October 12, 2013

The thing that takes my breath away……

Sleep, that's right! Sleep!
Did you ever get out of bed in the morning and feel unrested?
I spend a good eight hours in bed every night and I never feel rested, EVER.
My neurologist suspected something was going on.
I obviously wasn't sleeping well so he set up a test to find out why. 
A sleep study is what the test is called. 

I went and had a sleep study.

I lay in the bed looking at the back of my eyelids for what seemed like forever before sleep finally came. Who could blame me really! The room is nice but with the camera on the wall over the bed it was slightly icky. The wires that the sleep technician has attached with some glue like substance were hanging off the back of my head and I looked like a demented monster with a braid.  ( I actually have a picture of myself and it's so bad I won't even include it in this post for fear it will scare the readers away)

The results…

I have obstructive sleep apnea and hypoapnea as well. During my test my breathing either stopped fully or partially (for an average of 23 seconds or more) or slowed so much that my blood oxygen levels dropped dangerously low a lot.  

How many times could something like this happen in one night, you might wonder?

Basically I had 102 respiratory events (apneas hypoapnea’s) and 290 arousals which are basically abrupt changes in the level of sleep or from sleep to wakefulness.  It’s a wonder I’m not a walking zombie every day.

What does this mean to my health?

This  basically means I’m at risk for all sorts of health problems if this is left untreated, the biggies are heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, headaches, diabetes,  sudden death, obesity.

Crap!  

CPAP have you heard of it? It will probably help me with my problem more than cussing but saying it made me felt good anyway.  CPAP is an acronym for continuous positive airway pressure and is the recommended device for my condition. It’s basically a little machine with a mask that pushes air gently thru the nose and down the airway to keep the passages open.

Once the doctor and the insurance company sort out all the details I’ll have one more sleep study to get fitted for a face mask and for them to figure of the pressure of air required to stop my events during sleep.  But I’m hopeful that …

Before long I’ll be sleeping like a baby.

14 comments:

  1. Good luck with sleeping better and feeling rested. I don't know if I have a memory of what it's like, but it sounds heavenly!

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  2. CRAP))

    Hopefully you will be sleeping soundly very soon. Xx

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  3. Scary Jen! Glad you got checked out. Omygosh! Those sleep clinics look so peaceful. Hmmm. Guess not. Lol.

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  4. My husband has sleep apnea. He had the sleep study done many, many years ago at the hospital where I worded night shift. I went down and observed him through the two-way glass. I don't know how anyone gets any sleep during one of those. Anyway to make a long story short, we bought the CPAP and he NEVER would wear it. I could have kicked his butt. But alas, in the end it was his choice. Good luck with yours Jen. You truly will feel better

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  5. Jen, so glad you got tested for this. You will adjust I am sure especially when you will feel better in the mornings. A friend adjusted to his mask and has had great success.
    Think of all the energy you will have!! Watch out!

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  6. Glad the neurologist sent you for testing, Jen, and you got diagnosed. Do wear the CPAP machine, as uncomfortable as it might be in the beginning getting used to it. Another blog I follow their brother died a year ago for not following through with recommendations for treating sleep apnea.

    Good for you enduring the sleep study too; not sure I could have been able to sleep in those conditions.

    betty

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  7. Steve has used the cpap for almost 2 years now and he loves it. He was always tired and felt awful. He has felt much better since the first night he used it. I hope this works for you too.

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  8. Thank goodness you saw your doctor and got tested. I'm sorry that you've been sleep deprived for so long, but the CPAP machine should make a huge difference. Good luck Jen, and stay healthy!

    Julie

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  9. I am a pregnant mom of a toddler.. i don't remember the last time I woke up feeling rested.

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  10. How scary! I always wondered how anyone ever sleeps during one of those sleep tests when you know you are being watched. Hope the mask works.

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  11. Really sorry to hear this, glad they managed to find out what it was.

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  12. I remember starting to read this post a few days back and am just now getting back to finish it! I'm glad you found out why you're not feeling rested. I hope the CPAP works well for you.

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  13. My husband wears one of those CPap's - He looks like Jacque Cousteau!

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  14. Jim said it all ~~~ you feel so much better!!

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