Sleep apnea

[Lechayas 2]

Hi all, so I am pretty new here. I was so excited when I was called for all my pre op test cause that meant it was getting close right?!?!? Wrong! They called me back and told me the results were great except that I have severe sleep apnea. Does anyone here have that? So now I have to go and buy a cpap machine to give me oxygen at night for at least four weeks. What a bummer! Ty y'all for listening. Chaya

[this sucks 557]

I was also diagnosed with sleep apnea during my pre-op time. I felt 100% better after the first night with the CPAP. I hadnt been gettting quality sleep for years.

The good news is that I was able to stop using the machine after about a year when I lost enough weight to take the pressure off around my neck.

[☠carolinagirl☠ 18,721]

yes, that happened to me.

during my pre ops, i had to do a sleep test..found out i had mild and had to go back a second time for 2nd test to sleep the cpac...and then about a week later, was fitted with my cpac....and in hospital after surgery, i had to bring it to the surgery and i used it that night.....and i stopped using it at 3 months post op..so use the machine and then soon after, you will have the surgery...just a small wee rock in your path.

[Instyle98 240]

I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea (breathing interruption events 78% of the time while I slept, if I remember correctly) prior to surgery and the sleep center told me that even with weight loss, I may still have to use my machine. Initially I was bummed but since I also have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I realized at least now I had an explanation why I was beyond exhausted, woke up choking at night and would only sleep for a couple of hours at a time. My husband was also concerned because despite his ability to sleep soundly combined with his loud snoring (bad sinuses and asthma) he had noticed a few times when I had stopped breathing. It took some time to get used to using my Bi-Pap and I had to try a few different masks, etc., but it had been so long since I had gotten any quality sleep that I had forgotten things most of us take for granted. I had forgotten what it felt like to go to bed and feel that pleasant sensation of relaxing and feeling yourself drift off to sleep. The headaches I had experienced every morning had lessened in intensity and frequency a great deal. I am able to sleep without my articulated nightguard which for me was incredibly uncomfortable, not to mention a PITA, since I have dogs that can reach it if I leave it on my night table or take it out during the night and misplace it. (Dogs love to chew those things to pieces and they cost over $500 and involve getting impressions made at the dentist. My dogs are big enough that with one chomp it is destroyed and my grinding was so bad several of my molars are worn almost flat and due to the pressure I was exerting on my teeth I caused my gums to recede to the point that I had gum grafts top and bottom, both sides before my WLS. It was both painful and expensive.) I too had to bring my machine with to the surgical center, but not to use, only to prove that I actually had one.

Do I like having to hook myself to a machine at night? No, my sleep has improved, I no longer snore, and at least I know I won't wake up unable to move or speak because I had a stroke during the night. Did you know that you can buy a luggage ID tag for traveling that allows you to carry your machine on board a plane without it counting as a carry-on when you travel?

[Draven 188]

I LOVE my cpap machine. I thought I would hate sleeping with something strapped to my face. Now I wold never want to sleep without it. I know I'm in the minority with this,lol, but I just love how I sleep with this so much better than without.

[blondechcky 57]

I had the same thing found out I needed it during my pre op testing. I know this is bad but I tried using it and I had a terrible time with it. I would either wake up constantly because if it, or if end up just ripping the mask off half way through the night because it was driving me crazy.

I've kept it because they said I have to take it with me for surgery but I honestly can't use it at home.

Hopefully it works out well for you.

[labwalker 1,177]

I've had severe sleep apnea for years. Being diagnosed, and being able to get the BiPAP machine was the best thing that ever happened to me. I can remember being sleepy when driving, even back when I wasn't that overweight. I know people who have sleep apnea that aren't heavy. My doctors also tell me that losing weight may not get me off the machine, BUT they also emphasize that losing weight WILL lessen the number of sleep apnea episodes per hour. I've used the CPAP every night without fail. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones who can tolerate the mask, etc.

Sleep apnea is a co-morbidity for WLS, and having it may ease the way to get insurance coverage approved for a WL surgery.

[stept04 465]

I have a c-pap machine I have obstructive sleep apnea, and one of the causes is being over weight. My husband has obstructive and central sleep apnea, central sleep apnea is where your brain doesn't tell yourself to breath. So with obstructive sleep apnea you have more of a chance of getting of it with weight loss, but with central your chances are lower. The hardest thing about sleeping with the c-pap or bi-pap is getting used to the mask or finding the right mask. Finding the right mask made a difference for me and my husband. You will feel so much better if you can get to the point of using it every night.

[Creekwood 702]

I have mild sleep apnea and I feel so much better now that I use the c-pap!! I for one look forward to not needing to wear it, BUT I will not stop wearing it until I feel as good without it as I do with it. I have noticed a big difference in energy now that I use the c-pap. My sleep apnea is mild, if yours is severe I think you'll be shocked how much better you will feel! I know it stinks to be delayed, but in the end it'll be worth it! Good luck!!

[Lechayas 2]

Wow thank you all for replying. You guys are great here, so supportive.

I do have severe sleep apnea and I do wake up with bad headaches most morning. I am from Quebec and so it is not covered here under the public Healthcare and I don't have private insurance. I was told that here it could cost about $1800.00 but in NY (where I go alot) I could buy one for about $1000.00. So "Instyle" thank you for telling me about the tag for traveling.

I has a trial one that I slept with for one night and the mask just went over my nose and I was sooo uncomfortable so I am hoping to get a full mask one. I am just wanting to get on with the surgery already!!! Thank you all again and sorry to be rambling like this but it's great to be able to "speak" with People who get it!! Chaya

[Creekwood 702]

You aren't "rambling", what you are doing is using this forum for what it's for! My mask only covers my nose, but there are tons of different types of masks that you can choose from. I will say this, don't expect to feel comfortable at first. At least in my case I hated wearing it for the first month or so. It was uncomfortable, hard to fall asleep, and just overall I didn't like wearing it. But, you will get used to it and do just fine! I started noticing that I would skip days and then feel like crap the next day (energy-wise), because of it. So I wore it even though it was harder to fall asleep (at first, NOT anymore). I'll put it this way, if I could choose to sleep with my mask for 4 hours or without it for 12 I'd choose the 4 hours with, and I would feel twice as energetic ! Good luck!!

[Instyle98 240]

I started out using a nasal pillow with the ear straps. It worked okay for awhile but then I just couldn't stand it. I tried switching the Bella straps (around the ear) for the ones that go around your head, but after a while hated that too. I now have a Sleepweaver which is soft fabric and that is so much easier to sleep with. I have the regular one and might try the Elan style which is even smaller, but the whole fabric thing is a lot easier than the plastic and rubber kinds. Sometimes the nasal pillow would actually make a whistling noise and who can sleep with that? The Sleepweaver doesn't do that. The other problem I had was with condensation in the tube. I like to sleep with the temperature lowered and sometimes even with the heat setting turned down low condensation would build up in the tube and if I turned a certain way all of a sudden I would get a trickle of Water in the mask and of course into my nose - not a good feeling. I tried a Snuggle cover for the hose but that didn't help. The technician had me try a heated tube and that seems to have fixed the problem.

You can also go on line and find suppliers that have accessories such as special pillows to accommodate your mask or things to help with the fit if you need them. Although my insurance covered a good portion of the cost of the machine and stuff, I still have to pay for part of it. Some masks have trial periods so you can exchange them for something different if they don't work. The other thing I do to save cost is when I get a new tube, I keep the old one and rotate them out. I wash one, let it hang to dry and use the other and vice versa. If you routinely wash and dry them you don't have to get new tubes and stuff as often and will save some money. Since you have to pay out of pocket perhaps they would consider giving you a discount?

[m1aman 944]

Wearing the mask is a lot more comfortable than laying in a casket. Think about it before you decide not to wear your cpap.

[oreo4972 20]

I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in 2005 and had to use a CPAP. Sleep apnea was one of my diagnoses that helped me get approved for the band. When I went to the hospital for my surgery, I did have to take it with me AND use it. As I started to lose weight and noticed it was becoming easier for me to breathe during exercise/activity, I began trying to see if I could go without using my CPAP. After I'd lost 40 lbs., my husband noticed that I wasn't snoring as bad without my CPAP. Now, at 70 lbs. lost, I no longer have to use my CPAP - no more snoring and no apnea.

[backpacking5 224]

I have a CPAP and LOVE it. I can't remember a time when I have slept so good. I wake up feeling like a human being. The only negative thing is we enjoy camping, in a tent, but we have found a way to use it in the woods when we are car camping. I can't sleep without my machine. It is the first thing I pack whenever we go stay somewhere.