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Slow start, but a great outcome..
#1
Slow start, but a great outcome..
Sometimes we're so hung up with our own things we miss something going on right around us.

That was the case with a friend of ours. She's an older, but not as old as I am (of course) person. Very nice person, quiet unless she's getting after me about something, or on her bi-polar "high side."

Anyhow, another friend told me she was concerned about her because when they were just sitting and talking, our friend would fall asleep.

Duh moment. I called her up and asked her if her docs had ever discussed sleep apnea with her. "Yes," she said. Turns out she was diagnosed and prescribed cpap 15 years ago, but didn't understand and couldn't figure out how to make the machine work so gave it up.

Turns out she has had many occasions where she would doze off including one that resulted in her being in a very severe 1 car accident. She was seriously injured and has had numerous surgeries because of it. Currently she is fighting depression, bi-polar, diabetes, and many other problems. But no one in the last 15 years has ever counseled with her about sleep apnea.

Mrs. R_G took her to see her doc yesterday. She got a thorough physical, a referral to an ob/gyn because of some other issue she has had for a long time but has elected to ignore ---------- and is scheduled for a sleep test.

I sent a note with her for her doc discussing SA, and mentioning the new machine Resmed has specifically for women, and why that might be a good thing. According to Mrs. R_G, the doc was very receptive to my note, and asked to keep it so he could look up the new Airsense A10 for women. So I felt good about that too.

I'm pleased so far with the outcome because my friend now understands what sleep apnea means, and what the therapy can do for her life. I'll be there to make sure she understands how to use it and to make sure she gets the proper support from her doc and dme. Just so you know, they had not better give us any crap about what machine or mask or pressure or so forth. I can be a crappy patient and an even crappier advocate.

The point is while we are busily supporting each other on this great site, we also need to keep an eye on our home boys - and girls. Thanks to a mutual friend who was concerned about our friend, I woke up enough to help her get started improving her health. That feels good.
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#2
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
A nice story. Good for you for pushing the issue to help someone who has been ignoring the problem for much too long.

Puts me in mind of Mrs. surferdude who is snoring and periodically choking but resisting my advice to ask he doctor to get her in for a sleep test. She sleeps 10 ~ 12 hours/day yet often feels sleepy during the day. Classic case as far as I'm concerned. Stubborn is her middle name though. I'm thinking to call her doc secretly before she goes in next time for something else and spilling the beans on her. I'm also going to hide my small digital audio recorder so she can play back her sleep sounds and let her judge.
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#3
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
(09-17-2014, 02:16 PM)surferdude2 Wrote: I'm thinking to call her doc secretly before she goes in next time for something else and spilling the beans on her. I'm also going to hide my small digital audio recorder so she can play back her sleep sounds and let her judge.

Ummmm, not a good plan.... What I would do?

Dialog: "Sweetie, I've been thinking about it and the machine is a bit of a bother, so I think I'll just quit using it."

"But Surfie dear, you were in bad shape before you got your machine. You snored, dozed off, had heartburn, got up in the night more often than the neighbors cat.... and on and on... I don't think you should quit your machine."

"But Sugar-pumpkin, I've noticed none of those healthy thingies are important to you, so I just thought maybe I was being a wusp. I know if you cut your arm off you would do something to stop the bleeding... Well, sleep apnea is sort of like cutting your arm off. You're cute little body is bleeding inside. Now a simple little machine could solve that, but gosh, you don't think you need to do that. So I'm thinking you must be onto something. This bad health thing.... I mean, how bad can it be?"

"You're right Sweetie Surfie dude. I'll go get a sleep check up first thing in the morning. But right now, come here: I want to kick the shix out of you...."
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#4
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
Hmm I just learned there is a Mrs RG. What was that Mr T would say in the A Team back in the day? And it seems RG thinks Mrs RG might fall for Tha reverse psychology. ... how long have they been married? I just wonder because Mrs G would never fall for that. Just today I had to drag her kicking and screaming to the hospital, where I am now, because she is having trouble breathing and won't go on her own.

Take a page from my book SD tie her up toss her in the trunk and drag her over there. Oh yah and something I learned from the past don't let any clothes stick out the trunk. The police seem to look for that sort of thing. I learned that the hard way. Very difficult to explain wife tied up in the trunk......

Forgot to say good deal RG.
If everyone thinks alike, then someone isn't thinking.
Everyone knows something, together we could know everything.
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#5
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
(09-17-2014, 03:43 PM)Galactus Wrote: Hmm I just learned there is a Mrs RG. What was that Mr T would say in the A Team back in the day? And it seems RG thinks Mrs RG might fall for Tha reverse psychology. ... how long have they been married? I just wonder because Mrs G would never fall for that. Just today I had to drag her kicking and screaming to the hospital, where I am now, because she is having trouble breathing and won't go on her own.

Take a page from my book SD tie her up toss her in the trunk and drag her over there. Oh yah and something I learned from the past don't let any clothes stick out the trunk. The police seem to look for that sort of thing. I learned that the hard way. Very difficult to explain wife tied up in the trunk......

All of which goes to remind me of a little test wherein you can discover who loves you the most; your wife or your dog. All you need to do is lock your wife and your dog in the trunk of the car. Go away for a couple of hours, then come back and let them out. See which one it is that is the most happy to see you.
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#6
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
(09-17-2014, 03:47 PM)retired_guy Wrote:
(09-17-2014, 03:43 PM)Galactus Wrote: Hmm I just learned there is a Mrs RG. What was that Mr T would say in the A Team back in the day? And it seems RG thinks Mrs RG might fall for Tha reverse psychology. ... how long have they been married? I just wonder because Mrs G would never fall for that. Just today I had to drag her kicking and screaming to the hospital, where I am now, because she is having trouble breathing and won't go on her own.

Take a page from my book SD tie her up toss her in the trunk and drag her over there. Oh yah and something I learned from the past don't let any clothes stick out the trunk. The police seem to look for that sort of thing. I learned that the hard way. Very difficult to explain wife tied up in the trunk......

All of which goes to remind me of a little test wherein you can discover who loves you the most; your wife or your dog. All you need to do is lock your wife and your dog in the trunk of the car. Go away for a couple of hours, then come back and let them out. See which one it is that is the most happy to see you.

Priceless. I love it.

If everyone thinks alike, then someone isn't thinking.
Everyone knows something, together we could know everything.
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#7
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
(09-17-2014, 02:16 PM)surferdude2 Wrote: A nice story. Good for you for pushing the issue to help someone who has been ignoring the problem for much too long.

Puts me in mind of Mrs. surferdude who is snoring and periodically choking but resisting my advice to ask he doctor to get her in for a sleep test. She sleeps 10 ~ 12 hours/day yet often feels sleepy during the day. Classic case as far as I'm concerned. Stubborn is her middle name though. I'm thinking to call her doc secretly before she goes in next time for something else and spilling the beans on her. I'm also going to hide my small digital audio recorder so she can play back her sleep sounds and let her judge.

This is posted not to unduly alarm nor to imply that it is necessarily applicable to your situation, but I came upon it and thought I would pass it on.

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/gui...ing?page=2

"Death. Multiple studies have found that people who sleep nine or more hours a night have significantly higher death rates than people sleeping seven to eight hours a night. No specific reason for this correlation has been determined. But researchers found that depression and low socioeconomic status are also associated with longer sleep. They speculate these factors could be related to the observed increase in mortality for people who sleep too much."

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#8
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
Nice story R_G.
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#9
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
Lovely story RG...

thanks for all your support in the last year too...

I hope I can be as useful to someone someday..

Hope you are OK, as I now see this is an old thread from last year....

Storywizard
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#10
RE: Slow start, but a great outcome..
Where is R_G???
OpalRose
Apnea Board Administrator
www.apneaboard.com

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