Should I get the CPAP - Sleep Disorders Message Board

Colinette · 02-08-2009, 10:42 AM

Based on various symptoms I have had (always tired, chronic stuffy nose, various respiratory problems, sudden high blood pressure), my doc had me do a sleep study. She also said I have a narrow air canal in the back of my throat. She asked if I snored; my husband says I make "funny noises" when I sleep.

When she reviewed the results, she told me that I was right on the cusp for the results. I never sleep on my back, so they had no results for that. However, I did stop breathing some -- not a lot -- but some while on my side. She told me it was up to me, whether or not to get the CPAP.

I know a few men who have them, and they love them. But these men are very overweight.

I should note that I am always tired in the mornings. I am definitely a night person, not a morning person. I've also posted on here recently because I was diagnosed with vasomotor rhinitis, and now I suspect I have chemical sensitivities.

bethsheba · 02-08-2009, 11:47 AM

Colinette,

If it were me, I'd get one...I sleep with one now and I firmly believe that if I had been diagnosed with apnea as a child forty some years ago I would not be dealing with obesity and hypertension now...and I believe that may academic performance, work performance, and social network would be very different had I been treated sooner.

I have never been able to breath through my nose...but the filters on the cpap seem to screen out allergens so I seem to sleep better with it.

Also, I have met women who have been diagnosed with asthma, and who were told that their asthma symptoms would abate with cpap treatment...and they found that to be true.

One woman I met, weighed about 95 pounds, I swear she was the size of a child, and she slept with cpap. Although weight is a factor with cpap, it may be a question of the chicken or the egg in some cases.

But again, if it were me, I'd go with it for preventative measures if for no other reason....

Bethsheba

Colinette · 02-14-2009, 01:21 PM

Thank you. Now I just have to see if my insurance will pay for it. I'm willing to go for it. With all of my other respiratory issues, this might help.