Ticked off a little

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
aav amphibs
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Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:35 pm

I've had this doctor that is seriously bent on this sleep apnea thing. I do snore like a bat out of hell. I am a little heavy. 280 pounds 5'10. I work the graveyard shift now for many years, but I don't feel like I short myself from sleep. I admit, I do whenever I overeat before I go to bed is the only time I wake up with nightmares and sweating.
The doctor gave me one of those take home and do a sleep study on your own machines, but when I woke up, the crazy nose hose or whatever you call those fell off my face as I was sleeping, therefore, they all think I STOPPED BREATHING.
Ok, so this lady calls my house telling me I stopped breathing. Who the hell is this lady? She is a secretary trying to set me up with a sleep study. What? No doctor called me to tell me this? Ok, so I explain to this lady that I best talk to my doctor first before I pull the trigger for a sleep study.
Fast foward a year later. I go for a physical, doctor agrees to get me fitted for a cpap machine without having to go through a sleep study. I told the sleep study a while back that I work the graveyard shift and going in during the night Im only going to stay awake, I since heard nothing from them.
So I go to the doctor the other day, he brings up this CPAP sleep apnea thing again. So I explain to him that I work the graveyard shift....yada yada yada......so he agrees to set me up with the cpap fit. I get a call today from a lady that sells the equipment, tells me I haven't met my deductible and that I will have to pay OUT OF POCKET. My deductible as I checked is 1500 dollars for myself and 3000 for family. I basically told her on the phone, thanks for the call, no way can I afford this and hung up.
The truth is, I can afford it, but I feel I'm being scammed. I don't believe I have sleep apnea, and the price for this machine is way more than I want to go on a limb for. I know my health is important but is there some other alternative? Should I switch doctors? Should I keep getting a second opinon? Got a funny feeling this machine will run me better than 2k when its all said and done.

Janknitz
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by Janknitz » Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:50 pm

Save your money to pay up your life insurance and long term care insurance and start looking for nursing homes now. Only the lucky die from untreated apnea. Most have strokes and heart attacks and spend the last years of their life in diapers.
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aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:55 pm

Janknitz wrote:Save your money to pay up your life insurance and long term care insurance and start looking for nursing homes now. Only the lucky die from untreated apnea. Most have strokes and heart attacks and spend the last years of their life in diapers.
I see.....let me sell you a machine or you die right?

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Bons
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by Bons » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:12 pm

Welcome to the site, and it's good that you are looking for advice and feedback, considering the sleep apnea diagnosis. You must be somewhat concerned,or you'd just blow it off without seeking ideas here. Your denial is going to drum up some harsh responses, though, so try to put up with them and see the good advice behind the threats and insults (this can be a rough crowd, here). It's not "sell you a machine or you will die", but it is buy a machine for the sake of your health.


It's time to own up to the fact that you have health problems. 280 is not "a little heavy" and "snoring like a bat out of hell" is not harmless. If you know that eating heavily before going to bed causes nightmares and night sweats, why do you still do it?

Doctors rarely call patients to report study results; that is why one reason that they have nurses and office staff to schedule follow-up studies and procedures.

The only way to prove to yourself that you are not being scammed is to have the sleep study. Most labs I know are open around the clock and can accommodate people who work the graveyard shift. Or, as your doctor is graciously offering, to be set up with a machine and then check the data - be sure that he prescribes a machine that does monitor more than compliance - the less expensive machines that may seem like a bargain to you are worthless because there is no indication of whether or not it is helping you - you want a machine that measures and records AHI and other data. Machines are usually rented for the first few months and then become a purchase item - so if you are right and you do not have sleep apnea, then the machine gets returned and all you are out is the cost of a few months rental and the mask and disposable supplies.

Yes, it's really expensive to have the study and buy the equipment, but the alternative, as Janknitz rather harshly pointed out, it beats the alternative. Preventative medicine can help you avoid the potentially life-alternating and life-threatening consequences from sleep apnea.

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kaiasgram
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by kaiasgram » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:14 pm

Hey, before we start jumping all over another newcomer...

aav, do you have a copy of that sleep study report? If not, can you get it and post it here (w/o personal info)? Even with the nasal cannula falling off during your study there might be other indicators of sleep apnea, such as your oxygen levels dropping throughout the night (Assuming you had a pulse oximeter on your finger.)

None of us here have anything to gain, financial or otherwise, by giving you our honest impression of your sleep study report.

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Bill44133
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by Bill44133 » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:28 pm

you can buy a straight cpap machine for alot less then $1,500.00.. go to this websites sponsor.. cpap.com.

Shop around... get educated.. Make sure you don't buy a "brick".

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library lady
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by library lady » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:47 pm

aav amphibs wrote: I get a call today from a lady that sells the equipment, tells me I haven't met my deductible and that I will have to pay OUT OF POCKET. My deductible as I checked is 1500 dollars for myself and 3000 for family. I basically told her on the phone, thanks for the call, no way can I afford this and hung up.
How does the lady who's selling the machine know whether you've met your deductible? Did you give her your insurance information? And when you say "no way can I afford this" remember that once you've used up your deductible you're good for the rest of the year. If you have a family, you owe it to yourself and to them to do whatever you need to do to live long enough to see your kids, grandkids, whatever, graduate, marry and have kids of their own. If you do have sleep apnea you are at greater risk for stroke or heart attack so it's worth your while to find out for certain if you have OSA.

Not all sleep studies are really expensive - some people have said theirs were $2,000 or more, but mine, at Mayo Clinic Rochester, was $750.

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palerider
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by palerider » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:47 pm

aav amphibs wrote:
Janknitz wrote:Save your money to pay up your life insurance and long term care insurance and start looking for nursing homes now. Only the lucky die from untreated apnea. Most have strokes and heart attacks and spend the last years of their life in diapers.
I see.....let me sell you a machine or you die right?
you're gonna die, you'll just die *sooner* with the sleep apnea you have.

denial ain't just a river in egypt.

spend 50$ and buy a cms50d+ from amazon (not the cheaper cms50d) strap it on your finger, and let it record a day of your 'sleeping' see how often your pusle rate spikes, and how often your o2 levels go down.

if your pulse stays nice and low all day long, and you never drop into the 80's on your o2, you're probably ok.

if, on the other hand, your pulse keeps jumping up all over the place and your o2 levels drop... then you're killing yourself.

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aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:52 pm

I never got the results, only that I stopped breathing which, DUH! of course it didn't register anything when the tube fell out. Ok, so I still have this lady's phone number that sells this equipment. My next question is should I buy it from her store or shop around? Do they let you buy one online? Do I need to get this doctor involved so that I can shop around for a a machine that will be worth my while? I have a feeling this lady will sell me a low end at a higher end value. Of course I'm concerned for my health and looking up all the information I can come up with but for sure, I aint going over a grand for this.

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palerider
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by palerider » Mon Jul 21, 2014 10:59 pm

aav amphibs wrote:I never got the results, only that I stopped breathing which, DUH! of course it didn't register anything when the tube fell out.
don't you think maybe they can tell the difference in the tube falling off and when you're breathing and stop and start and gasp for air?

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aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:04 pm

palerider wrote:
aav amphibs wrote:I never got the results, only that I stopped breathing which, DUH! of course it didn't register anything when the tube fell out.
don't you think maybe they can tell the difference in the tube falling off and when you're breathing and stop and start and gasp for air?
When I woke up and found the tube laying on the bed, I'd say I stopped breathing. no input into the machine means no what? Either I stopped breathing or the machine got unplugged right? Cheap gizmo, cheap results I think. I dont have the gasping for air feeling. I will call the lady up again tomorrow and see what kind of machine she has in mind for me. If anything, with the amount of snoring I'm doing, its the only thing TO DO. Ok, will post results later. Doctor is apparantly using my results from THAT TEST which saves me from having to go in in the first place so I'll take that for now.
...and if I don't post no more, I must have died......

aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:08 pm

library lady wrote:
aav amphibs wrote: I get a call today from a lady that sells the equipment, tells me I haven't met my deductible and that I will have to pay OUT OF POCKET. My deductible as I checked is 1500 dollars for myself and 3000 for family. I basically told her on the phone, thanks for the call, no way can I afford this and hung up.
How does the lady who's selling the machine know whether you've met your deductible? Did you give her your insurance information? And when you say "no way can I afford this" remember that once you've used up your deductible you're good for the rest of the year. If you have a family, you owe it to yourself and to them to do whatever you need to do to live long enough to see your kids, grandkids, whatever, graduate, marry and have kids of their own. If you do have sleep apnea you are at greater risk for stroke or heart attack so it's worth your while to find out for certain if you have OSA.

Not all sleep studies are really expensive - some people have said theirs were $2,000 or more, but mine, at Mayo Clinic Rochester, was $750.
I don't know how she knows abot my insurance and deductibles if maybe the doctor told her. She did mention that my doctor send in a request on my behalf.

aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:10 pm

palerider wrote:
aav amphibs wrote:I never got the results, only that I stopped breathing which, DUH! of course it didn't register anything when the tube fell out.
don't you think maybe they can tell the difference in the tube falling off and when you're breathing and stop and start and gasp for air?
This was a cell phone sized machine that was strapped to me, with one of those air hose tubes you see people wearing as they use oxygen. Nothing like a tube strapped to your face, just held on over your ears. Easily comes off. This was done at home not at a sleep study center.

aav amphibs
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by aav amphibs » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:12 pm

Bill44133 wrote:you can buy a straight cpap machine for alot less then $1,500.00.. go to this websites sponsor.. cpap.com.

Shop around... get educated.. Make sure you don't buy a "brick".

Can I buy this online? Need prescription?

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zoocrewphoto
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Re: Ticked off a little

Post by zoocrewphoto » Tue Jul 22, 2014 12:02 am

The person who talked to you probably didn't explain it very well.

If the nasal thing fell off, they didn't get full data, but they know full well that it stopped collecting that data since you would be dead if you stopped breathing that long. They were probably referring to the data *before* it fell off or the other data that they collected. Did you have an oximeter on your finger? That records pulse and oxygen saturation. That, along with the early data probably gave them enough info.

I did a split night study. I only did the diagnosis phase for 2 hours and 15 minutes since I had already proven in that time that my sleep apnea is severe (over 30 times an hour). I actually have events 79 times an hour (more than once a minute).

I avoided my diagnosis and treatment for over 10 years because, like you, I assumed sleep apnea meant less sleep, and I do fine. I'm a severe night owl, going to bed between 4 and 6 am, and getting 5-6 hours most nights and 8 plus on days off. I finally learned that my high blood pressure despite 3 medications (and the reason my doctor was telling me that I had a high risk of stroke (at age 38) was because of my sleep apnea. I confessed to my doctor, had the sleep study, got the cpap, and I feel so much better now. I had no idea how crappy my sleep was until I had a great night with the cpap and felt the difference.

Please consider that sleep apnea is not about time slept. It is about your breathing being blocked, your oxygen level going down (starving your brain, heart, kidneys, etc), then your brain awakening you (not fully) with adrenaline. This causes long term damage. It also means you have trouble going through the normal sleep stages since events will wake you just enough to have to start all over again. I didn't even reach deep sleep or REM during my diagnosis stage.

You already said you snore badly.

Do you wake up to use the bathroom several times?
Do you wake up with headaches?
When somebody asks "How are you?" is the answer always "Tired"?
Do you wake up coughing or choking? Maybe to point of vomiting?
Do you feel grumpy often?
Do you have bad dreams? Drowning, running, being chased, scared?
Do you have high blood pressure?

These are ALL things that I had before treatment and don't anymore. The ONLY symptom I knew was caused by sleep apnea was the snoring. If I had known all of the above would improve with a cpap machine, I would have signed up 10 years earlier and saved myself a lot of grief. My career would be better. My health would be better. So many things would be better. But I assumed it was just about not getting enough sleep, and I thought I was compensating just fine.

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