Hi there guys!

I just want to see how many people on here, if any, are dealing with this:

I have a sleeping disorder which is already messing with my concentration and focus, and in the long term, will affect my heart. I hold my breath in my sleep, or rather, I pause from breathing. However, what I have is not sleep apnea, as I do not snore, and there is no blockage preventing me from breathing. Raw hasn't helped me at all so far with my sleep "apnea". I am going to a sleep lab at the best hospital in the country next week to sleep with weird nozzles attached to me so that the doctors can understand this more, but I wanted to know if anyone else on raw has this mmmmm, characteristic.

Most sleep apneatics suffer with being overweight or are obese, but I am not. I credit raw foods for that one, but I am worried about my heart and brain function. I read an article the other day on breathing from a contortionist, in which he states that when we focus on something very intensely, we sometimes arrest our breathing for a while. This stop in inhalation is because of hormones we release when we are stressed or panicked. These hormones help us to be more aware of our surroundings and to take in more information. Heightened awareness basically... Too much adrenaline is bad though, as it is a real strain... I notice I do this a lot in my waking life, such as when I am reading something interesting, or as I look closer and closer at something to understand it: eg, reading or putting together equipment. I always hold my breath. Could this daytime pattern be spreading to my sleep behaviour? Could it be that I am so intensly focused on my dreams that I forget to breathe? ha ha, I doubt it.

Anyway... I have been high raw for years now, and this sleeping thing has not gone away. In fact, my husband tells me it is getting worse. He is so afraid that I am about to die everytime I do it, as I hold my breath for really really long periods. He also tells me that I am waking up after I do it every time (hundreds of times per night) because I am basically choking myself out of sleep. I worry about this because I've read from many different sources that the human growth hormone is only released in deep sleep (after 4 hours approx. of unbroken sleep). I am going to be very clear to my doctors that I am raw, and it might change any results they have (raw fooders, due to enzymes, tissue regeneration, etc, have differences in growth hormones, am I right?) This could be slowing down the damage of this sleep disorder, but I can feel in my head that I am not remembering things like I used to and focusing is becoming harder...

For example:
As I was studying for final exams, a friend of mine came over. I was so deep in thought I hardly realized when she asked "do you mind if I smoke inside?" I told her I didn't mind, and while reading a text on medicine (and trying to memorize what I was reading, very intense studying) I noticed an odd smell, burning, that set off warning signals in my head and I immediately checked the stove to see if something was burning. Nothing was. I then looked to my friend and remembered her asking to smoke a cigarette. My mind could not focus and differentiate the distinct odour of cigarette smoke from another type of burning. This really really worries me. No one in my home smokes so i am not around it often, but I still should, by age 24, understand cigarette smoke smells when they are around ,without a long reaction time... right??

Another example: This, I thought was funny when it happened, but in combination with the cigarette story, I am getting a bit frightened. I was working as a postman during the christmas season and the stress was INSANE. On the Saturday before Christmas, mailmen in Sweden deliver as though it is a weekday to try to get all the Christmas things out. I had already worked 60 hours that week (4 hours overtime every day) and then it was saturday... Now, I was so exhausted, that I would do anything to stay awake. It was basically torture. I hardly sleep at all as is, and when my body finally is ready to sleep and I prevent it from sleep, I really want to die.
So, I drank maybe 5 cups of coffee in the morning to give me a jolt, and all this coffee made me have to pee. I dragged my feet to the bathroom, sat down and before going pee, I put my head in my hands and gave myself 2 minutes or so of "sleep" time. I shook myself awake, stood up, buttoned my skirt and washed my hands... I then tried to remember if I had actually gone to the bathroom. Seriously, you guys, I couldn't remember, to this day I still can't remember what happened during my little nap, and I couldn't tell after standing up. I sat down again and obviously still had to pee, because I did. so... In conclusion, I was so tired that I actually forgot to pee- which was the entire reason i went to the bathroom.

Now... I am not a retard, haha, not by far.
I play violin and most of what I play is by memory.
I test my memory with math games constantly to stay sharp for my dental studies.
I remember many details most of the time,
I score high on iq tests and when I must, my focus is dead on,

but...

Based on the two examples I have given- what do you guys think? I don't even wear aluminium deoderant, for christ sake... So it can't be alzheimers, can it? I am pretty sure this is all related to the sleep disorder, but... well, I would feel a lot better if ANYONE here could relate to what I am saying and reassure me that I will be fine.

thanks for any input, shared experience, advice
(I will be at the sleep lab on the 12th and i will post an update for sure afterwards)
xxpeisi

~I've tasted of the fruit,
it's opened up my eyes...~
-Infected Mushroom

Opinion:

Sounds very upsetting. Of course you should see your health care professional - if you feel you are in a crisis. Otherwise, it also sounds like your difficulties might be more stress-related...and less weight-related. If you had a history of weight/dietary issues.....or breathing issues......you might have to 're-program' and deal with those tendancies.

-Simpler eating...of mono-meals.....with less combining can help. Increased cardio-vascular and breathing exercises (like yoga) might also help. Improve the air circulation in the place where you sleep to get plenty of fresh air. Improve your sleeping environment - so that all you do is SLEEP in that area (do not read or watch TV). Avoid foods that are acidic, processed, fatty, or rich....and do not eat after dark. This might also help.

-If you still have weight to lose - please do so. You might find your condition is more amenable at a lesser weight. This is just a speculation.

-Just some suggestions and speculations - which I hope are helpful.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Peisi,

I believe that if you started to practice meditatation a minimum 1/2 hr a day you would be able to live through this challenge with more clarity and less worry/fear. You already have the heightened awareness gained from hard work/study and eating raw food but meditation will help you to get a handle on it/experience that fear/worry and move through it and then past it. Then you will sleep better.

Dulset