woohoo. cpap comes tomorrow!! but a question-

[mopinko]

man, i am so happy. my first thought was that i would sleep well, and be able to get up early. my second thought was that i would sleep well, and spend the next couple days in bed. my worst apnea rate was lying on my back, dreaming, i had 95 events per hour. i think that must be a pro-rated number, because i think a whole hour of that is a code blue.

anyway, i was wondering what is know about the physical effects of sleep disorders. i have a laundry list of problems large and small. i wonder how many of them are going to go away. i know about the effects on blood pressure, and the risk of heart attacks and strokes, and a couple other factoids. but that is about it.
any cutting edge info out there?

[hobbit709]

1. Just sleeping better will improve your general health.

My BIPAP made a world of difference in how I felt. I wasn't tired all the time, my recurring nightmares went away, the headaches are gone, I didn't feel so depressed.

[dgibby]

2. Check this out.

http://www.content4reprint.com/health/diseases-and-conditions/why-sleep-apnea-side-effects-can-be-dangerous.htm

[mopinko]

5. yeah, knew all that stuff. the driving? oh boy.

i am a shitty, shitty driver. for a while i was feeling so bad that i just didn't do it.

[Brickbat]

3. Welcome to CPAP land!

AFAIK, high BP and higher risk of heart attacks and strokes are the main problems. In my experience, once I had the CPAP, I had the energy to deal with other things I could change -- I could take more time fixing good and healthy meals, I had more energy to exercise more, that kind of thing.

Enjoy! I don't use mine very often, but I did last night, and I am rarin' to go today.

[Epiphany4z]

4. most go away from me when I can use the cpap

Do expect that you might need to have it tweeked....sometimes the air is to hight despite what your sleep study said. I had more energy and was able to work to loose some weight. No more headaches each morning, my memory improved, my aggravation and stress level improved. ..I didn't feel like I had to get up and pee 100x a night anymore..I love my cpap but can't use it for some reason with the newest machine I have i get sinus problems within 2 night of use.

I suspect one of two things are going on ...the air is up to high or I have developed a sensitivity stuff the mask and tubbing are made out of.


Good luck I know when I can use it ...the machine is a god send.

[mopinko]

7. mine is supposed to be smart. as long as

it isn't corruptible....

seriously, it is supposed to self adjust as well as keep a record of everything it does. when i went in for the titration i came out with a "rug burn" up one cheek. the tech was pretty bad, tho. he cranked it down like it was the gas tank on the shuttle. presuming i will do better when i am at the controls.

[Fiendish Thingy]

12. do you have a humidifier attached to your C-PAP?

if not, ask your doctor about getting one. It warms and moisturizes the air, especially important in the winter.

[Epiphany4z]

14. ya I do

I just don't know why all of a sudden I have a problem with the machine I used it for over a year with a hitch....loved it...now 2 days on and My sinuses goes nuts for 2 weeks ....I miss feeling so rested.

[imdjh]

6. Best thing to happen to you in a while I would guess. No sleeping for days.

One whole night of real sleep, and you will feel like a whole new person.

Some people have reported automatic weight loss. I expected this, because I had the habit of getting up and eating in a course of my sleepless nights. That didn't happen, I did stop the night eating (some people call it 'sleep eating') but it did also become a lot easier to diet. You don't get as ravenously hungry when your body isn't being sent messages that it's completely deprived of energy. So I lost weight, but not automatically. And for those who were under the impression that sleep apnea is only triggered by morbid obesity, wrong. I have had it since I was about 20, people complaining about my awful snoring, me waking up gasping, and at 20 I weighed between 128 and 155 pounds (five eleven height).

I don't know about cutting edge info, but one should think that the entirety of our health is harmed by sleep deprivation and improved by restoring good sleep. For me, it greatly improved my emotional state. It was taking a lot of effort to remain even keeled while sleep deprived. I dealt with a fair amount of mental chatter, distraction, and even the occasional inappropriate crying episode. It's really embarrassing to start crying during a workplace review that is only slightly critical.

[Fiendish Thingy]

13. I actually gained weight after starting the C-PAP

prior to that, I was having over 300 episodes of stopping breathing a night,with no measurable REM sleep, and the adrenaline surges to wake me up enough to inhale must have been burning some calories. Once I started sleeping through the night, I started gaining weight, as I was still eating poorly. I soon improved my diet, increased my exercise, and the weight came off.

[Warpy]

8. Stress on the cardiovascular system plummets

along with the side effects of sleep deprivation like brain fog and extreme tiredness during the day.

However, don't expect to be able to sleep soundly the first few nights because the appliance is going to bug the hell out of you until you get used to it.

People with severe sleep apnea (and you seem to fall into that category) often say they notice a dramatic improvement even after that first night of fitful sleep.

You won't notice the reduced stress on your cardiovascular system. You'll live longer with it relieved, though.

[mopinko]

10. well i slept like a baby in the sleep lab.

and it is a new fangled super cool one, they say.

just sleeping a normal amount will make a big difference in my life.

[T Wolf]

9. You will be amazed at the difference in the way you feel. With that rate (95/hour),

you really were getting NO quality sleep.

The problems apnea causes or contributes to are many - from hypertension to fatigue to psychological consequences to many more.

Enjoy your new life. I know that I am.

One major benefit was not being awakened by a spouse, kneeling over me, screaming, "Breathe, dammit!"

[mopinko]

11. the funny thing is that i was the one screaming. DH was told to get one

4 years ago. he has been sleeping better, but still has some apnea. he is going to go ahead and get his (as soon as he gets aroundtoit). but he was just awful, awful, awful. i bugged him FOR YEARS to do something about it. it ended up being such an issue that when he finally got a test, and had to see that i was right, he was downright traumatized. he refused to get the cpap. the funny thing is that he never noticed it in me, and rarely heard me snore. even though he spent a lot of time awake while i was asleep.

i wasn't doing that bad most of the time, because i rarely sleep on my back. but it is a strange thing that it was mostly only bad while i was dreaming. i knew there was something happening with my dream sleep, because i kept waking in the middle of dreams, often after dreaming that i was struggling with someone or drowning. hmm.
looking forward to some sweet dreams for a change.

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[mopinko]

16. i am caring a few extra pounds, but not a lot. have been trying

for a long time to get into a regular exercise habit. have cholesterol problems that need a little work, too. hard when you are always tired, and your to-do-list is always longer than your can-do-list. but i am hoping this will help.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

17. Latest research says that quality sleep is more important than diet or exercise.