Sleep Study

Hello
My name is Eric I recently scheduled a sleep study after years of ignoring constant fatigue. It is a in lab study, is there anything I should know about the process? I was hesitant to get a test because I am only 26 years old. I thought it would go away if I lost weight. However I found loosing weight almost impossible no matter how much I exercised or watched my weight. I also found my work and ability to concentrate extremely difficult. I also bought a house and found that I am frustrated with coming home and not having the energy to work on my house. I finally scheduled a appointment with a sleep doctor. However it took 3 months just to get in to see him. I have a sleep study scheduled for this Tuesday and My followup isn't until April 4th. Is anyone else frustrated with the slowness of the whole sleep apnea treatment process. Sorry for rambling I just want go get this problem fixed.
Thanks

NKYNewbie wrote:Hello
My name is Eric I recently scheduled a sleep study after years of ignoring constant fatigue. It is a in lab study, is there anything I should know about the process? I was hesitant to get a test because I am only 26 years old. I thought it would go away if I lost weight. However I found loosing weight almost impossible no matter how much I exercised or watched my weight. I also found my work and ability to concentrate extremely difficult. I also bought a house and found that I am frustrated with coming home and not having the energy to work on my house. I finally scheduled a appointment with a sleep doctor. However it took 3 months just to get in to see him. I have a sleep study scheduled for this Tuesday and My followup isn't until April 4th. Is anyone else frustrated with the slowness of the whole sleep apnea treatment process. Sorry for rambling I just want go get this problem fixed.
Thanks

Congratulations! This whole process is a pain, particularly if you have to deal with insurance and medical providers.

Losing weight might help some sleep apnea sufferers, but 1) even if it does, sleep apnea itself can prevent weight loss and 2) it's not guaranteed to work, and meanwhile you're still possibly damaging your brain with low blood oxygen levels overnight. Always seek therapy, and then weight loss, and if it works you can stop the therapy.

You don't tell us where you're from, so we can't tell you if it's always such a poor schedule. In the US with an at home study it was a matter of days from talking to the sleep specialist to the test, and then two days for the results. I expect an in lab study to take longer because of the limited number of facilities. In countries with government health care I understand the process can take months because it's not seen as an emergency, and budget management means there will always be a backlog. The results should be much sooner after the test, but if you have severe sleep apnea I expect you won't leave the sleep test center without that knowledge and a plan of action. For mild sleep apnea you will probably have to wait on their schedule.

If you need insurance to pay for it all, then you're going to have to work on their schedule. If you can afford to simply buy equipment and want to resolve the problem now, buy an autotitrating machine, set it to its lowest cpap level, hook yourself up, and then load the results into a sleep analysis program. It'll tell you if you had any apnea events. Go the extra distance and log your blood oxygen level and you'll have a very good idea of how bad the problem is. Further you can then simply start your own therapy by adjusting the machine until you've lowered your apnea events to a level you're happy with.

Otherwise you'll just have to be patient.

As far as the sleep study itself, I've only had the at home version. I understand the in lab version has a lot more wires, active patient monitoring by technicians, and that in some studies the diagnosis comes early enough in the sleep cycle that they'll go ahead and wake you up, put a cpap mask on you, and tell you to go back to sleep so they can figure out the cpap settings for the prescription they'll give you to start your therapy.

So since your study is close, I'd suggest holding off on self diagnosing until afterwards. When you are done, if they don't tell you your results ask the tech what your AHI was, and if it's over five, ask what type of apnea events and how many of each did you have. This is the most useful diagnostic indicator of sleep apnea.

NKYNewbie wrote:Hello
My name is Eric I recently scheduled a sleep study after years of ignoring constant fatigue. It is a in lab study, is there anything I should know about the process? I was hesitant to get a test because I am only 26 years old. I thought it would go away if I lost weight. However I found loosing weight almost impossible no matter how much I exercised or watched my weight. I also found my work and ability to concentrate extremely difficult. I also bought a house and found that I am frustrated with coming home and not having the energy to work on my house. I finally scheduled a appointment with a sleep doctor. However it took 3 months just to get in to see him. I have a sleep study scheduled for this Tuesday and My followup isn't until April 4th. Is anyone else frustrated with the slowness of the whole sleep apnea treatment process. Sorry for rambling I just want go get this problem fixed.
Thanks

Welcome, like you I waited way too long to admit I probably had sleep apnea, like 15 years and then once I decided to do it I wanted it done yesterday! Yours is taking much longer than mine did to get it all going though and that is frustrating. If you are like me, you won't sleep well with all the leads attached, knowing someone is watching and listening to you, in a strange bed, etc. Don't change out of your clothes in the main room like my friend did for the staff to see use the attached bathroom if your place is like mine was. It's not at all fun, but stick it out for the prize. I am sleeping so much better, not getting up 2-3 x night to go to the bathroom, not creeping up and hitting the car in front of me cause I've fallen asleep at a light not tired the whole day.

If the lab permits it, bring your own sheets, blanket, and pillow. If you don't normally sleep in pyjamas, start sleeping int the pyjamas you will be using at the sleep study now. This way you can get use to it. Get up early the day of your sleep study, and, if you must drink coffee, only drink one cup very early in the morning. Don't nap. If you are normally a night-owl, take some melatonin an hour before lights out.

The next day, use dish soap and very hot water to get the goop out of your hair.

Don't worry that the circumstances are different from your own bedroom. Once you are sleeping, sleep is sleep, especially for the purposes of detecting sleep apnea.

I was diagnosed on February 4th at age 25. The process is somewhat slow. It took a month before I could have my sleep study done. Then I would have to wait for a letter telling me when my CPAP titration is. I couldn't wait and called my doctor to ask if he can write me a prescription for an APAP so I wouldn't have to waste money on another sleep study in the future. He agreed. Most of the resources you need are in this forum. The in lab is easy. I woke up early the day of the sleep study so I can fall asleep easily. Went in and was told to get comfy. Then came 25 minutes of the lab tech putting on electrodes on my head, temples, chest and just below the knees. A sensor belt thing on your chest and an oxygen monitor on your finger. He goes back to his monitoring station and asks you to close your eyes, blink, look up down left right, move your ankles, etc. It is so boring there that I fell asleep fast. You should bring a hat to cover your head when you're leaving the hospital or ordering a coffee for the drive home. People might look at you funny with all that stuff in your hair.

I have just about the best Medical Insurance you can get. I had to wait about 6 weeks to get my study and that was after two weeks of trying to get a hold of the lab to schedule me in. Because of my insurance this lab did not even require me to see a doc before my study, I simply had to fill in a very long questionnaire. The results took nearly three weeks to be published. I was scheduled to see the doctor after yet another full month to get my prescription and was only saved by a cancellation after a week. The doc made me of course go back into the lab for a titration study after 3 days. They had my machine all set up a ready for me to take home the morning after the study. Soooo about 12-14 weeks for the whole process.

Thanks Everyone
I am curious to hear what made everyone get a sleep study. I have been putting it off for years then finally decided I couldn't take it anymore. I got tired of not wanting to go out with my friends suffering at work.

Guest wrote:Thanks Everyone
I am curious to hear what made everyone get a sleep study. I have been putting it off for years then finally decided I couldn't take it anymore. I got tired of not wanting to go out with my friends suffering at work.

For many years I worked shift work. I mean a different shift every day, including midnight shifts. So I had something to blame my constant fatigue on. A year ago I went to straight day shifts and the fatigue didn't go away. Plus, my wife had reported my horrible snoring and breathing stoppages to my primary care physician. So he ordered a sleep study. My fatigue was so bad I actually looked forward to it.

My sleep clinic allowed me to sleep in what I usually sleep in. I learned after the first to bring my own pillow to the second titration study. Hopefully you will have a thermostat in your room. Mine was cold enough to hang meat. Don't nap the day of the study, and if you exercise, work out that day. You want to be tired when you get there if at all possible. Otherwise the strange setting and all the wires may delay you being able to get to sleep.

To give some perspective to original post - I am a 49 yr old Female 120lb fitness instructor (last thing I thought I had was apnea). I only started to think about it when my boyfriend told me I stop breathing and/or struggle to breathe at night. I was also tired but put that off to other things. Morning headaches I figured sinus issues etc.
As far as how long, I am in Ontario Canada and I had first sleep study at clinic on Jan 4 but results were not in till Feb 2. Then went back Feb 9 for second sleep study with cpap machine and now have to wait another two weeks before it is read and the final prescription written for machine, So not sure when it will be in etc. It does not seem that long to me really but I am anxious to get machine. My health coverage in Canada covers about 75% of cost and my extended health care covers almost all of the rest so that is good.

My sleep doctor also told me something interesting. I have been diagnosed with ADD he told me I probably don't have ADD and can't concentrate because I am so tired.

Guest wrote:Thanks Everyone
I am curious to hear what made everyone get a sleep study. I have been putting it off for years then finally decided I couldn't take it anymore. I got tired of not wanting to go out with my friends suffering at work.

I went from the occasional nap very rapidly to two naps a day. Once the doc confirmed that anemia had not returned, he scheduled me to see a sleep doctor.

My sleep study went well. I was diagnosed with mild Sleep Apnea I stopped breathing 12.5 times an hour. Already saw the doctor for my followup and get my Cpap Wednesday. I was expecting to have moderate sleep apnea but the doctor said it affects everyone differently. Some people have sever apnea and function fine and some people have moderate sleep apnea and are following asleep at the wheel. I am very excited to get my cpap machine.

Here is a site that lists cpap machines by manufacturer. Check it out and you do not want one with a red NO because they do not have useful data. A DME may say one is data capable but it only has compliance data, not what you need if you have problems. https://sleep.tnet.com/cmd

Suggestions for the sleep study - assuming a split night study.

1. Take the sleeping pill they offer you - even if you never take sleeping pills.
2. Wear minimal pajamas - there will be wires stuck all over you... more clothing = more problems.
3. They'll fit you for a mask before you go to sleep, wake you up once they've identified you have apnea without it, and put it on.
4. Check your stuff for bedbugs when you get home... just like you should with hotels.
5. Don't plan on getting to work in the morning.