Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Thanks for your comments and adjunct questions.
I feel for you and your current situation. You'll note many folks here are dyed in the wool CPAP, et al, partisians. No offense, but they will only promote CPAP use and rely on their own personal experiences to convince you as to its merits. Again, to avoid ad hominen attacks, let's move on.
However, many people like you want nothing to do with CPAP and others, masks, sleep labs and the likes. We don't want to believe OSA is legit, etc. And want to find ways not to use the machine.
You have to get to the root of why you actually have OSA. From what I've been told and have researched, OSA is based on weight and structure of your general neck area. One or two can combine to create apneas while you sleep. The result is poor sleep and problems with how your body adjusts to it.
A lot of controversy exists about weight and apnea. Doctors are on both sides of the issue, but as more research is done it's becoming clear that CPAP therapy has a role in treatment, but the gold standard continues to be from the patient's weight loss and change in lifestyle, diet, etc. Doctors tend to treat what is in front of them, and as noted in your entry, are good at guessing who may have OSA. It's not a hard call; patient comes in, usually overweight, middle aged, having sleep issues, snores loud, breathing issues and fatigue during the day. Plus others. Send the guy to a sleep study. And, your right, doctors don't like telling you but nearly everyone has sleep apnea. The only variable are how many apneas you have.
What causes or promotes the apneas? Well, weight for one. Second, are local issues such room, bed, conditions (air, heat, cold, etc) and others. Third are more complex issues such as conditions that effect breathing, such as being hypothyroid, which slow things down and also can swell your tongue (which in turn blocks the airway). That can cause apneas even in slim people. Additionally, drugs that effect CNS depression can advance the number of sleep test 'apneas' because of REM disturbances that effect how often and hard you actually breath. Some doctors believe they aren't even apneas but are more along the CSA line.
What tests are showing is that doctors need to treat apnea as it is now, a diagnosed medical condition, and that treatment is usually a CPAP machine with a mask. Doing this has shown some improvement in patient's sleep and energy levels which have vicarious effects on ones health, etc. However, studies actually showing improvements in cardiac diseases or functions are hard to find (outside of the CPAP industry who are busy trying to tap that large 300 mil + market out there). Doctors will treat apnea with CPAP and hope for the best. Again, this is the school house solution.
The end results, as the doctors will tell you, are based on how well you respond to CPAP treatment. Very few people actually do, most end up not using the machine and return to normal life. Those who find success with CPAP tend to stick with it and are proponents of it. But it only works for a small number of users. One doctor said it was like diets, people can actually lose weight but it always comes back. Except for a few.
If you have extra weight it's best if you begin to try and lose it. That will help a lot, and in many cases will actually reduce apneas to normal levels. If you believe you may have other conditions, discuss them with your doctor. Get a thyroid test, or maybe an MRI or xray or your neck and sinus areas. Consult with specialists, more than one is advised because OSA and sleep tests are subjective events and open to different interpretations.
My point here is that don't just jump on the CPAP (et al) is the cure mentality. If you don't want to follow CPAP therapy then try to find out why your have apneas. Sleep studies don't do that, they tell you, rather subjectively, that you have so many 'apneas'. That in no way lets you know 'why' you have them. Exploring that avenue may help you avoid the one size fits all and rather primitive CPAP technology. Like you, I wonder how, in today's world, that CPAP is the best that can be done. So, don't just follow rotely like most if you don't want to. Challenge your doctor to look beyond sleep tests and rote use of CPAP. Chances are very good it won't work for you and why not explore other alternatives?
Good luck.
I feel for you and your current situation. You'll note many folks here are dyed in the wool CPAP, et al, partisians. No offense, but they will only promote CPAP use and rely on their own personal experiences to convince you as to its merits. Again, to avoid ad hominen attacks, let's move on.
However, many people like you want nothing to do with CPAP and others, masks, sleep labs and the likes. We don't want to believe OSA is legit, etc. And want to find ways not to use the machine.
You have to get to the root of why you actually have OSA. From what I've been told and have researched, OSA is based on weight and structure of your general neck area. One or two can combine to create apneas while you sleep. The result is poor sleep and problems with how your body adjusts to it.
A lot of controversy exists about weight and apnea. Doctors are on both sides of the issue, but as more research is done it's becoming clear that CPAP therapy has a role in treatment, but the gold standard continues to be from the patient's weight loss and change in lifestyle, diet, etc. Doctors tend to treat what is in front of them, and as noted in your entry, are good at guessing who may have OSA. It's not a hard call; patient comes in, usually overweight, middle aged, having sleep issues, snores loud, breathing issues and fatigue during the day. Plus others. Send the guy to a sleep study. And, your right, doctors don't like telling you but nearly everyone has sleep apnea. The only variable are how many apneas you have.
What causes or promotes the apneas? Well, weight for one. Second, are local issues such room, bed, conditions (air, heat, cold, etc) and others. Third are more complex issues such as conditions that effect breathing, such as being hypothyroid, which slow things down and also can swell your tongue (which in turn blocks the airway). That can cause apneas even in slim people. Additionally, drugs that effect CNS depression can advance the number of sleep test 'apneas' because of REM disturbances that effect how often and hard you actually breath. Some doctors believe they aren't even apneas but are more along the CSA line.
What tests are showing is that doctors need to treat apnea as it is now, a diagnosed medical condition, and that treatment is usually a CPAP machine with a mask. Doing this has shown some improvement in patient's sleep and energy levels which have vicarious effects on ones health, etc. However, studies actually showing improvements in cardiac diseases or functions are hard to find (outside of the CPAP industry who are busy trying to tap that large 300 mil + market out there). Doctors will treat apnea with CPAP and hope for the best. Again, this is the school house solution.
The end results, as the doctors will tell you, are based on how well you respond to CPAP treatment. Very few people actually do, most end up not using the machine and return to normal life. Those who find success with CPAP tend to stick with it and are proponents of it. But it only works for a small number of users. One doctor said it was like diets, people can actually lose weight but it always comes back. Except for a few.
If you have extra weight it's best if you begin to try and lose it. That will help a lot, and in many cases will actually reduce apneas to normal levels. If you believe you may have other conditions, discuss them with your doctor. Get a thyroid test, or maybe an MRI or xray or your neck and sinus areas. Consult with specialists, more than one is advised because OSA and sleep tests are subjective events and open to different interpretations.
My point here is that don't just jump on the CPAP (et al) is the cure mentality. If you don't want to follow CPAP therapy then try to find out why your have apneas. Sleep studies don't do that, they tell you, rather subjectively, that you have so many 'apneas'. That in no way lets you know 'why' you have them. Exploring that avenue may help you avoid the one size fits all and rather primitive CPAP technology. Like you, I wonder how, in today's world, that CPAP is the best that can be done. So, don't just follow rotely like most if you don't want to. Challenge your doctor to look beyond sleep tests and rote use of CPAP. Chances are very good it won't work for you and why not explore other alternatives?
Good luck.
- BlackSpinner
- Posts: 9742
- Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2009 5:44 pm
- Location: Edmonton Alberta
- Contact:
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Get your facts straight and stop exaggerating.sardu wrote:Thanks for your comments and adjunct questions.
I feel for you and your current situation. You'll note many folks here are dyed in the wool CPAP, et al, partisians. No offense, but they will only promote CPAP use and rely on their own personal experiences to convince you as to its merits. Again, to avoid ad hominen attacks, let's move on.
However, many people like you want nothing to do with CPAP and others, masks, sleep labs and the likes. We don't want to believe OSA is legit, etc. And want to find ways not to use the machine.
You have to get to the root of why you actually have OSA. From what I've been told and have researched, OSA is based on weight and structure of your general neck area. One or two can combine to create apneas while you sleep. The result is poor sleep and problems with how your body adjusts to it.
My point here is that don't just jump on the CPAP (et al) is the cure mentality. If you don't want to follow CPAP therapy then try to find out why your have apneas. Sleep studies don't do that, they tell you, rather subjectively, that you have so many 'apneas'. That in no way lets you know 'why' you have them. Exploring that avenue may help you avoid the one size fits all and rather primitive CPAP technology. Like you, I wonder how, in today's world, that CPAP is the best that can be done. So, don't just follow rotely like most if you don't want to. Challenge your doctor to look beyond sleep tests and rote use of CPAP. Chances are very good it won't work for you and why not explore other alternatives?
Good luck.
Over 60% is not a "small number of people" having success with cpap. Most of the people who are failing is due to lack of support, improper mask fitting and no emotional support.
It has the support of cardiac surgeons I am sure they are not being funded by resmed. Blood tests show the difference too. You can tell from blood test if the heart is racing to try and work. OSA DOES affect high blood pressure and that has been proven to create enlarged hearts and many other problems.
Basically get your head out of your ass!
_________________
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- chunkyfrog
- Posts: 34545
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Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
After losing over TWENTY POUNDS, I find my pressure and other data basically unchanged--but I feel WAY better!
Cpap gave me the energy to tackle this challenge, Thank you, everyone here, for helping.
If the OP does not care to enjoy a better, healthier life--uh, whatever.
Time to start shopping for a nice stone.
Cpap gave me the energy to tackle this challenge, Thank you, everyone here, for helping.
If the OP does not care to enjoy a better, healthier life--uh, whatever.
Time to start shopping for a nice stone.
_________________
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Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
sardu wrote:OSA is based on weight and structure of your general neck area.
We are in disagreement.
OSA is primarily caused by underdeveloped jaws that cause crowding of the airway.
"It is not the size of the neck on the outside; it is the size of the airway in the neck."
With the development of agriculture our diet changed and has continued to change with technology. We now eat a diet from birth until adulthood that consists of calorie-dense foods that require little chewing.
In older times, infants were breastfed for two or more years and we ate a diet that required much chewing. This chewing (exercise) stressed the jaw and caused the bones of the jaw to grow in length and width - a normal development.
In recent years, with little exercise of the jaw from chewing, our jaws do not fully develop and we end up with narrow palates and short, narrow jaws.
Recessed chins, crowded and crooked teeth, missing wisdom teeth, and scalloped tongues are some of the symptoms of this problem.
Our narrow jaws leave less space for the airway and increase the likelihood of collapse of the airway.
There is a plethora of damaging side effects of OSA that lead many patients to become overweight. Thus came the myth that weight gain causes OSA and that a "fat" neck causes OSA.
Rooster
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
- Drowsy Dancer
- Posts: 1271
- Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2011 9:35 am
- Location: here
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
I'm not going to pick apart the post point by point, but offer a subjective response to this point. I have lost over 10% of my body weight since my diagnosis, and my pressure level has been INCREASED by 1.5 during that time. And no, I was not morbidly obese to start with, and am within normal ranges now. And my father-in-law, who is and always has been skinny as a rail, has OSA too. Losing weight would not "cure" him. It would probably impair his health.sardu wrote:If you have extra weight it's best if you begin to try and lose it. That will help a lot, and in many cases will actually reduce apneas to normal levels.
Here is some science that is pertinent to the discussion: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19959590
The conclusion: "Long term treatment studies are needed to validate weight loss as a primary treatment strategy for obstructive sleep apnoea."
Here's another recent (small!) study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19011153 validating weight loss as a primary treatment with MILD OSA ONLY.
In contrast, see this study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19961023
"A supportive diet and exercise program may be of benefit to obese patients with mild to moderate sleep apnea [DD comments: and to those without apnea as well]. The results of this feasibility study showed significant weight loss and improvement in clinically important neurobehavioral and cardiometabolic outcomes but no significant change in sleep disordered breathing. These promising preliminary results need confirmation with a larger randomized trial." (emphasis added)
DD
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Last edited by Drowsy Dancer on Tue Mar 22, 2011 9:48 am, edited 4 times in total.
How we squander our hours of pain. -- Rilke
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Hey genius, this place is called cpaptalk.com. What were you expecting?sardu wrote:Thanks for your comments and adjunct questions.
I feel for you and your current situation. You'll note many folks here are dyed in the wool CPAP, et al, partisians. No offense, but they will only promote CPAP use and rely on their own personal experiences to convince you as to its merits. Again, to avoid ad hominen attacks, let's move on.
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
cyklopps wrote: One hospital's cash price for a sleep study was $14,000.
Now you are posting irresponsibly. There are many people reading this forum every day who have never had a sleep study but need one. Such information may scare them away from a sleep study and have a very damaging effect on their lives.
I just called the business manager at my doctor's certified sleep lab which is part of a large medical practice. This is a lab in the highest income zip code in the state and is first class. The manager told me patients without insurance pay U.S. $2500 and down depending on what the doctor wants done in the study. The doctor has the authority to negotiate the $2500 down.
After some persistent questioning the business manager finally said she is seeing prices as low as $1700 in her lab.
It is obvious you want to scare some people by throwing out an unreasonable number of $14,000.
It is your choice to treat or not to treat your condition, but don't try to use the forum to drag others down with you.
Rooster
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
kempo wrote:Hey genius, this place is called cpaptalk.com. What were you expecting?sardu wrote:Thanks for your comments and adjunct questions.
I feel for you and your current situation. You'll note many folks here are dyed in the wool CPAP, et al, partisians. No offense, but they will only promote CPAP use and rely on their own personal experiences to convince you as to its merits. Again, to avoid ad hominen attacks, let's move on.
Rooster
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
- NightMonkey
- Posts: 801
- Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2011 2:43 pm
- Location: Three seats, orchestra right
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Sardu, that long post is the post of one big fake who doesn't know s*** about sleep apnea and treatment. You offer cyklopps nothing as an alternative to treatment.sardu wrote: So, don't just follow rotely like most if you don't want to. Challenge your doctor to look beyond sleep tests and rote use of CPAP. Chances are very good it won't work for you and why not explore other alternatives?
Good luck.
Yeah, let him try "challenging his doctor to look beyond sleep tests and rote use of CPAP." Let's see how quick he gets kicked out of the doctor's office and then does not know where to turn to next!
I see you just joined and have done a little reading and now think you can make a long post contradicting most of what you have read.
I also see from your first post (in another thread) that you have many health problems and certainly don't feel well and likely are not thinking so well. You have so far been unsuccessful in getting your CPAP to work. Do you have a data-capable machine and software?
Why don't you use the forum to get your CPAP working well and use your doctors to get your own health in good shape? Then maybe you can think about sending other people off onto wild goose chases for alternative treatments that you are unaware of.
NightMonkey
Blow my oropharynx!
the hairy, hairy gent who ran amok in Kent
Blow my oropharynx!
the hairy, hairy gent who ran amok in Kent
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
NightMonkey wrote: Why don't you use the forum to get your CPAP working well and use your doctors to get your own health in good shape?
I just looked at sardu's first post in the forum - viewtopic.php?f=1&t=61500&p=576474#p576474
sardu, you plopped that post down in the middle of another thread - that is not the best way to use the forum.
I suggest that you start your own new thread to get some ideas for dealing with your problems. Actually two new threads would be better.
The first thread would be asking for help in getting your CPAP therapy to work properly.
The second thread would be in dealing with your other health issues (thyroid and weight).
Before you start the threads, fill out your equipment profile (text, not images).
Good luck.
Rooster
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
I have a vision that we will figure out an easy way to ensure that children develop wide, deep, healthy and attractive jaws and then obstructive sleep apnea becomes an obscure bit of history.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycw4uaX ... re=related
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
My husband's statistics: Normal weight, only 5'7" but muscular, Size 17"neck on the "outside", very narrow airway "inside",
small mouth, crooked teeth, dental problems, excessive urination at night. He had diagnosed OSA by his Primary and Cardiologist but refused sleep study and was untreated for several years. He developed high blood pressure,coronary artery disease requiring 2 Triple Bypasses and Aortic Valve Replacement. After almost 3 years on cpap his BP is normal, his CAD has not progressed and he wakens once during the night for a bathroom break. He is not a young man but his quality of life at his age had improved dramatically because of therepeutic, restful sleep. Education, determination seeking help with an open mind are the keys as you can see by the success stories here.
Edit- Just thought of something, wonder if anyone has heard of this. A few years ago when Mike was in the hospital, the head nurse was putting in an IV line and having trouble as is usual with him. It is written on his medical records that only very experienced techs or RNs can work on him. She asked if he had sleep apnea because she noticed patients with very small,floppy veins were also candidates for OSA. At that time OSA had been mentioned to us but there had been no definite diagnosis or study. I never followed up on this question but I'm curious now that I thought of it.
small mouth, crooked teeth, dental problems, excessive urination at night. He had diagnosed OSA by his Primary and Cardiologist but refused sleep study and was untreated for several years. He developed high blood pressure,coronary artery disease requiring 2 Triple Bypasses and Aortic Valve Replacement. After almost 3 years on cpap his BP is normal, his CAD has not progressed and he wakens once during the night for a bathroom break. He is not a young man but his quality of life at his age had improved dramatically because of therepeutic, restful sleep. Education, determination seeking help with an open mind are the keys as you can see by the success stories here.
Edit- Just thought of something, wonder if anyone has heard of this. A few years ago when Mike was in the hospital, the head nurse was putting in an IV line and having trouble as is usual with him. It is written on his medical records that only very experienced techs or RNs can work on him. She asked if he had sleep apnea because she noticed patients with very small,floppy veins were also candidates for OSA. At that time OSA had been mentioned to us but there had been no definite diagnosis or study. I never followed up on this question but I'm curious now that I thought of it.
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DEAR HUBBY BEGAN CPAP 9/2/08
"We are what we repeatedly do,so excellence
is not an act but a habit"-"Aristotle"
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Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
I never knew about sleep apnea and frankly, was rather ignorant about my snoring as well.
My lady told me that I am gasping for air and I didn't believe her. She taped my one night and showed me the film.
I ran, let me repeat this, ran to my doc for a transfer to a sleep clinic in my area.
I couldn't believe how often I stopped breathing, how loud I snored, how often I turned.
Loong back, I understand now why I was tired in the afternoon, my energy was lower (I always thought it was because I am getting older), and I didn't always feel good.
I only can recommend to treat sleep apnea.
My lady told me that I am gasping for air and I didn't believe her. She taped my one night and showed me the film.
I ran, let me repeat this, ran to my doc for a transfer to a sleep clinic in my area.
I couldn't believe how often I stopped breathing, how loud I snored, how often I turned.
Loong back, I understand now why I was tired in the afternoon, my energy was lower (I always thought it was because I am getting older), and I didn't always feel good.
I only can recommend to treat sleep apnea.
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Roster: You will have to contact the moderator of this forum and perhaps he/she will remove me if he shares your concerns. Did you make note that I personally plan to give CPAP a good honest try and will report my experience. The replies here convinced me!!!! The $14,000 local fee for a cash sleep study surprised me and I noted this almost as a joke. Anyone not born yesterday knows hospitals often have a ridiculous cash price for things that always end up being cheaper. I think the readership of this forum is smart enough to know this and appreciates a thread like this one. But I am sure the moderator can delete the entire thread if he feels it subversive. Phil
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Phil,
i had a sleep study and it came back negative for osa. I work in a sleep center, have worked for the sleep doctors for years and know that not everyone is diagnosed with osa. If they happen to be diagnosed with osa, they list other recommendations other than cpap in their report. that worries me that a cardiologist would not take it seriously. we have many cardiologists who refer patients, for good reason. take is seriously.
i had a sleep study and it came back negative for osa. I work in a sleep center, have worked for the sleep doctors for years and know that not everyone is diagnosed with osa. If they happen to be diagnosed with osa, they list other recommendations other than cpap in their report. that worries me that a cardiologist would not take it seriously. we have many cardiologists who refer patients, for good reason. take is seriously.
- JohnBFisher
- Posts: 3821
- Joined: Wed Oct 14, 2009 6:33 am
Re: Sleep Apnea, to treat or not to treat!!!
Is OSA caused by weight? Or is it the jaw structure? Hope you don't mind if I jump into this.
In fact, I think this is a classic positive feedback loop (with very negative effects). I offer my own story as an example.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) runs in my mother's family. I remember her father snoring something fierce. It was horrible. He snore VERY loudly. He would snort and gasp. He died in his early 60s of cardiac arrest in his sleep. I am willing to put money on the line that he had OSA. Of course, at the time no one knew about OSA. But I am certain he had severe OSA.
Would it surprise you to hear that my mother also has OSA? As does my daughter?
When I turned 13 or 14, I remember my sister complaining bitterly that I snored "Just like Granddad!" Now, what's funny is that I was actually UNDER WEIGHT at the time. And a couple ENT doctors have told me there should be no physical reason (airway) why I obstruct. LOTS of room in my throat and nose.
But sure enough, I had SEVERE obstructive sleep apnea by the time I was 34. I reached a point that I was so starved for REM sleep that I would dream when I blinked. Pretty frightening!
Now, the amazing thing is that I've gone from being UNDER WEIGHT to very much OVER WEIGHT. Did the weight cause the OSA? Definitely not. Is that always the case. Nope. Some people do see an improvement if they loose weight. But there is a very low correlation between weight and OSA. But the lack of sleep tends to make the body make every effort to conserve. Weight gain occurs. And the OSA gets worse. That's the positive feedback loop. You sleep poorly, so you gain weight, so you sleep poorly, so you gain ... Ouch!
It sure would be nice if all I had to do was to loose weight. Unfortunately, loosing weight when I feel HORRIBLE is next to impossible.
And in my case, I can drop until I am once again under weight ... and I will still have severe OSA. There is no doubt in my mind that it is driven by heredity in my family.
In fact, I think this is a classic positive feedback loop (with very negative effects). I offer my own story as an example.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) runs in my mother's family. I remember her father snoring something fierce. It was horrible. He snore VERY loudly. He would snort and gasp. He died in his early 60s of cardiac arrest in his sleep. I am willing to put money on the line that he had OSA. Of course, at the time no one knew about OSA. But I am certain he had severe OSA.
Would it surprise you to hear that my mother also has OSA? As does my daughter?
When I turned 13 or 14, I remember my sister complaining bitterly that I snored "Just like Granddad!" Now, what's funny is that I was actually UNDER WEIGHT at the time. And a couple ENT doctors have told me there should be no physical reason (airway) why I obstruct. LOTS of room in my throat and nose.
But sure enough, I had SEVERE obstructive sleep apnea by the time I was 34. I reached a point that I was so starved for REM sleep that I would dream when I blinked. Pretty frightening!
Now, the amazing thing is that I've gone from being UNDER WEIGHT to very much OVER WEIGHT. Did the weight cause the OSA? Definitely not. Is that always the case. Nope. Some people do see an improvement if they loose weight. But there is a very low correlation between weight and OSA. But the lack of sleep tends to make the body make every effort to conserve. Weight gain occurs. And the OSA gets worse. That's the positive feedback loop. You sleep poorly, so you gain weight, so you sleep poorly, so you gain ... Ouch!
It sure would be nice if all I had to do was to loose weight. Unfortunately, loosing weight when I feel HORRIBLE is next to impossible.
And in my case, I can drop until I am once again under weight ... and I will still have severe OSA. There is no doubt in my mind that it is driven by heredity in my family.
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"I get up. I walk. I fall down. Meanwhile, I keep dancing” from Rabbi Hillel
"I wish to paint in such a manner as if I were photographing dreams." from Zdzisław Beksiński
"I wish to paint in such a manner as if I were photographing dreams." from Zdzisław Beksiński