Earlier quoted context omitted.
Many advice trying a CPAP device first instead of going for a sleep study if you suspect apnea for this exact reason. The sleep tests are expensive and often not accurate.
*likely US based medical advice A sleep test is $100 ($75 USD) here.
Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
71–80 of 370 posts
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#72This is quite raw and I'm actually somewhat afraid to share this. But I think sleep apnea is criminally under-discussed and underdiagnosed. It can f your life up sideways and can take years to diagnose. So sharing my story and hope I can advocate for it. If you have sleep apnea, no amount of sleep gadgets, good habits, exercise, will help you. You must fix the root cause
While I sympathize > If you have sleep apnea, no amount of sleep gadgets, good habits, will help you Is a blatant lie. A CPAP works for millions, including me.
I had sleep apnea when I was young, skinny and sporty. Then I got old, fat and sedentary and of course it got worse. I was falling asleep while driving.
I tried a CPAP machine and could not stand it for more than 10 minutes. However my apnea got worse so that I actually did not want to fall sleep because I did not want to wake up choking and gasping for breath. Literally a nightmare.
So I forced myself to stick with the CPAP the whole night through and woke up refreshed and alert. I cannot live without it.
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#73Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#74I have a horrible snoring issue and I have some problems with burnout, "brain fog", and inability to stay focused. I have a snorelab score in the 50s and my wife kicked me out of our bedroom since she can't sleep. I did a take-home sleep study with Kaiser once but they said I just have mild disordered sleeping but no apnea. I'm not super fat or anything either (BMI = 23.9). It seems like I very likely have something…
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#75Thank you for sharing! Skimmed for now, but saving this to read later. I've had a history as well of never getting good sleep so I'm curious to see what your experience was and the steps you've taken. A few things I've done that have helped a bunch: - Using BreatheRight nasal strips every night - Latex earplugs ("Mack's Pillow Soft Silicone Earplugs"). I could never sleep with foam earplugs in my ears but these are g…
Never knew about these. I'm guessing you can't re-use the same strip each night?
I don't have sleep issues apart from a bit of snoring and blocked nose. I might buy a pack of these to try.
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#76This is quite raw and I'm actually somewhat afraid to share this. But I think sleep apnea is criminally under-discussed and underdiagnosed. It can f your life up sideways and can take years to diagnose. So sharing my story and hope I can advocate for it. If you have sleep apnea, no amount of sleep gadgets, good habits, exercise, will help you. You must fix the root cause
Interesting. I bet close to all young skinny people with sleep apnea must remain undiagnosed. My generalist doc basically said "if you really insist we can do a polysomnography, but I'm pretty sure you don't have it, you're young, skinny and sporty. There isn't really much that helps that you can do about it anyway". I did insist and it turned out that I do have it. The changes in life I experienced are similar to yo…
Based on oxygen levels, mine also varies from subclinial to "medium" apnea. I was deemed not to have sleep apnea based on the take-home test or the in-hospital test... but I wore my oxygen-logging ring during the in-hospital test to check it was calibrated to the hospital's equipment (it was), and the specialist then diagnosed me based on my measurements of oxygen levels on other nights.
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#77But its much more likely that some people genetically and family-wisw are just more suceptible than others. Trying to find an external cause is probably futile.
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#78Earlier quoted context omitted.
Interesting. I bet close to all young skinny people with sleep apnea must remain undiagnosed. My generalist doc basically said "if you really insist we can do a polysomnography, but I'm pretty sure you don't have it, you're young, skinny and sporty. There isn't really much that helps that you can do about it anyway". I did insist and it turned out that I do have it. The changes in life I experienced are similar to yo…
Many advice trying a CPAP device first instead of going for a sleep study if you suspect apnea for this exact reason. The sleep tests are expensive and often not accurate.
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#79This is quite raw and I'm actually somewhat afraid to share this. But I think sleep apnea is criminally under-discussed and underdiagnosed. It can f your life up sideways and can take years to diagnose. So sharing my story and hope I can advocate for it. If you have sleep apnea, no amount of sleep gadgets, good habits, exercise, will help you. You must fix the root cause
It's wonderful that you've made progress on the puzzle you found yourself facing. But in reading your essay, the subtext that comes through more strongly than the medical dilemma is a sense of disorientation, loneliness, and anxiety. Even this comment hints at it in its opening disclaimer. For all I know, you see family every weekend and have friends over for drinks and games every night, but the story suggests that…
Re: Poor sleep drove me insane, and my long path to recovery
#80Thank you for sharing! Skimmed for now, but saving this to read later. I've had a history as well of never getting good sleep so I'm curious to see what your experience was and the steps you've taken. A few things I've done that have helped a bunch: - Using BreatheRight nasal strips every night - Latex earplugs ("Mack's Pillow Soft Silicone Earplugs"). I could never sleep with foam earplugs in my ears but these are g…
> BreatheRight nasal strips Never knew about these. I'm guessing you can't re-use the same strip each night? I don't have sleep issues apart from a bit of snoring and blocked nose. I might buy a pack of these to try.