Are you having trouble sleeping after a car accident? Perhaps you are waking up frequently, or you’re waking up in the morning with headaches or feeling completely unrested. You may be lethargic and sleepy all day, and find yourself dozing off when working, watching TV, or, worse, when driving.

This could be the result of sleep apnea caused by TBI (traumatic brain injury) due to your car accident or another trauma.

Link between TBI and Sleep Apnea

Although the mechanism has yet to be established, we know that a majority of people (perhaps 98%) have some form of sleep disturbance after TBI. The most commonly reported types of sleep disturbance include:

  • Frequent waking
  • Insomnia
  • Loss of daytime function
  • Daytime sleepiness

These disturbances cause objectively verifiable symptoms in more than 70% of sufferers.

The amount of people who develop obstructive sleep apnea is lower, but still significant, up to 36% in some studies. When looking at sleep apnea and insomnia in soldiers with TBI, they found that blunt trauma was more likely to be associated with sleep apnea, whereas insomnia was more likely to be associated with blast trauma.

Have You Suffered a TBI?

Many people think that in order to have TBI, you must have cracked your skull or lose consciousness. However, you can have TBI without either of these. You don’t even have to strike your head against anything to have TBI. The significant deceleration/acceleration that happens during an accident can cause your brain to slam against the side of your skull with such force that your brain is injured.

Instead, look for these TBI symptoms:

  • Dizziness
  • Visual disturbance
  • Emotional changes
  • Headaches
  • Memory loss
  • Inability to concentrate
  • Seizures

As well as sleep disturbance, daytime sleepiness, and fatigue that may also be symptoms of sleep apnea.

Treatment of sleep apnea may help reduce symptoms associated with your TBI.

To learn  more about sleep apnea and to schedule a diagnostic appointment, please call (303) 691-0267 at the TMJ Therapy & Sleep Center of Colorado in Denver today.