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+--- Thread: Newbie (/Thread-Newbie--8355)
Newbie - hcubed - 01-28-2015
My apnea journey dates back several years ago. I'm male, 5'11", and weigh around 160 lbs. I do strength training and cardio 4 to 5 times a week. I will get to the reason why I'm stating these stats later. I was extremely tired in the late afternoons and always had morning headaches. Back in 2008, I went to a neurologist and had a CT scan on my brain and found nothing. Went to an allergist and was diagnosed with allergies to a couple of things but nothing major. Went to an ENT and she told me everything including my sinuses looks good.
Later on that year, my partner noticed that I had irregular breathing when I'm sleeping. Not necessarily snoring but I would stop breathing occasionally. Without giving it much thought, I just took the information and did nothing with.
In late 2012, my father passed away from a stroke. He was 80 years old. After about 8 months of grieving, something came over me and came to the realization that a stroke can be hereditary. I studied my family medical history, talked to my mom, and got permission to look at my Dad's medical records. My dad had sleep apnea. Like any other human being on Earth I looked at Google to find out if sleep apnea can cause a stroke. It can.
During this whole time, my work life was extremely busy so unfortunately I didn't prioritize getting a sleep study done. It wasn't until late last year, 2014, that I had an oximeter study done at the comfort of my own home. After the results came in, they wanted me to go do a sleep study at the clinic. I was finally diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea at around 27 ahi. I was very uneducated about sleep apnea and thought that only middle-aged, overweight, male had this disorder. As stated earlier, I was in shape and my BMI is average. The doctor told me that because of my ethnicity, I'm Asian, I have a higher risk regardless of my weight, etc. That bit of information just blew my mind. The doctor went through some options with me including surgery, CPAP machine, mouth guard, etc. Both of decided that surgery was the last resort and that CPAP machine was the best choice.
Here I was in the doctors office being told I would be hooked up to a machine everyday before I go to sleep for the rest of my life. Needless to say I became depressed. Before I got my CPAP machine to make myself feel better, I started to troll these boards for information. I mean I "trolled" these boards. Any spare time I got, I was reading. This board and you guys are a godsend. Because of this information, I was able to pick out a good machine, Resmed Airsense 10 Autoset, and mask, Airfit f10. I was also was able to get good results since I started to use it a couple of weeks ago, average ahi is 2.2 and average leak rate is .26 and I feel so much better. No more headaches and tiredness.
So thank you for everyone on this board. It has saved my physical health and my mental health.
RE: Newbie - PaulaO2 - 01-28-2015
That's what we're here for. And now we expect you to stick around and help others.
Dang trolls. I thought we sprayed for them??
RE: Newbie - me50 - 01-29-2015
congrats to you.
funny PaulaO2
RE: Newbie - Ghost1958 - 01-29-2015
I had a CT scan of my brain attempted once. They also found nothing. LOL
RE: Newbie - TheManseHen - 01-29-2015
That is excellent news Hcubed.
Many folk it seems, put off the test/machine/diagnosis for years...Glad you are feeling improved so quickly. I hear one usually continues to see improvement even after the initial one.
RE: Newbie - novatom - 01-29-2015
My situation is similar to yours. My AHI was measured at 28 late last year when I did a sleep test. I am 5'9" and weigh 175 (I don't do strength training but I do the treadmill a couple times a week at the gym, so I consider myself reasonably fit). However I was well aware that this wasn't a condition restricted to the stereotype of the overweight male, as I had gone through another sleep test 12 and a half years ago and was diagnosed with "mild" sleep apnea. I was probably about 10 pounds lighter back then, but when you get in your 50's, it gets harder to keep that extra 10 pounds off. However, I did not follow through with the CPAP the first time around as I just couldn't stand the mask. (I'm actually grateful that my sleep apnea got worse as it finally forced me to find a resolution.)
So from 2002 to last year I lived with sleep apnea. My chronic insomnia kept getting worse, particularly last year. However, I was convinced that my problem wasn't sleep apnea. I didn't have problems falling asleep, but I would wake up about 3-4 hours later and not be able to get back to sleep for the rest of the night. I didn't think this had anything to do with sleep apnea until I visited with my sleep doctor and he speculated that, upon waking up after the initial 3-4 hours of sleep, I would experience a RERA (respiratory effort related arousal) that would wake me up with a shot of adrenalin, and it was that adrenalin that would keep me awake for the rest of the night. I've heard others mention that same effect elsewhere on this board.
Regardless of what was waking me up, as soon as I started using the CPAP, I noticed a big difference. I still wake up in the middle of the night but now I am at least able to fall back to sleep. And more importantly, I don't feel as tired anymore.
BTW, not once did I get depressed about the fact that I would be tethered to a machine for the rest of my life when I sleep. Whatever depression I might have felt was way overshadowed by the optimism I felt that I would finally resolve my sleep issues once and for all. And having gone through the process more than a decade ago, I can attest that the gear (i.e. the machines and the masks) have come a long way in advancements. I don't know if they even had nasal pillows a decade ago, but I can only imagine that the technology will get much better and the intrusiveness of the masks will get even less noticeable.
Good luck!
RE: Newbie - trish6hundred - 01-29-2015
Hi hcubed,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
It's good to hear that you have begun to get your sleep apnea under control and that you're starting to feel better.
Hang in there for more responses to your post and Much success to you with your CPAP therapy.
RE: Newbie - me50 - 01-29-2015
(01-29-2015, 01:55 AM)Ghost1958 Wrote: I had a CT scan of my brain attempted once. They also found nothing. LOL