But they let me out the next morning. suckers.
Actually I had a sleep study done and the NYU sleep clinic just happens to be in Bellevue. Yes, THAT Bellevue. You know on Barney Miller when they mention running someone down to Bellevue. That place.
Anyway. See, I’m what you call a night person. I used to work in the movie theatre industry but I changed careers and for the last 6 years I work on a 9 to 5 schedule. This has been tough adjusting and I didn’t know but my snoreing has been getting progressivly worse. For the last two years I’ve been feeling tired and run down with a total lack of energy and unable to concentrate. I thought I was depressed. (those Zoloft ads did describe me pretty well) Well, maybe I’m not so depressed as I’m sleep deprived.
The expireence was pretty strange. With all the wires on me, lying on my back was like floating in a sea of tech and I was just barely breaking through with my humanity. That and it was freezing in there and I, like a fool, took the instructions seriously and only wore what I normally wore to sleep in, which are my boxer shorts.
I’m now waitng to see how bad my problem is and what can be done. I really do not want one of those cpap masks. I don’t think I would be able to sleep wearing one of those.
I think I should get a t-shirt with the thread title though.
So is this for possible “sleep apnea?” In any event, I’d like to hear about your prognosis. I know someone scheduled for a sleep clinic due to their snoring.
I had that sleep study done. They discovered I stopped breathing 7 times an hour (and snored heavily). That was mild apnea, they said. They gave me the CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) mask. I don’t snore when I wear it, and I don’t stop breathing and jerk myself awake to gasp for air (which I didn’t realize I did because I was so groggy).
The big thing at the begining is dreaming. Since I had stopped breathing so often and jerked my self awake, I wasn’t going into those deep phases of sleep where we dream. It had been many moons since I could remember having a dream, then all of a sudden I’m dreaming every night, and sleeping pretty well.
I have a lot more energy and generally feel better when I sleep with the mask. You cantell a difference. (you can’t wear it when you have a cold, obviously or when allergies are acting up and swelling up the sinuses).
Yes my dreaming has tapered off over the last few years and if I do dream I have a very difficult time recalling them or they are very fragmented. I think I would wear the mask if I could dream again.
Yes they were checking for apnea ,stopping breathing for 10 or longer, and hypotnia (sp) which is stopping breathing for less than 10 seconds.
They also tested for how much sleep you actually get in a night. What level of sleep you get, if you grind your teeth, if you move your legs, how oxygenated you blood is, and they measure your eye movements.
Mr. Butrscotch had that done last year and is using the CPAP, only not the mask, he uses “nasal pillows” (noseplugs – he gets claustrophobic with the mask, this from a man who’s dived into caves, jumped out of airplanes – go figure). I don’t know how much better HE is sleeping, but I am finally able to sleep all night for the first time in years! Seriously, it can make a huge difference. Definitely at least give it a try.
My ffriend finally has sleep apnoea diagnosed, and ended up with the CPAP thing, but she does think it worthwhile. It need not always be worn - but it now means she can get some sleep, and her partner can sleep without getting scared of her very frequent cessations of breathing.
I hope something can be done to help. Bad sleep is a PAIN!
I use a CPAP machine & love it. I was told I was waking up over 100 times a night pre-CPAP. And I didn’t remember any of them because they were for very short durations. But, yes, I was very, very sleeeeepyyyyyyy.
If you’re diagnosed with CPAP, try to get a water resevoir with a heating element. It makes a world of difference, especially if you’re prone to nasal stuffiness.
Also, definitely at least try on the silicone sleep masks. They cost more, but were the most comfy for me. I pay a tad above (~$20) what my insurance allows to get this type of mask. (If you have a dog, make sure you store the mask in a place where s/he can’t get it. As I found out from personal experience and through talking with the medical supply staff, many pooches like the feel of the silicone in their mouths. The fact that it smells like their owners is also a bonus for them.)
And finally, definitely use distilled water in the water chamber. It makes the things last much longer. The salts in regular water crystalize when the water evaporates. And if you leave regular water sit in there for any length of time you’ll get funky science project life-forms.
I use the cpap and it has done wonders for me. More energy, less tired, don’t have to nap during the day (as a matter of fact I can’t even if I try because I can’t go to sleep). You would be surprised at how fast you get used to the mask. The thing is, use it. It won’t help you if you don’t use it. I was waking up 273 times, and 258 of those was because I stopped breathing. It can kill you and it’s not something that you want to play around with. Just make sure you don’t have the mask too tight and you will find that within a week you won’t be bothered by it.
Ah - one thing occurs to me - not that it can be helped much. From some previous reading I did about sleep apnoea for the previously mentioned IRL friend, my impression is that such a diagnosis might have an impact on the legality or insurance or whatever, if you drive.
Although, logically, of course, the use of what my friend insists on calling the “CRAP” machine, impressed with it though she is, is that it whould solve or ameliorate the problem.
Untreated, it coudl be a real danger.
Ha - what a pity I did n ot keep a hwole list of good carefully chosen references from a while back.
Ooops!
Best of luck with the thing.
And <hijack> is this Bellevue place especially notorious, or what? </hijack>
