They make little keychains that say ‘I love my <insert dog breed here>’. I wish I had one for my CPAP.
I was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea in August, after a brutal six-month wait for a sleep test. After another one-month wait, they scheduled me for a second test, calibrated a machine for me, and this past Friday, I finally got my machine.
Over the past year, my energy level has dropped to zero. Sometimes, below zero. I was consuming lots of extra sugar and carbs just to try to jumpstart my energy level (though I know this is really bad in the long term), and chugging coffee by the potful just to be able to function at work. Caffeine pills, herbal supplements, energy drinks, taking short walks and stretch breaks, dunking my head in cold water, hanging myself upside down, hyperventilating into paper bags – I tried everything.
Even with all that, I found myself falling asleep several times an hour at work and at home, no matter what I did. I could sleep for 12, 15, 24 hours and still feel as exhausted as when I went to bed.
After one night with the CPAP, it all completely stopped. I perked right up. My energy levels are creeping back up to the norm. I haven’t fallen asleep inappropriately even once at work.
According to my doctor’s analysis, before the CPAP I would stop breathing approximately every four minutes during sleep, and my blood oxygen levels dropped to 78%. My blood pressure was shooting up exponentially worse over the last six months, and I couldn’t lose any weight. Rather, I was gaining weight, no matter what I ate or how I exercised. I felt like I was 86, not 26. Memory problems, cognitive problems, and all that.
Now, I feel like a human being again, instead of a braindead zombie.
I’d like to kiss the person that invented that machine.
A totally mundane and pointless post, but at least it’s a positive one.