When you hit the hay, does it sound like a backfiring car engine has ended up in your room? Does your partner often think that a jet engine has set up shop in your bed? You may have a snoring problem, more commonly known as sleep apnea. While snoring is a normal occurrence, think of sleep apnea as snoring on steroids. People afflicted with sleep apnea snore like their lives depend on it, because they actually kind of do. When you’re afflicted with sleep apnea, you tend to stop breathing for 10 to 30-second increments as you sleep, which causes your body to sputter and snore in an attempt to get oxygen.
To add insult to injury, sleep apnea doesn’t just cause your bedroom to sound like the hang out spot for a bunch of chainsaws. Because sleep apnea temporarily halts the intake of oxygen, this can lead to the oxygen count in your body lowering. The lower the amount of oxygen in your bloodstream, the worse your body’s overall function will be, which includes your sexual function.
Erectile dysfunction is very common amongst men that suffer from sleep apnea, with a whopping 46% of men with the disease reporting experiencing erectile issues, while 69% of men with the disease reported experiencing reduced sexual desire.
If you’ve found yourself uninterested in sex and unable to get your little guy stand at attention, it could be your sleep apnea to blame. Talk to your doctor about perhaps investing in a CPAP mask or OAT mouth guard, both of which have been found to be very helpful in fighting sleep apnea. With a solution in place, your body will get all the oxygen it needs, and your erection can go back to normal.