Homeless W/Severe Sleep Apnea

[Stormynights]

You are greatly underestimating the generosity of most people. The question was whether the man was really homeless and in need. Moocher are preventing those really in need from getting help. No one knows if this man was in need or just a moocher. There are all types of thieves in this world. I am sorry you were harmed but we all have to just get by and do the best we can.

[Todzo]

You are greatly underestimating the generosity of most people.

From what I have experienced I think that people are very good at overestimating their own generosity.

The question was whether the man was really homeless and in need.

Why would that ever be an issue? The truth is that from the Internet only we will never ever have enough information to answer the truthfulness of any poster here. If we get eyes on the ground …

The thread brings up many issues that are very real. There are many homeless who have no idea that OSA is robbing them of the executive functioning they need to not become homeless. There are many helping those who are homeless who are also ignorant of the same thing. Now THAT is an issue!!

Moocher are preventing those really in need from getting help. No one knows if this man was in need or just a moocher. There are all types of thieves in this world.

I remember a lady in the city where I was homeless. She would put out her sign and gather in the bucks, and then leave in a very very nice car hidden around the corner.

In the mission I served, cooked, and data managed. It was real work with real results. Were some that attended the dinners “moochers”. I think very few. The environment was not so good. If you needed the food and shelter you might endure it all, but I think it unlikely that you would if not.

From what I could tell the woman went crazy over time. She probably became quite honestly homeless.

What I saw here was a willingness to “help” a man out with a machine he was unlikely to get any benefit from. So what was the real motivation?

The woman actually did a service for those who put money in her hand. They felt better.

If you really want to help the homeless you need to get to know them well enough to help them as you would any other friend. You cannot do that over the Internet.

I am sorry you were harmed but we all have to just get by and do the best we can.

How can I really know that you are sorry?

[Stormynights]

What did you do to help this man? Did your rants benefit him? I could post my sob stories too but I choose to be a happy person. I do fail at times but when I do I start counting my blessings and start over. Maybe you need to spend time counting your blessings too. You will not ever have any way of knowing if I am really sorry. Maybe I am really just a heartless person pretending to care. Maybe you are too. How do I know you really care about the homeless? Ranting doesn't cost a dime.

[nanwilson]

.

What did you do to help this man? Did your rants benefit him? I could post my sob stories too but I choose to be a happy person. I do fail at times but when I do I start counting my blessings and start over. Maybe you need to spend time counting your blessings too. You will not ever have any way of knowing if I am really sorry. Maybe I am really just a heartless person pretending to care. Maybe you are too. How do I know you really care about the homeless? Ranting doesn't cost a dime.

Stormy please stop beating yourself up, you have done what you feel was the right thing to do and no one can ask us to do anything else. Todzo is just trying to bate you with his holier than thou attitude. You can only do what you feel is the right thing to do, you can't do what someone else thinks is the right way to treat something.
I too had a family member that went the homeless route, and I know that I did try to help him the only way I knew how. We can't beat ourselves up just because someone else thinks we should do something else or do it his way. In this thread Todzo did nothing to help this person he only told us what he would do... guess what... he did nothing but talk
Cheers.. and remember you are a good person.. don't forget that.
Nan

[DoriC]

+1. Remember you're still recuperating!

[Vader]

How can I really know that you are sorry?

Wow. Really??? That's one for the books!
I can't speak for Stormy, but I don't see how she would be expected to prove anything to someone asking a question like that.
Sheesh. Give it a rest, already!

[Todzo]

What did you do to help this man?

As we have previously discussed we do not know about this “man”. Is he a man, a woman, a prankster, an AI interface under test??? we do not know.

What I did do is be supportive and give the benefit of the doubt. I also posted in a way and with information designed to help others who are in a situation similar to this man and for those who help them.

Did your rants benefit him?

Perhaps they did. They were supportive of him.

I could post my sob stories too but I choose to be a happy person.

If I recall you did share a bit of your pain.

I do fail at times but when I do I start counting my blessings and start over. Maybe you need to spend time counting your blessings too.

Thanks for the reminder.

You will not ever have any way of knowing if I am really sorry. Maybe I am really just a heartless person pretending to care. Maybe you are too. How do I know you really care about the homeless?

And that was exactly my point!!!

Ranting doesn't cost a dime.

apparently so

[ughwhatname]

]

How can I really know that you are sorry?

Why, by using the Sincerity Meter setting on your Decoder Ring...

[ems]

The OP is long gone. It's time we let this thread RIP already!

[Let me sleep]

I second that !!!!

[Guest]

From my own observation and considering the nature of the brain damage done by Sleep Apnea I do believe that about a third of those homeless are significantly affected by Sleep Apnea. I do hope to find good ways to help them. But right now the treatment needs a very diligent, very well trained, and highly experienced medical team to be effective. That is not what a homeless person is likely to find available.

So what can we do for them???

An effective treatment plan could be composed of the following:

First, define target groups. There would generally be two arms, those with EDS and those at risk for other health consequences.

Since a little EDS probably will not affect their ability to collect and redeem deposit cans, that homeless group need not be treated.

All other health risks would be further defined by the degree of severity of SDB, namely, mild, moderate, or severe.

Since only severe untreated SDB is responsible for decreased lifespan; this risk generally begins ~13 years after identifying the disease (so SDB could have been there substantially longer); and homeless life expectancy is only ~42-52 years, it is obvious that even successful treatment of severe SDB would not create a significant positive effect in this group.

Far better use of resources should be spent on other areas:

Health care is even more of a problem for people who are already homeless. Homeless people are three to six times more likely to become ill than housed people (National Health Care for the Homeless Council, 2008). Homelessness precludes good nutrition, good personal hygiene, and basic first aid, adding to the complex health needs of homeless people. Additionally, conditions which require regular, uninterrupted treatment, such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, are extremely difficult to treat or control among those without adequate housing.

Diseases that are common among the homeless population include heart disease, cancer, liver disease, kidney disease, skin infections, HIV/AIDS, pneumonia, and tuberculosis (O’Connell, 2005). People who live on the streets or spend most of their time outside are at high risk for frostbite, immersion foot, and hypothermia, especially during the winter or rainy periods. Although not many homeless deaths are specifically attributed to exposure-related causes such as frostbite, immersion foot, or hypothermia, the risk of death from other causes is increased eightfold in people who have experienced those conditions in the past (O’Connell, 2005)[Sorry, link not available due to discriminatory posting privileges].

[Sludge]

From my own observation and considering the nature of the brain damage done by Sleep Apnea I do believe that about a third of those homeless are significantly affected by Sleep Apnea. I do hope to find good ways to help them. But right now the treatment needs a very diligent, very well trained, and highly experienced medical team to be effective. That is not what a homeless person is likely to find available.

So what can we do for them???

An effective treatment plan could be composed of the following:

First, define target groups. There would generally be two arms, those with EDS and those at risk for other health consequences.

Since a little EDS probably will not affect their ability to collect and redeem deposit cans, that homeless group need not be treated.

All other health risks would be further defined by the degree of severity of SDB, namely, mild, moderate, or severe.

Since only severe untreated SDB is responsible for decreased lifespan; this risk generally begins ~13 years after identifying the disease (so SDB could have been there substantially longer); and homeless life expectancy is only ~42-52 years, it is obvious that even successful treatment of severe SDB would not create a significant positive effect in this group.

Far better use of resources should be spent on other areas:

Health care is even more of a problem for people who are already homeless. Homeless people are three to six times more likely to become ill than housed people (National Health Care for the Homeless Council, 2008). Homelessness precludes good nutrition, good personal hygiene, and basic first aid, adding to the complex health needs of homeless people. Additionally, conditions which require regular, uninterrupted treatment, such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, are extremely difficult to treat or control among those without adequate housing.

Diseases that are common among the homeless population include heart disease, cancer, liver disease, kidney disease, skin infections, HIV/AIDS, pneumonia, and tuberculosis (O’Connell, 2005). People who live on the streets or spend most of their time outside are at high risk for frostbite, immersion foot, and hypothermia, especially during the winter or rainy periods. Although not many homeless deaths are specifically attributed to exposure-related causes such as frostbite, immersion foot, or hypothermia, the risk of death from other causes is increased eightfold in people who have experienced those conditions in the past (O’Connell, 2005)[Sorry, link not available due to discriminatory limitation of posting privileges].

[Todzo]

From my own observation and considering the nature of the brain damage done by Sleep Apnea I do believe that about a third of those homeless are significantly affected by Sleep Apnea. I do hope to find good ways to help them. But right now the treatment needs a very diligent, very well trained, and highly experienced medical team to be effective. That is not what a homeless person is likely to find available.

So what can we do for them???

An effective treatment plan could be composed of the following:

First, define target groups. There would generally be two arms, those with EDS and those at risk for other health consequences.

Since a little EDS probably will not affect their ability to collect and redeem deposit cans, that homeless group need not be treated.

All other health risks would be further defined by the degree of severity of SDB, namely, mild, moderate, or severe.

Since only severe untreated SDB is responsible for decreased lifespan; this risk generally begins ~13 years after identifying the disease (so SDB could have been there substantially longer); and homeless life expectancy is only ~42-52 years, it is obvious that even successful treatment of severe SDB would not create a significant positive effect in this group.

Far better use of resources should be spent on other areas:

Health care is even more of a problem for people who are already homeless. Homeless people are three to six times more likely to become ill than housed people (National Health Care for the Homeless Council, 2008). Homelessness precludes good nutrition, good personal hygiene, and basic first aid, adding to the complex health needs of homeless people. Additionally, conditions which require regular, uninterrupted treatment, such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, are extremely difficult to treat or control among those without adequate housing.

Diseases that are common among the homeless population include heart disease, cancer, liver disease, kidney disease, skin infections, HIV/AIDS, pneumonia, and tuberculosis (O’Connell, 2005). People who live on the streets or spend most of their time outside are at high risk for frostbite, immersion foot, and hypothermia, especially during the winter or rainy periods. Although not many homeless deaths are specifically attributed to exposure-related causes such as frostbite, immersion foot, or hypothermia, the risk of death from other causes is increased eightfold in people who have experienced those conditions in the past (O’Connell, 2005)[Sorry, link not available due to discriminatory limitation of posting privileges].

When a bunkmate in shelter told me what I had (Obstructive Sleep Apnea OSA) he set me on a path which would involve successful retraining as a cook and establishment of independance a bit less than a year and one half later. Since my O2 levels were getting down to 55% I suppose a stroke or heart attack would have happened if he had not told me what I was dealing with.

If you give people what they really need to become independant - then they can.

[nanwilson]

The OP is long gone. It's time we let this thread RIP already!

Todzo wont let it die... he has to have the last word and make sure we know that he was right.

[Sludge]

Since my O2 levels were getting down to 55% I suppose a stroke or heart attack would have happened...

Your comment implies that you are now home-free (so to speak). However, the big Yaggi study presented in 2005 demonstrated that even if treated, severe OSA was still running a hazard ratio of 3.30 at a median 3.4 years that a catastrophic event (stroke or death) would (will) occur.