College kids with OSA?

I was wondering if there were (m)any college-age or younger kids on the forum. I'm 20 and was just diagnosed last month. The doctor said it wasn't common for someone my age to have OSA...

OSA, like heart attacks, knows NO boundaries. Not that age is a requirement. I think it's just not common for the younger folks to get diagnosed because they feel invincible and don't seek medical care. OSA is still the new kid on the block.

When I think back, I am sure I had OSA when I was college age. Just didn't know what it was or what to do about nor did most doctors. I remember thinking, just as long as I start breathing again, what's the big deal. Plus many college age kids don't have medical insurance.

Hi irishpeacock. I don't post around here much anymore ,but birdshell let me know there was someone looking for support from younger folks. I was diagnosed when I was 26 - so a little older than you, but not a whole lot. I had just gone back to college, and was really struggling - attending a competitive college and sleeping 18 hours a day is not exactly something that works very well. Though it took me that long to be diagnosed, I think I was born with OSA, as I've had symptoms my entire life.

If you have any questions or need to commiserate, feel free to post. I'll try to keep an eye on this thread. If it weren't for this place, I never would have made it through my diagnosis and starting CPAP treatment, and all the way to graduation. You can do it.

I had OSA in high school, swim team and all! Backpacked all over the west coast and traveled to the Andes and Tibet. It took my wife moving to another bedroom to make me get treatment.

Haven't seen him on here in quite a while, but wasn't Swordz in his late teens-early twenties? If I am remembering correctly, he confounded the accepted stereotype of overweight/middle-aged OSA patient.... he was/is young and skinny. And there are several young slender women who post here regularly. I would guess that the majority of OSA patients are middle-aged, but I also suspect that with increased awareness and earlier diagnosis, the patient population is getting younger. Still more men than women. And there are many of us who are living proof that the canard about being fat causes apnea just ain't true. For many of us, the weight gain came after the onset of OSA rather than the other way around.

I'm also 26...and trying hard to accept that I have OSA...like everyone has said...its just the fact that we feel invincible when we're young...I know i've had OSA for a loooong time...its only now that I feel the need to do something about it.

Another interesting question would be how many people here think they might have had undiagnosed OSA when they were young adults.

I would probably be one of those who had untreated OSA and/or UARS as a young adult. In retrospect, I think the far greater blessing would have been diagnosis and effective treatment (although CPAP didn't exist back then). Untreated OSA undoubtedly derails countless lives---old and young. So if it helps to put things in perspective, I think college-age adults with effective apnea treatment are truly blessed.

Apnea may deal many here a harsh blow in life, but at least CPAP is there to counter-deal a therapeutic one!

If anyone has any suggestions...
I'm going on a month of cpap now and I haven't been able to sleep with it yet. I slept 3 hours on it one night last week, and twice I've fallen asleep with it and woken up a few hours later to find I'd ripped it off in the night. I've tried pursleep, and snugglehose to make it more comfortable, I've been on Ambien, and have a long ramp time, but I swallow a lot of air and somehow just can't fall asleep hooked up. Term starts next week and I really need to get some sleep.

irishpeacock wrote:If anyone has any suggestions...
I'm going on a month of cpap now and I haven't been able to sleep with it yet. I slept 3 hours on it one night last week, and twice I've fallen asleep with it and woken up a few hours later to find I'd ripped it off in the night. I've tried pursleep, and snugglehose to make it more comfortable, I've been on Ambien, and have a long ramp time, but I swallow a lot of air and somehow just can't fall asleep hooked up. Term starts next week and I really need to get some sleep.

If you could upgrade your CPAP to a data-capable machine, like the M Series Pro, you could at least get some information as to the possibilities of "why" you're having problems. It could be you're mouth-leaking or your pressure isn't right. With a data-capable machine you might be able to find out if a lower pressure would work just as well and wouldn't lead to swallowing air. If your Ramp pressure starts too low, you might be starving for air (causing mouth-breathing) until it reaches an optimum point.

Den

CollegeGirl wrote:Hi irishpeacock. I don't post around here much anymore ,but birdshell let me know there was someone looking for support from younger folks. I was diagnosed when I was 26 - so a little older than you, but not a whole lot. I had just gone back to college, and was really struggling - attending a competitive college and sleeping 18 hours a day is not exactly something that works very well. Though it took me that long to be diagnosed, I think I was born with OSA, as I've had symptoms my entire life.

If you have any questions or need to commiserate, feel free to post. I'll try to keep an eye on this thread. If it weren't for this place, I never would have made it through my diagnosis and starting CPAP treatment, and all the way to graduation. You can do it.

WHY NOT??? You've been missed.
It's good to see your post......please don't stay away so long......or at all.

Den

I'm 28 and was just diagnosed with moderate OSA. I'm sure I've had it for years, possibly since I was a kid. I barely snore. For a long time I was fighting anxiety. When I finally got that fixed by a good therapist I still had the tiredness and messed up cardio. My friends finally convinced me that I might have sleep apnea and I had a study done.

I don't meet any of the stereotypes for it other than being a guy. I'm 5'10" and 160lbs so I'm not overweight. People say I don't snore. My dad does have it though.

I have 2 friends with sleep apnea. Both are guys. One is 6'3", very overweight, and about 26. He believes he has had it for many years. The other is about 6', just a little overweight, and about 28.

I'd say what's out of the ordinary is that you had the means to get it diagnosed at a young age.

Irishpeacock,

On CPAP a month with no relief? Something's wrong - have you told your doctor? Have you tried other masks? Your mask is the holy grail to your treatment. If it's not right you don't succeed. I agree with Wulfman about the Data Capable machine, I took a turn for the worst about 6 weeks into treatment. Forget about my doctor, he didn't seem interested in helping me, and wouldn't write me a script of a data capable machine. My DME tried to help by trying different masks. I finally gave up and purchased a data capable machine out of pocket on auction. I don't regret it - I now have my mouth leaks and pressure under control.

In answer to SWS's question - I have been symptomatic for OSA since I was 7 and I'm old enough to be Irishpeacock's Mom.

I was diagnosed at 28 also, but like so many others have probably had OSA for years. I'm also atypical, 5' 11" and 180lb (maybe a few pounds overweight). There are alot of us in this category and we're probably underdiagnosed because we don't fit into the typical older/obese criteria. The common family trait in our case is a very thick neck which results in a narrow airway. I also have an underlying condition, Ehler's Danlos syndrome (EDS) - which basically means that I very stretchy skin and flexible joints. There isn't any good data on EDS and sleep apnea, mainly because EDS is very rare (~1/5000 births) - so it's hard to say if this is a factor in my OSA. Good luck with your therapy.

A couple of more things.....
Get your prescription. (it's good for life with online sellers)
Get a copy of your sleep study and go over it. There may be some other things in there that is being missed.

Den