Overdue life update.
I've been back home for about 45 minutes now. I was dropped off at Seton NW here in Austin last night at ~8:30pm for a overnight sleep study. Got up to the "room" around 9pm. Was a lot like a very small hotel room. Small TV on the wall, nice looking bed, bathroom with shower. Watched a bit of random TV while the technician got stuff ready. He started getting all the wires and such ready at 11, and by midnight-ish I was all ready to sleep under a watchful eye. There was a camera aimed at the bed with a big IR LED array next to it for night vision, and a intercom system, plus the machine all my wiring connected to to monitor me, and the CPAP. I had to spend the night sleeping on my back, which was quite uncomfortable, and left me sore by morning. I tend to go to sleep on my stomach these days, and change positions a lot through the night AFAIK.
Somewhere mid way through the study the technician woke me up to fit me with the CPAP mask. He explained that I was indeed having regular apnea "sessions" (I forget what he actually called them, maybe occurrences, I don't remember), and that each successive one was leaving me with lower and lower blood oxygen levels. he said that when my breathing resumed BO went back to 100%, but at it's lowest during my sleep it was as low as 60%, which he said was kind of scary. I was unable to fall asleep with the CPAP. Had to have him set it to max humidity, and even then I would suddenly wake up feeling as if I'd stopped breathing just as I was falling asleep, so he switched the machine to BiPAP mode, which means it only provided pressured air when I inhaled. it took some adjusting but I guess it worked because I fell asleep shortly after and slept the rest of the study.
I asked him if it helped at all and he kind of laughed and asked me how I felt, to which I replied no better than any other morning really. I mentioned that I don't normally sleep on my back and such and he explained that that may be part of it, because in the study they want me to basically sleep my worst so they can gauge what my worst actually is, and work from that angle. Be nice if they'd do a study where I sleep how I want first so they can see what it's like when I'm not all sorts of uncomfortable.
In any case, based on those results at least I know my apnea isn't gone, it just isn't so severe that it leaves me a zombie all day like it used to. I assume I will also be getting info soon on obtaining a CPAP/BiPAP machine and the like. I guess that won't be so bad since it will just be a face hugging mask and hose and not ~50 wires and sensors too. I'll be able to sleep on my sides at the least and move in my sleep some.
Really I think I just need to keep working on losing weight and getting healthy. My new weight high out here was 360. I weighed in at 324.6 the other day when I weighed myself. I was doing pretty well when I got myself back under 300 back in Cali, that is my current milestone now. I want to get myself down to 200-ish in the end. At under 300 my edema was all but gone and I slept fine with no problems remaining awake and alert, and could drive large distances without being an accident waiting to happen. I'm not interested in accepting the doctor saying my edema is a life long thing. Previous results say it isn't.
Somewhere mid way through the study the technician woke me up to fit me with the CPAP mask. He explained that I was indeed having regular apnea "sessions" (I forget what he actually called them, maybe occurrences, I don't remember), and that each successive one was leaving me with lower and lower blood oxygen levels. he said that when my breathing resumed BO went back to 100%, but at it's lowest during my sleep it was as low as 60%, which he said was kind of scary. I was unable to fall asleep with the CPAP. Had to have him set it to max humidity, and even then I would suddenly wake up feeling as if I'd stopped breathing just as I was falling asleep, so he switched the machine to BiPAP mode, which means it only provided pressured air when I inhaled. it took some adjusting but I guess it worked because I fell asleep shortly after and slept the rest of the study.
I asked him if it helped at all and he kind of laughed and asked me how I felt, to which I replied no better than any other morning really. I mentioned that I don't normally sleep on my back and such and he explained that that may be part of it, because in the study they want me to basically sleep my worst so they can gauge what my worst actually is, and work from that angle. Be nice if they'd do a study where I sleep how I want first so they can see what it's like when I'm not all sorts of uncomfortable.
In any case, based on those results at least I know my apnea isn't gone, it just isn't so severe that it leaves me a zombie all day like it used to. I assume I will also be getting info soon on obtaining a CPAP/BiPAP machine and the like. I guess that won't be so bad since it will just be a face hugging mask and hose and not ~50 wires and sensors too. I'll be able to sleep on my sides at the least and move in my sleep some.
Really I think I just need to keep working on losing weight and getting healthy. My new weight high out here was 360. I weighed in at 324.6 the other day when I weighed myself. I was doing pretty well when I got myself back under 300 back in Cali, that is my current milestone now. I want to get myself down to 200-ish in the end. At under 300 my edema was all but gone and I slept fine with no problems remaining awake and alert, and could drive large distances without being an accident waiting to happen. I'm not interested in accepting the doctor saying my edema is a life long thing. Previous results say it isn't.