Obstructive sleep apnea

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  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    edited October 2022
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    If your sleep apnea is moderate to severe, your doctor is right that even a large weight loss won’t cure or eliminate it, but it can help. But, you will still have to wear the CPAP machine or other alternative. Untreated sleep apnea increases the risk of all kinds of serious problems. The weigh loss will help some though, so don’t be discouraged.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,077 Member
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    @ghrmj : I see you're still active on MFP. How's it going with the sleep apnea and your other goals?

    I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to drop one more comment about sleep apnea, and why it can be a good thing to get it treated . . . and why doing so might help with weight loss and fitness goals.

    Background: Recently, I got a new model of Gamin fitness tracker, one that has a feature called "Body Battery". Garmin says "Body Battery is a feature that uses a combination of heart rate variability, stress, and activity to estimate a user's energy reserves throughout the day." I've had the new device since mid-October. Now, I don't think that result is gospel, but after watching the results for this month or so, it sort of tracks with subjective feelings.

    Here's what I think is maybe interesting for purposes of this sleep apnea thread: Last night, I accidentally fell asleep (in bed) without putting on my mask. I slept, seemingly as soundly as usual, from around 2AM to a bit after 7AM (yeah, night owl), without the mask. Then - not very refreshed feeling, and sort of horrified - I woke up, put on the mask/CPAP, and went back to sleep.

    See how the "body battery" white line moves upward (more rested) verrrrrryyyy sloooowlyyy around 2AM or so, then starts a steep uphill around the 7-something AM time when I was using the CPAP? You can also see a change in the bar graph of physiological stress. That's substantially more restful sleep, even though the sleep interval itself wasn't subjectively different (though I did feel more rested when I finally woke up, but I could've attributed that to more sleep hours).

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    How does that affect weight management and fitness? When I have more energy, I do more (possibly subtly), and burn more calories via daily activities. My exercise intensity can be higher, and still leave me with enough energy for the rest of my day. When I'm less fatigued, not only am I likely to have fewer cravings or appetite issues (because rested bodies don't need to do the energy-seeking appetite spikes), I'm also less likely to give into any appetite incidents I do have, or to manage them sensibly.
  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
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    Update: I have had my CPAP for a month now. It isn't a full mask, it just sits under my nose, and has been really easy to get used to, I have had no trouble with it.
    Not sure I have noticed a huge difference in how I feel during the day. I think I might be sleeping better but I got it right before Christmas so the holiday's were kind of hectic, then I went away on vacation for a week, and now I have a cold so feel crappy anyway.
    At any rate it sends info to the doctor somehow and I follow up with them at the end of the month to see how it is going. Even if I don't notice a huge difference in my daytime energy I still feel better knowing that my oxygen levels are staying up during the night and it is mitigating some of my health risks.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,077 Member
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    Thanks for the update, @ghrmj: I'm glad to hear you haven't had much difficulty adapting. I hope you'll experience some improvement effects longer term - you're right, it's hard to tell when things are crazy for other reasons.

    Watch out for a sense of dry mouth - it doesn't happen for everyone, but I tend to mouth-breathe at night to some extent. There are things you can try, if that's something you experience.

    I actually like mine when I have a cold: It's kind of blocked-up at the start of the night, but eventually seems to open up my airway as the usage goes on so I can breathe more freely than without it.

    Best wishes!
  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
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    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Thanks for the update, @ghrmj: I'm glad to hear you haven't had much difficulty adapting. I hope you'll experience some improvement effects longer term - you're right, it's hard to tell when things are crazy for other reasons.

    Watch out for a sense of dry mouth - it doesn't happen for everyone, but I tend to mouth-breathe at night to some extent. There are things you can try, if that's something you experience.

    I actually like mine when I have a cold: It's kind of blocked-up at the start of the night, but eventually seems to open up my airway as the usage goes on so I can breathe more freely than without it.

    Best wishes!

    I've noticed this too - when I came down with the cold I thought it might be an issue to use it - but the airflow and humidity actually seem to help. Who knew?
  • girlwithcurls2
    girlwithcurls2 Posts: 2,259 Member
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    @AnnPT77 that graphic is really interesting. I sometimes forget to put my mask on. I tend to sleep through the night, so sometimes I might go all night without it. I don't notice a huge difference for the one night that it's off. However, this makes me think that my body does. Sometimes I feel like I just want a break from the mask and hose. My partner wears one too, and sometimes we just want to fall asleep squished together, without being flat on our backs. I'm completely re-thinking this now. (And I kind of want one of those Garmins!!)

    As always, thank you for coming back time and time again to share your wealth of knowledge with this community. There are so many things I have learned from you (and I often share your wisdom with friends and family). We're so lucky that you will share your experiences :)
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,077 Member
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    girlwithcurls2 wrote: »
    @AnnPT77 that graphic is really interesting. I sometimes forget to put my mask on. I tend to sleep through the night, so sometimes I might go all night without it. I don't notice a huge difference for the one night that it's off. However, this makes me think that my body does. Sometimes I feel like I just want a break from the mask and hose. My partner wears one too, and sometimes we just want to fall asleep squished together, without being flat on our backs. I'm completely re-thinking this now. (And I kind of want one of those Garmins!!)

    As always, thank you for coming back time and time again to share your wealth of knowledge with this community. There are so many things I have learned from you (and I often share your wisdom with friends and family). We're so lucky that you will share your experiences :)

    Thank you! Please keep in mind, though, that:

    1. I could be misattributing the change in that graph, and
    2. On the internet, no one knows whether I know what I'm talking about. ;) Caveat emptor, even at our low discount price of zero. Trust, but verify!

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  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
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    Update : still working on the weight loss, but my CPAP treatment has been a success. My data from the 4 week trial showed that my sleep apnea score dropped from around 70 to 0.5 (per hour). Can't ask for much better than that.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,077 Member
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    ghrmj wrote: »
    Update : still working on the weight loss, but my CPAP treatment has been a success. My data from the 4 week trial showed that my sleep apnea score dropped from around 70 to 0.5 (per hour). Can't ask for much better than that.

    That's really wonderful to hear! I hope you're feeling more rested, though I know - from experience - that it can take a surprising amount of time (because of rebound effects) for that to really gel. Thanks for coming back to update!
  • JennBryce
    JennBryce Posts: 9 Member
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    I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in 2021, obstructive sleep apnea and was given a cpap machine.

    The doctor also told me weight loss couldn't cure it but a year on I've lost 90lbs and I've handed back my Cpap this week my sleep apnea has gone (after another sleep study was done) so its definitely possible.

  • carlsoda
    carlsoda Posts: 3,412 Member
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    Go get a CPAP! It’s amazing how different you feel once starting and actually getting a good nights sleep. I went with a cushion instead of a mask and took a few days to get used to it but I’d never go back to sleeping without it! Also sleep apnea is so hard on your heart!! Get it ordered and get started!! Send me a message if you have any questions!!
  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
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    JennBryce wrote: »
    I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in 2021, obstructive sleep apnea and was given a cpap machine.

    The doctor also told me weight loss couldn't cure it but a year on I've lost 90lbs and I've handed back my Cpap this week my sleep apnea has gone (after another sleep study was done) so its definitely possible.

    That is amazing! - I am hoping for that and using my CPAP in the meantime.
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 852 Member
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    I was never diagnosed with sleep apnea, but my gf has told me I went from snoring like a bear when I was 388 pounds to not even being able to tell if I've fallen asleep at my current weight of 235

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