Obstructive sleep apnea is a condition in which patients stop breathing for short periods during sleep. It occurs when soft tissues in the throat relax and temporarily block the airway. This common problem is often seen in people who are obese and those who snore.

In a proven treatment for sleep apnea, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), a patient wears a special mask which delivers air into the throat creating enough pressure to prevent the tissues from collapsing. According to a study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, the use of this breathing treatment may also improve depressive symptoms such as feelings of sadness and discouragement, decreases in self-confidence and thoughts of suicide in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

In another study, 32 obstructive sleep apnea patients who initially had symptoms of depression showed a marked improvement in standard depression test scores after starting in-home CPAP therapy. When the patients were reassessed about 1 year after the start of their CPAP therapy it was noted that with ongoing CPAP therapy there was a distinct improvement in the patients’ depressive symptoms.

Therefore, some people suffering from both depression and sleep apnea may actually be treated more successfully with CPAP therapy than with antidepressant drugs.