAKE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. WHILE WALKING DOWN THE HALL I COULD HEAR A STRANGE NOISE AS I GOT CLOSER TO HIS BEDROOM I COULD TELL IT WAS COMING FROM THERE. I SLOWLY OPEND HIS DOOR A WAS SHOCKED TO FIND IT WAS HIM BREATHING. NOT A TYPICAL SNORE IT WAS A GASPING OR STRUGGLING SOUND. I WOKE HIS MOTHER AND ASKED IF SHE WAS AWARE THAT HE SNORED AND DID HE HAVE A COLD? WELL IT SEEMS THAT SHE DID KNOW THAT AT TIMES HE SNORED, AND NO HE DID NOT HAVE A COLD, THEY HAVE A VERY LARGE HOME AND HIS ROOM IS NOT CLOSE TO HERS, ALSO MY DAUGHTER IS A VERY SOUND SLEEPER. I AM THINKING HE MIGHT POSSIBLY BE BREATHING LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME. SO THE NEXT NIGHT I SNUCK IN AND TOOK A VIDEO OF HIM SLEEPING. WHEN I SHOWED HER SHE COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THERE COULD BE A CONNECTION TO HIS MOOD CHANGE? JUST TO ADD A FEW NOTES.  HE DOESN'T HAVE ASTHMA, HE IS NOT OVERWEIGHT, NONE OF HIS FAMILY SMOKES, NOT SURE ABOUT ALLERGIES, AND HE DOES SLEEP WITH HIS MOUTH OPEN, SINCE HE WAS LITTLE. ANY SUGGESTIONS? THANKS FOR ANY HELP

[Sandman2]

And Thankyou for keeping us informed!  It's information like this that helps us up other children!

[Doodles_Mimi]

YES, YOU ARE RIGHT! HE HAD HIS ENT SPECIALIST APPT. TODAY AND THE DOCTOR SAID HIS TONSILS WERE 75% BIGGER THAN AVERAGE AND HIS ADNOIDS WERE OUTRAGEOUS, NOT TO MENTION HIS NASAL TISSUES ARE TOO BIG AND NEED TO BE REDUCED. HE  ALSO HAS ALLERGIES. NO NEED FOR A SLEEP STUDY, MY VIDEO WAS ENOUGH EVIDENCE, HE IS HAVING 7-8 SECONDS OF NOT GETTING AIR MANY TIMES IN ONE MINUTE. SLEEP APNEA.
THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT.

[specialmom]

Glad you are getting some help for this.  Scary!!  I had a thought about allergies.  My son has allergies that are all year long but worse in spring and fall.  He makes chortling sounds and strange noises in his sleep due to itching feeling.  It does make him more tired and that indeed can lead to being cranky/behavioral issues.  good luck let us know what the specialist says.  

[Doodles_Mimi]

AN APPOINTMENT WITH HIS PEDIATRICIAN HAS BEEN DONE NOW JUST WAITING TO SEE THE ENT SPECIALIST TO SEE IF THEY WILL SEND HIM FOR A SLEEP STUDY.
P.S.  THANK YOU FOR YOUR ANSWER

[Sandman2]

Lack of sleep due to what you discribe will definitely cause behavior problems.   He should be checked out by an ENT doc.   He could have something like swollen adenoids.

[IChris]

In addition to sleep apnea, hyperventilation may also be worth checking out. Hyperventilation may happen as a result of anxiety, stress or tense muscles, and what cause hyperventilation may also cause behavior problems.

[RockRose]

It's hard to tell what you're describing,  but are you talking about sleep apnea?  Does he stop breathing for several seconds and then gasp in his sleep?

It doesn't sound like that's what you're describing - it sounds like in his sleep,  he struggles for several moments to breathe and kind of writhes around gasping for more than a couple breaths at a time.

Can you be more specific in your description?  Also, you might want to google sleep apnea.