Sleep Apnea....

majikmiker
majikmiker Posts: 291 Member
in Motivation and Support
So I thought I'd share something positive today. I went to see my sleep doctor this morning because I've been having problems with my machine I use for my sleep apnea. Three years ago I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, and was told it was one of the worst cases they had ever seen. To test for sleep apnea, they have the patient wear an oxygen sensor on their finger that measures the number of times the oxygen in their blood drops below 90% (90+ is considered the normal level). Three years ago my test showed that my oxygen level dropped below 90 percent over 70times in an hour. That's more than once per minute! It even showed a couple of times where my oxygen level dropped to below 40%. Basically I was dying. I would wake up in the middle of the night sitting up on the side of the bed, and couldn't figure out why I was sitting up. The doctor told me it was my body sub-consciously making myself sit up, so that I could breathe.

So two weeks ago they had me do the retest, since I've lost 166 pounds and was finding it difficult to be on my machine at night. The test from two weeks ago showed that my oxygen level was below 90% only 9 times in an hour. To put it in perspective, 5 times or less per hour is considered the normal person. The doctor was speechless! She said I went from a severe case of sleep apnea to a mild case, and that I needed a totally different machine now!!!

Anyways, for anyone out there struggling with medical issues like sleep apnea, losing weight can make a difference, so keep it up! My hope is that when I reach my goal weight, which is about another 50 pounds, that I won't need the machine at all! I'll keep you posted!

Have a great day! :drinker:

Replies

  • StarLeopard
    StarLeopard Posts: 80 Member
    This is very encouraging to hear. I'm in hope of the same thing but it's not always "caused" by just being overweight so only time will tell. Congratulations on your sleep improvement and weight loss. Your progress is an inspiration to others like me.
  • samblanken
    samblanken Posts: 369 Member
    That is awesome!
    I too have sleep apnea. I am only about 15 lbs overweight, so I don't think anything will change when I get to a normal weight. I suspect I am tethered to the machine for life.
  • stephanieb72
    stephanieb72 Posts: 390 Member
    I was diagnosed about 3 years ago too. I was severe also with around 70+ episodes in an hour. Getting my CPAP machine changed my life. I have lost about 50 lbs and I have noticed I am having trouble sleeping with my machine and several nights I have taken it off half way through the night and I seem to sleep fine. I have always been a terrible snorer, even as a stick thin child so I know weight was not the whole issue. I think I am going to have to go back to get tested :( I hate the test... it is awful :(
  • CDG1013
    CDG1013 Posts: 106 Member
    That's great! I hope that you are able to get off the machine completely.

    I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in 2002. The doctor was convinced that mine was caused by overly large tonsils and a narrow airway. So, I had a surgery (called UP3) that cut out my tonsils and uvula and corrected a deviated septum. The surgery worked well (although the recovery from the septum was painful) and I never had to use a machine.
  • StarLeopard
    StarLeopard Posts: 80 Member
    :( I hate the test... it is awful :(
    Me too. I slept poorly and then, when you finally do get to sleep, they wake you up at 4:30 A.M., tell you they have all the data they need and kick you out on the street in the dark without a way home because they don't think it's safe for you to drive after being tossed out on the street half asleep, in a very grumpy mood. It's barbaric. What was your experience like?
  • tmauck4472
    tmauck4472 Posts: 1,785 Member
    I can't wait to get rid of that machine. And I wonder if that's my problem now. Sadly I have no insurance to go back to a doctor to find out : (
  • flatblade
    flatblade Posts: 224 Member
    I was diagnosed with sleep apnea several years ago. I want to lose a bit more weight and then see if my condition has improved.
  • Rodamort
    Rodamort Posts: 171 Member
    Good to hear people are taking their masks off now that they are doing much better. I was diagnosed several years ago. After dropping almost 50 lbs now my wife has been telling me that I am taking my mask off at night (will actually put it back on in the middle of the night without realizing it). Hopefully that is the reason. Going to give myself a few more pounds before I go into get checked again.
  • artappel
    artappel Posts: 4
    I too have OSA since I have lost ~22lbs and looking at my data on the machine I am finding that I am having less episodes during the night but I will continue with my machine as I always sufferred from a block stuffy nose and /or sore throat espcially during the dry seasons. Since using my cpap machine I have not been back to the doctor for 'sinuses' as they always diagnose it

    But I think my being overweight did contribute to my OSA. Here's hoping I can reduce the pressure but I am concentrating on my high blood pressure and cholestrol first. I have moved from hypertension to pre-hypertension it's the sodium I need to cut back on and unfortunately fatty red meat is a weakness of mine.
  • majikmiker
    majikmiker Posts: 291 Member
    Everyone is different, and in my case it was mainly due to the amount of weight I carried, especially around my throat area. Thanks for all your emails and posts and best of luck in the continuing battle! Cheers! :drinker:
  • Railr0aderTony
    Railr0aderTony Posts: 6,803 Member
    I have been on CPAP for 15 years, in my case I am almost positive i have had Sleep apnea my whole life, I can remember even as a kid waking myself up and have always snored like a chainsaw, I am sure once i lose more weight it will help but i really do not ever see my CPAP going away. But congrats to you, like you said. Everyone is different
  • HansTied
    HansTied Posts: 81 Member
    thanks for sharing that. I will try to get re-tested again. I have been having trouble with my CPAP also recently. It is wonderful news...maybe mine will be similar.
  • stephanieb72
    stephanieb72 Posts: 390 Member
    I too have OSA since I have lost ~22lbs and looking at my data on the machine I am finding that I am having less episodes during the night but I will continue with my machine as I always sufferred from a block stuffy nose and /or sore throat espcially during the dry seasons. Since using my cpap machine I have not been back to the doctor for 'sinuses' as they always diagnose it

    But I think my being overweight did contribute to my OSA. Here's hoping I can reduce the pressure but I am concentrating on my high blood pressure and cholestrol first. I have moved from hypertension to pre-hypertension it's the sodium I need to cut back on and unfortunately fatty red meat is a weakness of mine.

    I had never had high blood pressure but because I was not getting more that 10-15 minutes of actual sleep each night my blood pressure started to get very high. It was then that my doctor sent me for sleep apnea testing. Once I had that controlled my blood pressure went back to normal. I am telling you, as you all can probably agree, if you are not well rested all kinds of bad stuff happens. It is terrible circle... not getting good sleep.... no energy or desire to do anything... depression...weight gain from being lethargic all the time... sleep apnea gets worse resulting in even worse sleep. Once my sleep apnea was under control I started to lose weight (but then got pregnant) which I had not been able to do in over a year. Sleep is magic :)

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