So, I have scheduled a consult with my family dr. to get a referral for a sleep study, to see if I have sleep apnea. Anybody else been through this before? How bad is using a cpap machine? Are the benefits really that noticeable? How much of a pain, is the sleep study? Any advice/council would be much appreciated!
Sleep study
- Thread starter cdnlngld
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My dad has sleep apnea & the cpap machine has changed his life (& my mom's for that matter) drastically for the better. I don't have the detailed answers that you are looking for, but I'd say it's definitely worth looking at to improve your quality of life.
- Mar 27, 2006
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I have a friend with a cpap and he says that it took a couple nights to get used to, but once he did, he couldn't imagine sleeping without it. He also said that he noticed that he started really vividly dreaming again, once he was using it. I don't know if that's a perk or not. Depends on what you dream about, I suppose.
My dad has a CPAP and loves it. The only negative thing he has mentioned is that it sucks when the power goes out...
I have had a sleep study at Mary Greeley in Ames. I went in at about 9 pm, as it takes quite a while to get all hooked up to the monitors. I woke up around 2:30 am and could not get back to sleep, but the tech said they had enough data on me to make a diagnosis. Turned out that I did not have apnea, which was a relief; however, apart from learning that, I did not get any help with my sleep problem. The test is good for finding out whether you have apnea or not, but otherwise it was not helpful.
I know someone who has a cpap. He told me that the first month or so he only slept 4-5 hours a night, probably because thats all he was "really getting" without the machine. After the first month he was able to adjust to your normal 8 hour night. He lost some weight, his blood pressure improved, and his physical appearance (bags under eyes, bloodshot eyes, etc) really improved as well.
IMO putting up with the mask is worth it when you consider the immediate and long term health benefits. Anyone who snores like a truck and refuses to try out a sleep study is really missing the ball if you ask me.
IMO putting up with the mask is worth it when you consider the immediate and long term health benefits. Anyone who snores like a truck and refuses to try out a sleep study is really missing the ball if you ask me.
It took some heart to heart talks and emails to my dad from the family but we finally talked him into doing a sleep study several years ago and at the time he was being very stubborn and selfish about not wanting to do it and still had a somewhat negative attitude about the CPAP machine but today he's very glad he did it and so is his family. He just turned 69 last month so it was around his early to mid 60's where we noticed he didn't have as much energy and would fall asleep in mid conversation really early in the evening (like 7pm some times.) Mom was concerned because she felt like she was left to find something to pass the time in the evenings because dad couldn't stay awake to do anything. I think the initial start to using the CPAP was a big change and it took a few adjustments to get the right air flow but now if he forgot to pack it from a trip he says he notices a difference in how he feels when he doesn't use it.
Very thankful he listened to us and got the study done, pretty sure it has added years to his life and made his quality of life right now much more enjoyable. He now has so much more energy to do the physical work that used to really tire him out on the farm and doesn't have any problems staying awake past the 10pm news now. Hate to think what would have happened if he hadn't done it, we just gave my parents their first grandchild 10 months ago and that was 1 thing we really tried to hit home with him was we wanted him arround to enjoy grandkids. Sleep apenea, especially if it's severe is no joking matter as you could die in your sleep. When they showed my dad how his heart was reacting when not getting enough oxegen while sleeping I think that was a big eye opener too.
Hope all goes well with your study, the thing to keep in perspective is while the idea of a CPAP machine doesn't sound like fun, your healthy can affect more than just you but also your loved ones. I have a co worker who is in his 40's and has been on a CPAP machine for several years and he says as soon as he started using one it made a huge difference in his life and was well worth getting the study done so he could be around for his wife and kids.
Very thankful he listened to us and got the study done, pretty sure it has added years to his life and made his quality of life right now much more enjoyable. He now has so much more energy to do the physical work that used to really tire him out on the farm and doesn't have any problems staying awake past the 10pm news now. Hate to think what would have happened if he hadn't done it, we just gave my parents their first grandchild 10 months ago and that was 1 thing we really tried to hit home with him was we wanted him arround to enjoy grandkids. Sleep apenea, especially if it's severe is no joking matter as you could die in your sleep. When they showed my dad how his heart was reacting when not getting enough oxegen while sleeping I think that was a big eye opener too.
Hope all goes well with your study, the thing to keep in perspective is while the idea of a CPAP machine doesn't sound like fun, your healthy can affect more than just you but also your loved ones. I have a co worker who is in his 40's and has been on a CPAP machine for several years and he says as soon as he started using one it made a huge difference in his life and was well worth getting the study done so he could be around for his wife and kids.
My dad can back this up as well.
His cpap has him sleeping the best he has in decades, if not his life. Not only that, he's losing weight, and his weight was attributed to be part of the cause of his sleep apnea.
I was going to get one done earlier this year, until I found out it could cost $4000-$6000 dollars and I have a high deductible health plan, so I'm waiting until next year to adjust health plans.
Side note, if you're having trouble sleeping, try taking melatonin. I started taking this and sleep much better than I used to
Side note, if you're having trouble sleeping, try taking melatonin. I started taking this and sleep much better than I used to
That's odd. I stopped vividly dreaming once I started using the CPAP, or at least I don't remember them nearly as often.. I sleep much better now.
I have one and for me it was worked wonders. For me I really didn't know how poor my sleep was until I got it. Before I could sleep 8-9 hours and still feel bad. Now with the machine I can get 6-7 and feel just fine. It took me about 3 weeks to really get used to it and from time to time I will take it off in the middle of the night (not knowing I did it) I just put it back on again when I wake up.
No more horrible snoring and wake up and feel like I got a good nights sleep. If you have apnea I believe it will be a good thing for you.
I had to go in twice since I didn't have enough data for them to try the machine on me the first visit. Lots of wires and that takes a bit of getting used to. I didnt like the mask that covered both my nose and mouth so I just use one over my nose.
No more horrible snoring and wake up and feel like I got a good nights sleep. If you have apnea I believe it will be a good thing for you.
I had to go in twice since I didn't have enough data for them to try the machine on me the first visit. Lots of wires and that takes a bit of getting used to. I didnt like the mask that covered both my nose and mouth so I just use one over my nose.
That seems awfully high. My sleep study cost 200-300 dollars. That machine itself was around $1500 I think.
I'm not going to pretend to understand how the science works, but someone dumbed it down for me to say that a person doesn't dream unless he or she is in a deep sleep to where they are actually getting well-rested.
It doesn't mean they'll dream every time they reach this level of sleep, but they won't dream without reaching this level of sleep.
I just completed a sleep study with Iowa ENT last month. For mine they sent me a "at home" test. The study itself wasn't bad at all.
I got mild sleep apnea but enough the Doc wants me to get on a cpap. Just dragging my feet on that part though. Too many visions of the Alien movie go thru my head everytime I envsion sleeping with that on my face.
I got mild sleep apnea but enough the Doc wants me to get on a cpap. Just dragging my feet on that part though. Too many visions of the Alien movie go thru my head everytime I envsion sleeping with that on my face.
Not sure on the cost of the sleep study, but I guess the machine depends on what type you need. If you need a CPAP, it looks like retail is around $2000 and you would only have to pay what the insurance company would have to pay. If you need a BiPAP, the machine cost is higher.
Yeah, I think your total is about right; I think mine at Mary Greeley cost approx. 2 grand. Insurance covered most of it.
Sleep study is interesting. Lots of things hooked up to you, strange location, cameras and microphones to record EVERYTHING and then you get to "sleep". I had really bad trouble getting to sleep so when the tech woke me up around 2am it felt like I hadn't slept at all. But I was. Badly because they diagnosed me with moderate to severe apnea. Reviewing the study details is pretty interesting as you can see all your various sleep stages, when you start having events, and how long they last.
I had my study done to address high blood pressure issues and weight gain. Been on the machine for almost 2 years and while my problems didn't miraculously disappear, I do feel better overall.
I adapted easily to my machine. I'm a mouth breather so I had to get a full face mask. If you can sleep with your mouth closed you might try the nasal pillows. Very small, very unobtrusive.
I now wake up more refreshed then I used to. The most important part is my WIFE now gets a good nights sleep since I no longer snore at all.
I wonder if anyone was warned about getting the CPAP tubes dry after using it or if they talk about how to care for them? My dad had mold develop in them and had to get new tubes. I guess he seemed surprised that they might get moldy.
I had sleep apnea real bad. Did a couple sleep studies. I tried the machine, but wasn't for me. I was only 33 at the time. Ended up doing surgery to fix it. Called a UP3 or uvularpolatoplasty (sp). Took out my tonsils, uvula, soft palate, and shaved the base of my tongue. Horribly painful. It worked. Had to learn how to swallow and not take too big of drinks. **** would come flying up my nose.
