New to site. Have upcoming sleep study.

[OSA_stinks]

Hello, My name is Joel.

I figured I would introduce myself and tell you about the journey that has led me here.

I am 29 years old, husband for almost 6 years, and father to a boy born in nov. 2012. All is well on most fronts, except when it comes to sleep. I have been struggling with sleep at least since the late 90's. I can remember being in high school and most of the time when asked how i was, the answer would be "tired". For a while I attributed it to simply being a hormonally imbalanced pubescent teen who just wants more sleep.

Skip forward to 2005. I went to the doc to figure out why i was still so tired and had such problems concentrating. He did a blood test and determined i had ADD. Now the meds i take for add make a SUBSTANTIAL difference in how i can function. without the meds i would compare myself to a zombie.

So with meds i do better, However I still have had problems with sleep. Again i wrongly attributed my sleep problems with stress, diet, exercise, and/or weight gain. I was in college, had to drop out so i could move back down to where my girlfriend lived to help her family with 3 special needs brothers and a brain injured father. helped them for 2 years, moved back up and graduated college. i took time off to help with special needs family some more. Since graduating college in 2010 i have had a sinking suspicion something was wrong and causing my sleep troubles.

I cannot remember if i saw a commercial for sleep apnea or if i simply ran across it online. anyway, i saw it while my wife was still pregnant. I though it could be a possibility. Not sure why, but it got pushed a side for a few months.

Before my son was born in nov '12, my easily controlled and strictly followed sleep pattern was able to help me "survive" my daily sleep troubles. But with a newborn around though, my ability to get regular sleep was tossed out the window and dealing with that has become almost unbearable. It led me to seek help.

I just got back from a sleep specialist who is %99.9 sure i have OSA. I have a sleep test set up for march 25.

That is a quick snap shot of how its gone for me. I will update once i get the results from the test.

Joel

[Catalytic]

Good luck Joel. I also have ADD, and honestly, I am expecting it to improve, or no longer exist once I catch up with my sleep debt. I've only been on xPAP therapy for 3 nights thus far, and already I feel a bit more awake, and haven't needed a nap. Good luck to you!

[Julie]

Hi - it can be a big problem if you have ADD because the meds for that will keep you awake when you need to sleep at night, so it's important that you see the right (knowledgable) doctors, hopefully neurologists trained well in sleep disorders. Good luck!

[49er]

Good luck Joel. I also have ADD, and honestly, I am expecting it to improve, or no longer exist once I catch up with my sleep debt. I've only been on xPAP therapy for 3 nights thus far, and already I feel a bit more awake, and haven't needed a nap. Good luck to you!

I forgot what the percentage is but many people who have sleep apnea were misdiagnosed as having ADHD. Makes sense since if you get poor quality sleep, the symptoms can seem similar to ADHD.

As one who feels I was misdiagnosed, during the rare times that pap therapy has worked for me, my concentration was off the charts as I didn't even need supplements to get things done.

So Joel, you may find that your need for ADHD meds diminishes or even disappears. Of course, everyone is different.

Good luck with your study.

49er

[Nooblakahn]

Welcome to the board. Lots of knowledgeable friendly folks here. Good luck with your sleep study as well.

Congratulations on going back and actually finishing college... Seems most people don't finish once they take a break from it.

[Sheriff Buford]

Welcome to the Forum!! I hope you get your issues worked out. If you do have OSA, once you get used to wearing the mask, trust me, it's a long journey, but you (like the rest of us) can conquer it. Sleep apnea can cause a host of health issues and properly treated, can cure a host of health issues.

Please keep us updated on your journey and work all your issues here.

Sheriff

[STL Mark]

Hi Joel welcome to the forum. There is a wealth of information for you here. I am always learning. Speaking of it, I was curious about something you said. What type of blood test determines if a person has ADD? I was not aware of such a test.

Be sure to read up on the information on what to expect before your sleep test. There are great resources to read before visiting medical equipment providers. I started here before my sleep test and benefited a great deal from the knowledge I gained here.

[chunkyfrog]

Welcome, Joel.
Here is a link to the "must read" topics that folks have mentioned.
http://maskarrayed.wordpress.com/
--"watch thy step; there are snakes in the swamp"

[Drowsy Dancer]

Welcome, Joel.

I have ADD, inattentive subtype.* I also have severe OSA (AHI 71 during sleep study).

Treating my OSA successfully (AHI 0.79 last night) did not resolve my ADD. Both diagnoses, sadly, are correct.

I take Concerta XR, and have to be careful to take it early enough in the day for it to wear off by bedtime. I think of it as a bit of a deal with the Devil--I function much better with it, but it can delay sleep. My doc and I spent a lot of time experimenting with the dosage to help me focus enough during the day and then be able to "turn it off" at night.

I eventually gave up coffee, and that helped. Sigh.

*Not diagnosed by a blood test, but by a workup that included medical and family history taken from me, questionnaires filled out by my mom and my husband, review of academic records from kindergarten through the conclusion of graduate school, etc., etc. ADHD is a behavioral condition, and so it is a behavioral diagnosis. The workup was quite a production, and generated a multipage single-spaced document. Here's what ADDitute magazine's medical expert says about ADD/ADHD and blood tests: http://www.additudemag.com/q%26a/ask_th ... /6126.html

[Deenie-deen]

Hi Joel,
I did my sleep study about a month ago. Last night was my 4th night using a cpap machine. I have been able to sleep the whole night all 4 nights so don't be surprised if you do well with the mask and machine, if that is what your doctors says you need. I feel more relaxed and somewhat more focused. I think it will take more time for my body to heal for me to feel more energy but I know I will get there. Good luck with your up coming sleep test. Let us know how you do.

[quietmorning]

Welcome, Joel,

Good luck on your sleep study, I hope they can get to the bottom of what's going on. I've been on the machine for almost two years, now and am about to talk to my doctor about re-evaluating certain medical conditions that I've been diagnosed with that are often Sleep Apea in disguise. I would appeal to you to do the same with some caution and after you've been on the machine and are used to it. Maybe the ADD isn't ADD after all - though you said he was able to tell through a blood test (? Never heard of ADD being diagnosed by a blood test before.) I'm not sure if that test result would be the same or not with severe sleep deprivation. I do know that ADD is often one of the often misdiagnoses - especially in children.

Let us know how things go and what the plan is and if there is any way we can further help.

[Julie]

"I went to the doc to figure out why i was still so tired and had such problems concentrating. He did a blood test and determined i had ADD."

That is the biggest pile of... nonsense I ever heard. There is no blood test that diagnoses ADD - so if it really happened as you say it did I would report the doctor to the local board for malpractice! Absolutely rot.

[Cavmdc]

I agree. It takes a multi disciplinary team to rule out many other things before ADD or ADHD is confirmed.

[OSA_stinks]

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome and words of wisdom/encouragment.

As to the add blood test/diagnosis, when my doc did the test it showed that a certain hormone or chemical (cant remember) was off balance in some way. It was one that was essential to getting quality sleep.

I am definatly intending on finding that doc and do some investigating !

One week till test... Counting down the days

Joel

[archangle]

Welcome.

Unfortunately, there's a really high probability you'll get royally screwed by the person selling you the CPAP machine.

Read the "useful links" in my signature line for some hints on how not to be taken advantage of, especially by being given a less capable CPAP machine that won't tell you how your therapy is working.