That condition is precisely sleep apnea, because you stop breathing your sleep will become fragmented and if you can't make the complete sleep cycle your brain will always be tired ... imagine that year after year, it's almost as if you coudn't sleep for 10 years or more!

My bf had it and it was gone after a nose operation. Now he sleeps much much better and the snoring is way less too.

My friend ... before he die ... was having sleep apnea ...


















j/k dude :)

it took me a number of months to get an appointment but i finally had a sleep exam done the other day. I was supposed to stay the night just for examination without using the cpap machine at all but after 2 hours the apnea was so bad my oxygen levels were going down to 67% and falling. They woke me up and suggested i try out the cpap unit and within minutes i fell asleep for the rest of the night, oxygen levels were at 97% after that. So with half a nights sleep i woke up and felt totally recharged.. which is something i haven't felt in a long time.

So getting my machine prescribed to me this week.


oh and for the record i'm not fat. i've had this condition for years, even when i was a marathon runner so weight loss only helps a small % if you have a major blockage. There is a good chance that this is going to disappear my blood pressure problem and my energy levels should go through the roof. I'm just posting this to help encourage others to get on top of this problem if they do have it, sooner rather than later anyway ;)

I have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, tried a CPAP machine, it worked once (I literally sprang out of bed the next morning) then after that my nose started blocking up. I tried it a few more times, including after some weeks to make sure it wasn't a cold, but no go. I ended up returning it.

Using that machine has done some permanent damage; since then my voice has been more nasal, my nose airway always feels a bit more constricted (more effort to draw in or exhale via the nose only) and I have recurring problems with a blocked up or runny nose. So CPAP isn't always a magic bullet.

I've known two people that have died from it. The went to sleep one night and that was it.

They're still dead.

get some help man

What have you used to solve the problem of sleep apnea? I have it, albeit undiagnosed - however have done enough reading to be pretty sure - choking during sleep, extremely loud snorer, have been told I snore then stop breathing for 20 or 30 seconds then start snoring again etc...

Don't like the idea of the CPAP thing though.

Glad its helping you out :thumbsup

I have an appt next week, waiting on the confirmation. I had one setup a few weeks ago but ended up cancelling it because my shitty insurance I had wouldn't cover the test OR the equipment if needed.

new insurance from the wife's job covers 100% :winkwink:

Either lose weight, or get the Darth Vader sleeping mask.

Good luck toots.

yikes not good man.

if you have a deviated septum it would definitely be a problem.. but they have masks that go over the mouth or even the whole face as well so that is another option maybe?

I may get the full mask as well, in case i ever get clogged up.


losing weight was not enough for me.

What the fuck? I just moved into an old building a few months back and have had problems sleeping ever since. When I have been able to rest I've experienced some straight up frightening nightmares.

Getting so drunk that I can no longer walk or even stand hasn't helped, but ghosts and tormented evil spirits fucking with my mind while I'm naked and alone in the dark, fuck everything about that.

My brother had it pretty bad. When we lived together a few years ago, it sounded like a fucking bear growling in the middle of the night. It was the most painful sound to listen to. The best way to know is to have someone tell you that it looks like you're dying while trying to sleep. I remember watching him once, and he was thrashing around and gasping like he was in severe distress. It was funny and disturbing at the same time.

My brother wears some kind of platypuss mask now, and his apnea is better, but the best thing he did was to lose 30 pounds. I noticed that when I was about 20 pounds overweight, I started to have the same problems, and they went away once I got back into fighting shape.

You should definitely get it looked at by a doc, because it takes a toll on your body when you can't enough oxygen while sleeping.

stop being fat.

I lost 40 lbs recenty and I'm sleeping a lot better. Wearing those breathe right strips help too.

i have no idea what you look like but i'm in far better shape than you i assure you ;)

Grow up a pair and die ...

grow a pair & get a life...

http://troll.me/images/sarcatic-gori...-well-done.jpg

I have it as well.
Was prescribed a CPAP machine-

Wore it for about 8 mos until I finally had enough of it- I didn't feel like it was working that well cause my mouth still opened and all I would hear is air escaping and it made my mouth very dry.

So now I am sleeping like shit again and because I switched health providers, just to get a new fucking mask I have to have another sleep study.

I hated the first one. Had to go and have some chick watch me sleep and be hooked up with a zillion wires.

But I will say, it sucks being tired all day which is what happens when you don't wear a mask.

I have it when I lie on my back. When I'm on my side, apparently not... but I just snore, I don't have panic-breath attacks or anything...

:D

they have machines with built in humidifiers and shit too i noticed. did the one you try have that? I am curious how they go about choosing the right mask myself...

The coverage in these parts are a bit more smooth i guess but the waiting times for this shit is down right ridiculous.. they are telling me that i have to wait a month for the doc to sign off on my test so i can get the damn thing, that's after waiting 4 months to get the exam booked... I'm going to raise hell and see if i can get it to a doctor who doesn't take a month off to celebrate jesus' birthday instead..

Thanks for the great thread, everyone. My father-in-law (to be) has terrible apnea and he's stopped driving even because he nods off. He's had the machine for two years and used it once. !?! Says he can't stand the mask on his face. He's overweight and 67 years old and basically refuses to help himself.

Copying and pasting lots of entries from this thread now to help convince him.

Interesting how many people are defective.

http://i.imgur.com/T96bX.png

http://weknowmemes.com/wp-content/ga...o-hedgehog.jpg

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh ...

That sounds like narcolepsy - or do you mean he's just so sleepy from his apnea keeping him from deep sleep?

:D

Ambien CR does wonders.

He's been to the sleep centre and did the tests and whatnot about three years ago and they then diagnosed sleep apnea. Getting him to help himself is another matter. He's one of these people from that generation in which discussing one's health is impolite and admitting that you're needing help is equivalent to being less of a man. Argh.

My dad has it, sleeps with the breathing machine and is fine.

Weight isn't always a factor. My dad has never been overweight.

I had sleep apnea and now don't, so I can give some background.

Since you mentioned getting testing equip, it sounds like you won't be doing a sleep study but instead will have the takehome equip like I had. The equip will monitor how many "apneas" you have per hour, i.e. stoppage of breath. 15 per hour or higher is diagnosed sleep apnea, 5-15 will depend on their analysis, and under 5 is not sleep apnea.

I had 48 per hour. Sounded high and probably was, but they said the highest they tested was 112 per hour! Anyways, I was a walrus at the time which is probably why it had developed into how bad it was - 6'1" 280 lbs.

It however wasn't really the cause. I was having wisdom teeth taken out around the time I got diagnosed and my surgeon for that happened to be an expert on sleep apnea. He took one 2 second look in my mouth and said "your tonsils are huge". I had asked him because I wasn't satisfied with the thought of being hooked up with a loud mask for a 1/3 of the rest of my life, and was glad I asked!

So - went through the procedures of my HMO to confirm and wound up getting a UPPP surgery or something pretty similar to it. The pain after the surgery was pretty bad for a few days (eating ice was the only thing that helped at all, even with pain killers, and could only sleep for a couple hours at a time before the pain woke me). After that though, it wasn't that bad to deal with, and a few weeks later, back to normal. Didn't cost me that much in deductible and I don't need a loud mask every time I sleep.

Now - you might expect afterwards that holy shit, sleep would feel like the best thing in the world, right? It wasn't THAT noticeable of an immediate improvement...over time I'm sure it's helped, and more importantly I'm no longer a walrus (195-200 lbs now). So while sleep apnea may be robbing you of energy, it may not be the only thing.