Diagnosed with moderate aepnea, scary symptons

[Cstucky]

I was recently diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea, and I have an appointment to be fitted for a CPAP. In the meantime, I wondered about my symptoms. Has anyone else experienced waking up completely disoriented, not knowing where you are and having overwhelming panic, a racing heart and feelings of doom that leave you afraid to go back to sleep?

I'm a woman, in great health, very physically active and fit. I eat low fat and don't have a weight issue, but these "spells" are frightening and leave me dreading another. Fortunately they don't occur very often, only about one every eight weeks or so.

Consistently I fall asleep when driving long distances, in movies and even at the computer working. I am ready to give CPAP a try but admit I'm concerned by all the negative comments I'm reading from posts.

I'd love to hear if anyone understands these sporadic spells I have in sleep and id they found relief through CPAP

Thank you

[LSAT]

I was recently diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea, and I have an appointment to be fitted for a CPAP. In the meantime, I wondered about my symptoms. Has anyone else experienced waking up completely disoriented, not knowing where you are and having overwhelming panic, a racing heart and feelings of doom that leave you afraid to go back to sleep?

I'm a woman, in great health, very physically active and fit. I eat low fat and don't have a weight issue, but these "spells" are frightening and leave me dreading another. Fortunately they don't occur very often, only about one every eight weeks or so.

Consistently I fall asleep when driving long distances, in movies and even at the computer working. I am ready to give CPAP a try but admit I'm concerned by all the negative comments I'm reading from posts.

I'd love to hear if anyone understands these sporadic spells I have in sleep and id they found relief through CPAP

Thank you

What negative comments?

[Pugsy]

I am ready to give CPAP a try but admit I'm concerned by all the negative comments I'm reading from posts.

Forums typically draw people who are having problems with something and thus they are looking for answers.
The people who never have a problem are unlikely to go looking for answers that they don't need.
So yes, you may seemingly think that from what you read here "everyone has huge problems with cpap therapy" but try not to take on that sort of thinking.
Most problems that people do have are common little bumps in the road that others have had and sorted through.
There are a few people that seem to have more difficult problems are more problems with adjustments but there are plenty of us that really have minimal issues. We just don't come to a cpap forum and say "hey guys, I have been using the machine for 4 years now and I don't have any problems at all"...

Not everyone has nothing to say but negative comments...

I do think that overall attitude will play a significant factor in your success though. It isn't all attitude but generally if people look for problems and negatives..that's what they will find. Sometimes the positives are hard to find and some people just have problems despite a great attitude...it's just the way life goes.

Will you have some bumps in the road? Sure you will...we all have had them. Some more than others but pretty much any problem a person might have will have already been had by someone else and can be sorted through.

[ninjatrigg]

I was recently diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea, and I have an appointment to be fitted for a CPAP. In the meantime, I wondered about my symptoms. Has anyone else experienced waking up completely disoriented, not knowing where you are and having overwhelming panic, a racing heart and feelings of doom that leave you afraid to go back to sleep?

I'm a woman, in great health, very physically active and fit. I eat low fat and don't have a weight issue, but these "spells" are frightening and leave me dreading another. Fortunately they don't occur very often, only about one every eight weeks or so.

Consistently I fall asleep when driving long distances, in movies and even at the computer working. I am ready to give CPAP a try but admit I'm concerned by all the negative comments I'm reading from posts.

I'd love to hear if anyone understands these sporadic spells I have in sleep and id they found relief through CPAP

Thank you

I quit smoking and developed moderate OSA. Didn't have any idea of what was happening to me.
I had headaches every day. I was exhausted all the time. I was falling asleep at work and felt like i was dying.
I could barely stay awake while driving.
After a few months I went for a sleep study.
Here I was thinking "I have no problems sleeping, all I wanna do is sleep!"
I had no problems falling asleep, it was staying in the REM sleep that I wasnt getting.

CPAP has been amazing.
So good in fact, that I crave putting my mask on at bedtime.
It is a life changer.

[Cstucky]

Thanks for the positive encouragement. It is just what I needed today, after waking from a really bad "spell" in the night. I'm very new at all of this and also question my symptoms, which seem different than what I've heard from others on the forum. I'd love to know if others wake completely suddenly, hearts racing, with no idea where they are. I'm assuming this is my brain reacting to its need for oxygen.

I'd love to near from others well into their CPAP therapy who remember those days prior to treatment and find out if they suffered from what I term "spells," sometimes accompanied by nightmares and shouting out.

I appreciate people's input and feel more positive about getting started with CPAP.

[ninjatrigg]

Thanks for the positive encouragement. It is just what I needed today, after waking from a really bad "spell" in the night. I'm very new at all of this and also question my symptoms, which seem different than what I've heard from others on the forum. I'd love to know if others wake completely suddenly, hearts racing, with no idea where they are. I'm assuming this is my brain reacting to its need for oxygen.

I'd love to near from others well into their CPAP therapy who remember those days prior to treatment and find out if they suffered from what I term "spells," sometimes accompanied by nightmares and shouting out.

I appreciate people's input and feel more positive about getting started with CPAP.

Well, when I would fall asleep at work, I would suddenly wake up feeling terrified. Heart pounding, head throbbing, and amount of light made my eyes feel like they were getting stabbed, dizzy, muscles frozen, feeling like i was 700 pounds. It was literally what I thought near death would feel like.
I still dont feel 100%, but I feel a hell of a lot better than I did.

I went almost two years before the diagnosis.
The first year sucked, but near the end of the second year, I was on the verge of just giving up. I didn't think my body could handle it anymore.\

Makes me wonder why my doctor didn't send me for a sleep study a long time ago.

[kaiasgram]

Thanks for the positive encouragement. It is just what I needed today, after waking from a really bad "spell" in the night. I'm very new at all of this and also question my symptoms, which seem different than what I've heard from others on the forum. I'd love to know if others wake completely suddenly, hearts racing, with no idea where they are. I'm assuming this is my brain reacting to its need for oxygen.
I'd love to near from others well into their CPAP therapy who remember those days prior to treatment and find out if they suffered from what I term "spells," sometimes accompanied by nightmares and shouting out.

Hi Cstucky -- Welcome. Your nighttime symptoms don't sound inconsistent with sleep apnea at all. It's not unusual that prior to getting diagnosed and treated people report dreams of strife and struggle and even suffocation (because the body really is struggling to get oxygen as you already know). I do have memories of waking up with my heart racing and feeling "all creeped out" and anxious (like the feelings of doom you described). Later, in one of my sleep study reports I saw that my heart rate had gone from its usual 45ish bpm to 155 bpm. at some point during the night. I started cpap last June so the days prior to treatment are still pretty easy to remember.

Quitting smoking and getting your OSA treated -- you're headed in a very good direction.