The respiratory center from the brain is the major concern. This center controls the chest muscles to make breathing movements. When the respiratory center stops working during sleep, then your breathing stops and does not respond to the changes of the respiratory gas levels (oxygen and carbon dioxide) from the blood).In central apnea, you stop breathing in your sleep for a period of time (at least 10 seconds), but there is no effort from the body to breathe at all, such as in obstructive sleep apnea. Therefore snoring is not present in central apnea. You will wake up several times at night, often with the sensation of gasping or choking during sleep.Frequent waking up episodes may cause disruption of your sleep and you may feel very tired during daytime.