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All types of sleep apnea lead to excessive sleepiness during waking hours. In some cases, this sleepiness may have gone unnoticed by the patient because it took years to develop. They may not remember what normal alertness is anymore. However, under careful questioning, certain patterns may emerge, including embarrassing episodes of falling asleep in public, habitual drowsiness during periods of boredom and trouble focusing while driving.

The other major symptom of sleep apnea is loud snoring, often accompanied by frequent audible pauses in breathing followed by gasping, snorting and frequent movements in bed. Because apneic people don’t always awaken during their episodes, they may be unaware of their nighttime struggle. In many cases, initial visits to the physician are prompted by frustrated bed partners who are unable to sleep through the snoring and gasping of their partner.

Other symptoms include:

• Morning headaches
• Poor ability to concentrate
• Poor motor skills
• Heartburn 
• Erectile dysfunction
• Morning dry mouth or sore throat