New Sleep test on the 8th

[Enchanter]

What about taking nyquil or gravol or something OTC?

I think nyquil makes me drowsy, but not necessarily strong enough to knock me out. It might give me a 30 percent chance to sleep though on some nights (at some point in the night.)

Would a shot of whiskey help?

I don't know. I don't drink.

[chunkyfrog]

Have a light early supper. Turkey salad would be a suggestion. Let the tryptophan relax you.
About an hour before bed, have a sweet roll, washed down with chamomile tea.
Work on crossword puzzles, because they occupy the mind without disturbing us.

[zoocrewphoto]

No alcohol.

I was told specifically that they would send me home without the test if I had any alcohol.

[jlaw3x7]

Cheers to you Robysue.

[postitnote]

What about taking nyquil or gravol or something OTC?

I think nyquil makes me drowsy, but not necessarily strong enough to knock me out. It might give me a 30 percent chance to sleep though on some nights (at some point in the night.)

Would a shot of whiskey help?

I don't know. I don't drink.

That's good really because anytime I drink I get tired. That's after I get that warm and fuzzy feeling but really it's a calming feeling. Now I'm not saying drink and drive to the test but if you don't get an Ambian maybe they will let you down a shot. Maybe someone else could chime in as to whether that is a bad idea or not.

[robysue]

What about taking nyquil or gravol or something OTC?

I think nyquil makes me drowsy, but not necessarily strong enough to knock me out. It might give me a 30 percent chance to sleep though on some nights (at some point in the night.)

Would a shot of whiskey help?

I don't know. I don't drink.

That's good really because anytime I drink I get tired. That's after I get that warm and fuzzy feeling but really it's a calming feeling. Now I'm not saying drink and drive to the test but if you don't get an Ambian maybe they will let you down a shot. Maybe someone else could chime in as to whether that is a bad idea or not.

As zoocrewphoto points out, most sleep labs will NOT allow you to do the test if you have alcohol in your system.

So a shot of whiskey (or any other alcohol) is a really, really bad idea.

[Enchanter]

I appreciate the suggestions. However, my case is a bit more complicated. Things like tryptophan, melatonin, camomile only work for me for a short period of time. Then they don't work after my body has become accustomed to them. Last week I ate a lot of turkey before the test and it didn't work. So there isn't any magic bullet for me. At the most, I can hope to have a slightly better chance to sleep if I do some of those things, but to be honest I can't sleep with that CPAP yet. I'm not adjusted to it, I actually got nervous when wearing it because I thought I was going to suffocate.

You see, if I didn't have sleep issues, then I wouldn't be here.

So I have 2 options. One is Ambien. I don't even know if Ambien will work. But I'm going to call the doctors on Monday and tell the doctor my story. If he doesn't prescribe me something, then that is on him. He must realize that we are wasting studies if I show up not sleeping.

The 2nd option would be to not sleep the night before the test and show up exhausted. That method can work either way. I might show up and just doze off from being sleep deprived. But sometimes that strategy can work against me and I will still not sleep. So there is no guarantee. It's sad, but I think that is why I am here, because I have sleep issues.

[robysue]

Enchanted,

Here's my advice on how to maximize the chances that you get some sleep on your May 8 sleep test. Keep in mind that my advice is not the standard advice and it's not going to be easy to follow. If it seems way too hard to try to do, then look at what everybody else is suggesting and pick out the pieces of advice that make the most sense to you.

First: A large part of the problem when it comes to YOUR getting enough sleep during the sleep test is that the sleep test's time in bed window is typically something like 11:00pm to 5:00am, or maybe 12:00midnight to 6:00am if you're lucky to have a tech that will let you sleep that long. And your natural circadian rhythm is to typically fall asleep around 4:00 or 5:00 am. And I'm under the impression that you often sleep until 11:00AM or even noon. (If that's not correct, please tell me when you usually do wake up.) And consequently, there's not much overlap between your natural sleep time and the sleep test's time in bed. And you have no control over the sleep test's time in bed window.

So you need to try to encourage your body to fall asleep earlier. The only way I know how to do that is to force yourself to get up earlier in the morning for several days in a row and to NOT take any daytime naps. I would suggest doing the following starting tomorrow:

• On Saturday, May 2: Force yourself to get out of bed by 9:00AM no matter how late you go to bed tonight and no matter how rotten you feel when you first wake up. Yes, you'll feel lousy all day long. Don't worry about that. Go to bed when you feel sleepy enough to possibly get to sleep in 30-50 minutes after going to bed.
• On Sunday, May 3: Force yourself to get out of bed by 8:30AM no matter how late you go to bed on Saturday night and no matter how rotten you feel when you first wake up. Yes, you'll feel lousy all day long. Don't worry about that. Go to bed when you feel sleepy enough to possibly get to sleep in 30-50 minutes after going to bed.
• On Monday, May 4: Force yourself to get out of bed by 8:00AM no matter how late you go to bed on Sunday night and no matter how rotten you feel when you first wake up. Yes, you'll feel lousy all day long. Don't worry about that. Go to bed when you feel sleepy enough to possibly get to sleep in 30-50 minutes after going to bed.
• On Tuesday, May 5: Force yourself to get out of bed by 7:30AM no matter how late you go to bed on Sunday night and no matter how rotten you feel when you first wake up. Yes, you'll feel lousy all day long. Don't worry about that. Go to bed when you feel sleepy enough to possibly get to sleep in 30-50 minutes after going to bed. By this point, hopefully you are finding that you are able to fall asleep much earlier than 4:00 or 5:00 AM. If you are finding that you are able to get to sleep by around 2:30 or 3:00AM and more or less sleeping until 7:00 or 7:30, you are getting close enough to being able to fall asleep at a time that's early enough for the sleep test to gather sufficient data.
• On Wednesday, May 6 and Thursday, May 7: Force yourself to get out of bed by 7:00AM no matter how late you go to bed the previous night. Yes, you'll feel lousy all day long. Don't worry about that. Try to go to bed by no later than 2:00AM and see if you can get to sleep within 30 minutes or so.
• On Friday, May 8: Force yourself to get out of bed by 6:30AM or 7:00AM at the latest. Stay up all day. Don't drink any caffeinated beverages. Keep yourself well hydrated. Make sure you get a reasonable amount of exercise, but don't over do it. You don't want to be so physically exhausted that it's hard to get sleepy. Don't eat a heavy supper. (The turkey salad suggested by chunkyfrog is an excellent idea.) Do NOT bring your laptop to the sleep test, but do bring a book and some crosswords. Or a deck of cards to play solitaire with if you like that. Turn the screen of the cell phone OFF when you are taken back to your room for the sleep test and try to NOT worry. If you like listening to quiet music, bring your iPod, mp3 player, or use your cell if that's how you listen to music. But don't sit and play with the electronic gadget that's playing the music. After the tech wires you up and puts you to bed, don't freak out if it seems like you are lying awake for a long time. Allow your mind to wander to pleasant and relaxing things instead of worries. Keep your eyes closed. If you get uncomfortable and need something, speak up and tell the tech.

And when the tech wakes you up on Saturday, May 9: Don't ask the tech for information about how the test went. S/he is not supposed to tell you anything and the harder you push for information, the more uncomfortable the tech is going to be. Also don't try to second guess things: You either slept enough (most likely scenario) or you didn't (and the sleep doc's office will be calling you, and if they insist on a third test you can tell the you will only do a third test if some Ambien is prescribed.) You can't change what happened during the test and it's time to chill out and reward yourself for getting through the ordeal in one piece.

[zoocrewphoto]

So I have 2 options. One is Ambien. I don't even know if Ambien will work. But I'm going to call the doctors on Monday and tell the doctor my story. If he doesn't prescribe me something, then that is on him. He must realize that we are wasting studies if I show up not sleeping.

I highly recommend the ambien. Insist on it or get a different doctor to prescribe one. It is the only time I have ever taken one. I am a severe night owl, going to bed between 4 and 6am most nights. I took the pill with me to the sleep study and told them I had one. The tech asked if I had ever used one before. Some people fall asleep quickly and some take awhile. Since they need you to do that testing at the beginning to make sure all the leads and collecting data, they don't want you to fall asleep too fast. She had me take it right before getting into bed. I slept pretty well, never felt drugged, but didn't lie awake much either. It worked perfectly.

[Morbius]

Keep in mind that my advice is not the standard advice and it's not going to be easy to follow.

At this risk of sounding REALLY off the wall, AND suffering the Wrath of Khan't:

• IF the OP sleeps from 0500 to 1100;
• AND the Sleep Center actually knows what they are doing;
• THEN they would clearly recognize that he is a DSPS;
• AND do the therapeutic NPSG from (OK stay with me here) 0500 to 1100 (although IIWY I'd redo the diagnostic in DSPS Mode);
• BECAUSE "IMHO" although God created the Earth in 6 days I don't think even He can turn around a DSPS in the same time span;
• BECAUSE2 at that point it would probably be more efficient to blow 'em forward than turn 'em back;
• AND now you're loading the boy with Ambien and running the risk of changing arousal threshold and reliving the Bev Story.

[Morbius]

If the secretary is correct that the second test is going to be a titration study, that means on your first sleep test you slept enough before the tech came in for enough data to be gathered to diagnose you with some kind of sleep disordered breathing---presumably OSA.

Does that mean the secretary might NOT be correct, that sleep was insufficient, the tech did NOT have enough information to diagnose (now what's wrong with THAT?), that it might NOT be OSA, or could be UARS, or positional, or they 4Qed that up, too...

[Minky]

I'm sure the last thing you want to do is schedule a sleep study somewhere else and have to wait even longer, but could you find a sleep center in your area that offers sleep studies during the day? Some centers offer MSLT and MWT tests, which are tests that take place on the day immediately following the patient's overnight sleep study, so some centers do offer testing during the day. These same centers may offer daytime sleep studies to accommodate patients who work nights and always sleep during the day.

Try to hang in there. I know how hard the waiting is. I was a complete nuisance to the people on this forum and even more so to my family while I was waiting for results, appointments, etc. and extreme sleep deprivation didn't make me particularly nice to be around.

I wish you all the best and am glad to see that so many of the very knowledgeable people here have given you so much good advice.

[Enchanter]

If I am able to take the pill and the pill works fast will that affect whether or not they find delayed sleep phase syndrome?

[Cardsfan]

Try taking your own pillow and blanket to the test center. Make yourself feel more like you are at home.

Also, I would not want to take a sleeping pill. How do you know that will not alter the test results?

[Pugsy]

Delayed sleep phase syndrome is something that is diagnosed more on history of usual sleep times than anything else.
It's not something that "shows" up on/during a sleep study other than it may prevent a person from going to sleep during the typical sleep study testing hours.
Taking a sleep aid for one night won't erase past history which is the basis for Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome diagnosis.
People can have DSPS and not have OSA or they can have OSA in conjunction with OSA. Two separate diagnoses that may or may not be present at the same time.