BLEARY-EYED Philip Skeates suffered a 17-year waking nightmare getting just FOURTEEN minutes sleep a night.

The desperate dad of three was woken up every 45 seconds by a sleep disorder which closed his airways and stopped him breathing.

The problem left him constantly exhausted and short-tempered with wife Lisa and their kids.

But now he is finally enjoying his first decent nights kip in more than a decade and a half thanks to a special machine installed in his home.

It includes an oxygen mask and tube which Philip wears while he sleeps. The device forces air into his lungs and keeps his airways clear.

Philip, 39, said: Its changed my life. The first night I had it, I noticed a difference next morning.

Now I wake up feeling refreshed. Delivery driver Philip, who cannot work due to a spinal problem, has also stopped his ear-splitting snoring. And he has shed six of his original 25st after gaining the energy to attend a local slimming group.

He was given his Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine after long-suffering Lisa persuaded him to get help.

Doctors found he had chronic sleep apnoea a condition thought to affect 300,000 Brits. It causes muscles in the throat to collapse, forcing the patient to wake as they resume breathing producing a snoring sound.

Philip said: I was spending 12 hours in bed every night. But the doctors found my apnoea was stopping me breathing ninety times every hour.

They said it was one of the worst cases theyd ever seen. It meant I only got 14 minutes sleep.

I couldnt understand it as Id fall asleep by 8pm and not get up for hours. But, in fact, I was hardly getting any sleep at all. I was exhausted.

Teaching assistant Lisa, 40, of Swindon, Wilts, had tried a variety of remedies without success.

She said: Phils snoring was like sleeping next to a pneumatic drill. The kids could hear it too.

I bought him medicines, mouth guards, a gum shield he found really uncomfortable. Nothing worked, but the machine has been a godsend.

Its reawakened our marriage its wonderful. Phils so much more energetic and cheerful.