18 year old with mild sleep apnea - will I ever recover?

[DankShroud]

I probably have had mild sleep apnea (AHI 7.5) for the last two years. I've gone from being a gifted, articulate student to essentially being unable to speak, write, think, or plan clearly. Two years ago my grades started sliding from their A+ average to their current F average. I used to be witty, compassionate, opinionated and argumentative. Now I'm timid and awkward, unable to navigate socially or make good converstion. My memory is awful, and I can't remember most of the last few years. I'm also worried that I'm physically stunted from the lack of quality sleep. Will my personality and talents come back? Or will I always be shorter, dumber, and less healthy?

[palerider]

Not unless you start getting treated.

[DankShroud]

I realize that I'll "improve", but will I ever be back to my old self? What depresses me most about this disease is the feeling that I've come untethered from my true personality. I think of it as being an "unperson". All my life I loved to sit and draw pictures, I communicated visually. I could spend whole afternoons creating bizarre, complex, visually cohesive works of art; now when I sit down to draw, nothing happens. I'm so mentally out of it that I can't come up with any ideas. My current art is crude, redundant and self-parodying. If it sounds like I'm using "big" words to sound smart, it's because I am. I'm so far gone that words that I'm resorting to using strange unwieldy words that would otherwise have been incorporated into a casual, to the point style of writing. I'm trying to say that nothing I make or do sounds or looks right anymore. Everything is hazy, blank, or confusing. I want my art back more than anything; Is there hope for me?

[Cardsfan]

Sorry, we don't have a crystal ball. For me, treatment help my symptoms greatly. Hopefully, you will see improvements with successful treatment.

[D.H.]

I'm sure I had SDB from at least as early an age as you are now. I was not diagnosed/treated until I was 43 years of age (I am 62 now). I guess that this means that I started on CPAP at around the time you were born!


You will improve with treatment!

[chunkyfrog]

Why "dank"?
Sometimes a chemical can help--sometimes not . . .
Best to try it clean first.

[MrsRinPDX]

I believe your talents and mental sharpness will return. Forgive me for saying it, but 18 is such a young age. Technology progresses so quickly that there very well may be a cure by the time you are older. In the mean time keep up with the CPAP therapy. Right now it is the one thing proven to work. If you aren't seeing the results you'd like, there are certainly dozens of caring folks on this forum who are willing to help you. Above all, keep trying. You're worth it!

Good luck in your journey,
MrsRInPDX

[TedVPAP]

I probably have had mild sleep apnea (AHI 7.5) for the last two years. I've gone from being a gifted, articulate student to essentially being unable to speak, write, think, or plan clearly. Two years ago my grades started sliding from their A+ average to their current F average. I used to be witty, compassionate, opinionated and argumentative. Now I'm timid and awkward, unable to navigate socially or make good converstion. My memory is awful, and I can't remember most of the last few years. I'm also worried that I'm physically stunted from the lack of quality sleep. Will my personality and talents come back? Or will I always be shorter, dumber, and less healthy?

I suspect that you will recover if your treatment is effective.
Instead of worrying about things that are out of your control, instead focus on what is in your control and have a positive impact on your future.
What is your treatment? What is your AHI with treatment? Are you apneas influenced by position? Do you use sleepyhead to "see" how you are sleeping? Can you relate how you feel to what you "see"?

[Julie]

It is highly likely you'll find your old self again = don't forget so many of us here are many decades older than you and even with optimal treatment are getting even older and not liking it much, and so may sound pretty cynical to someone like you, so please give them a pinch of salt (a big one) and yourself lots of optimism.

If you feel your Cpap isn't working well please come back to this thread with details and there will be knowledgable people to help. There is almost no aspect of Cpap that hasn't been solved for others and you should be no exception.

[TedVPAP]

It is highly likely you'll find your old self again = don't forget so many of us here are many decades older than you and even with optimal treatment are getting even older and not liking it much, and so may sound pretty cynical to someone like you, so please give them a pinch of salt (a big one) and yourself lots of optimism.

If you feel your Cpap isn't working well please come back to this thread with details and there will be knowledgable people to help. There is almost no aspect of Cpap that hasn't been solved for others and you should be no exception.

Good points.
Most of us were late to treatment, and many were later to effective treatment. The OP should focus on obtaining very effective treatment now. That will pay off.

[DankShroud]

What is your treatment? What is your AHI with treatment? Are you apneas influenced by position? Do you use sleepyhead to "see" how you are sleeping? Can you relate how you feel to what you "see"?

My CPAP is a Resmed Airsense 10 with autoset. My AHI has hovered around 3.0 for the last two months. My position has no effect on my apneas, and I haven't installed sleepyhead. I do have a constant small leak (~6L/min) that persists no matter the mask type or size. Since I'm days away from a proper sleep study and don't want to feel awful in the meantime, I got into the clinician's menu and have been experimenting with different pressures. Tonight I'm at a 12-20. My original prescription was for 8-20.

[TedVPAP]

What is your treatment? What is your AHI with treatment? Are you apneas influenced by position? Do you use sleepyhead to "see" how you are sleeping? Can you relate how you feel to what you "see"?

I'm on a Resmed Airsense 10 CPAP. My AHI has hovered around 3.0 for the last two months. My position has no effect on my apneas, and I haven't installed sleepyhead. I do have a constant small leak (~6L/min) that persists no matter the mask type or size.
[/quote]

A leak rate of 6 is low so that is good. Your AHI of 3 is acceptable but likely not as good as it could be. With sleepyhead you can see what is driving your AHI and determine if changes in treatment will help you.
My brother sought treatment at the age of 19. I waited until I was 46 and after 3 heart procedures before I sought treatment. It is great that you are getting on top of this now.

[USMCVet]

I probably have had mild sleep apnea (AHI 7.5) for the last two years. I've gone from being a gifted, articulate student to essentially being unable to speak, write, think, or plan clearly. Two years ago my grades started sliding from their A+ average to their current F average. I used to be witty, compassionate, opinionated and argumentative. Now I'm timid and awkward, unable to navigate socially or make good converstion. My memory is awful, and I can't remember most of the last few years. I'm also worried that I'm physically stunted from the lack of quality sleep. Will my personality and talents come back? Or will I always be shorter, dumber, and less healthy?

Your young so you have good chance of full recovery assuming sleep apnea is the cause. Sleep apnea and oxygen deprivation can cause brain damage. It usually resolves itself within a year of being treated optimally.

[Julie]

12 is on the higher side for starting out and without using Sleepyhead you won't know what other factors may be involved to allow you to possibly lower the pressure but address other things you aren't aware of now. Why not download the program and get a real look at what happens for a couple of nights?

https://sleep.tnet.com/sleepyhead
https://sleep.tnet.com/resources/sleepyhead/shorganize
https://sleep.tnet.com/reference/tips/imgur

[DankShroud]

12 is on the higher side for starting out and without using Sleepyhead you won't know what other factors may be involved to allow you to possibly lower the pressure but address other things you aren't aware of now. Why not download the program and get a real look at what happens for a couple of nights?

I've tried pressures ranging from 4-12, 8-12,8-20,11-20, and 12-20. No matter what the pressure or mask type, my AHI won't budge from around 3.0. What could account for this? I'm reluctant to download sleepyhead since I have a sleep study soon; if I have a steady AHI like that and still wake up tired, what's going on?