Little Ball of Hate

pafret Loc: Northeast

Have it and had it for many years -- the effects were so bad they resembled narcolepsy. An example, I was giving a lecture and fell asleep; the sound of chuckles woke me up. Talk about being a bore!

Little Ball of Hate

I know the feeling. I can't remember the last time I woke up feeling rested. It's a constant drain. Almost like being dead. I feel like a zombie.

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

------

Thanks for the link. Unfortunately, I need a BiPAP (severe sleep apnea). I contacted the company and was told this machine doesn't work as a BiPAP.

AB

Little Ball of Hate

Bummer. I've never of a BiPAP. What is that?

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

BiPAP = Bi-level Positive Air Pressure

This is a machine that provides a higher air pressure upon inhalation and a lower pressure on exhaliation. Its for us poor unfortunates that stop breathing several times an hour while sleeping. In my case it was 35 times an hour for 15 seconds or more. My doctor said I was "a stroke waiting to happen" unless I began using a BiPAP machine while sleeping. Plus, my wife was threatening to move into another bedroom as my snoring was so loud and long lasting during the night.

I was getting very poor rest at night. I'd be tired all day. Nod-off while working and even a few times while driving. I've had to get my guardian angle re-feathered several times because of my apnea. Id be very short with co-workers, friends and family. I was a wreck. Then, after i ween tot talk to my doctor, he set up a sleep study for me. That's when we found put about my condition and just how serious it is.

Since being on therapy for the past 5 years, my sleep has improved dramatically as has my mood and interactions with others. However, I'll always need my machine when I sleep and nap. Thank God for them!

AB

pafret Loc: Northeast

Unbelievable, your experience parallels mine almost exactly. In addition to moving to another room my wife and I almost came to blows. She kept slamming me when I was asleep and one night she gave me an elbow in the ribs that damned near broke it. When I screamed what the hell is your problem she informed me that my breathing kept stopping for a minute or more and she thought I had died.

Tried all kinds of treatment including a uvalectomy (removal of the Uvula) which was one of the stupider moves I've made. I had the stroke and a heart attack and I use a CPAP. Difficult to get used to, and the noise drove my wife to another room. I have also been informed that my snoring could be heard 100 feet from the house.

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

I hope your wife has been able to return to the bedroom where you sleep. My snoring stopped once I began using my BiPAP. If you're still having snoring issues, you might want to tell your doctor. He may want to have you rechecked to see if your CPAP pressure is adequate for your condition. He may want to switch you to a BiPAP machine, too. I'm no doctor, but I have read a LOT about sleep apnea and it's various attributes, consequences and treatments. My BiPAP pressures are set at 16 for exhale and 21 for inhale. I am fortunate in that my doctor has sleep apnea, too. So, he knows ALL about of which he speaks.

Shortly after I was diagnosed with apnea, I was working at an automobile manufacturing plant, doing some energy conservation audits for them. During a conversation with one of the plant's employees, he told me he'd had apnea and had had a uvalectomy done, too. He, too, said it was the worst mistake of his life. He said his throat was always painful as it had never healed as expected and his apnea was still with him.

As to your snoring being heard 100 feet away, when married to my 1st wife, we'd meet some of her relatives at Land Between the Lakes, in western Kentucky, for a weekend of camping, every Labor Day. One time, her relatives brought along some friends of theirs. The husband was a very large man but as nice as could be. But, when he went to sleep, he snored so loud that campers from campsites 1/4 of a mile away, complained to the park rangers. Several of us left our tents and slept in our cars in an effort to lessen the noise. How his wife and kids ever got any sleep is beyond me. His snoring went on for the whole weekend, too.

Also, as a point of information, when I went to get fitted for my first BiPAP machine and mask, my respiratory therapist told me that the youngest patient she'd had was 3 months old. It makes me wonder if sleep apnea is related to SIDS.

pafret Loc: Northeast

Conventional wisdom in this area is that it is related to obesity, once your neck size gets bigger than 17 you are overweight and prone to Apnea. My snoring went away when my Uvala was removed. Of course that left me with a potential problem of choking on my own saliva, which I"ve done several times. Also eating anything has to be done with extreme caution to avoid inhaling food into the air passageway.

My wife died 14 years ago so there is no one to annoy anymore. I have noticed a return of the symptoms in a milder form but of course now i just snooze off for a while. I should go back and get retested but it hardly seems worth the effort.