obstructive sleep apnea . According to the National Sleep Foundation , more than 18 million American adults have sleep apnea , and many of them do n't know it . Some people think their snoring is just a side effect of a busy lifestyle . Watch more on the difference between sleep apnea and snoring '' In some cases , that 's true . But the foundation says it 's trying to get more people to realize how important it is to know the difference between occasional snoring and apnea . Studies have shown that sleep apnea has some serious side effects . A disorder in which breathing is briefly and repeatedly interrupted during sleep , apnea occurs when the muscles in the back of the throat fail to keep the airway open , despite efforts to breathe . That can cause broken sleep patterns and low blood oxygen levels . Doctors say these side effects can lead to hypertension , heart disease , and mood and memory problems . In a recent study at the University of Maryland Medical Center , researchers found that sleep apnea can cause a rise in depression and that sleep-related breathing disorders can also
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- It 's been nine years since Kim and Curtis Christiansen were married . Since then they 've had their ups and downs , but they 've remained close . But when Curtis began snoring about three years ago , Kim began sleeping on the couch . After his snoring drove his wife , Kim , to sleep on the couch , Curtis Christiansen saw a sleep specialist . `` His snoring was so loud . At first I would just elbow him to wake him up , '' she said , `` But then I became concerned . He would just -LRB- she gasps for breath -RRB- . It would take his breath away . '' At first Curtis Christiansen figured he was tired , a little run down from his job . He thought the snoring was just a symptom of his exhaustion . But when he started nodding off while waiting at a traffic light , he knew something was wrong . `` I became more aware of this choking and waking-up feeling , '' he said . Kim Christiansen finally persuaded her husband to go to a sleep specialist . The diagnosis :