Recurring Intense Sleep Issues

[kaelinevans]

When I was 5, I would stop breathing in my sleep quite often. My mother took me to the doctor and it was determined that I had obstructive sleep apnea. I had my tonsils and adenoids removed. My issues stopped for a few years. When I was 12 I started to have problems again. I again went back into surgery to have them removed once again. I am now 19 years old, female, play Division II college sports so these sleep issues are affecting my daily life immensely. I am always tired, waking and feeling as if I hadn't slept at all. I often fall asleep in class and have no energy. I had a sleep apnea test done in May of 2013 ad it came back negative. My boyfriend and one of my friends have said my snoring has become almost intolerable and I often wake my self up with my snoring. Since my test came back negative, I am unsure of how to approach my current situation.

[BlackSpinner]

What tests? Did you have a sleep study? If so get a copy of it and post it here so people can help you interpret it.

[Pugsy]

Snoring doesn't always equal sleep apnea but it sure can disrupt sleep. Anything that disrupts sleep will sure mess with the normal restorative powers of sleep because we don't get the normal sleep cycles in the % or progression we need to have a chance of feeling decent.

The Sleep test done in May of last year....was that an in lab sleep study attended by a tech or did you have a home sleep study of some sort (there are many)?

[avi123]

Given those surgeries that you had indicated, they were probably done b/c of anatomical malformations that you had in your nose, or mouth, or throat. In todays medical knowledge it's most likely that your condition is UARs (Upper Airway Resistance syndrome). Enter these terms in above Search Box. Most Sleep Labs are not checking for it. You need to find one that does.

[SleepWellCPAP]

While further defining your condition in a lab is certainly worthwhile advice, you might consider asking your primary care physician for a prescription for an autoset cpap.

Of course, without a qualifying diagnoses from a sleep study, you would have to pay out of pocket. Private rental on a machine with a humidifier would be around $100 for a month and you would have to purchase a mask. You might try a few on to see, but I have had a lot of luck with the new ResMed Airfit P10.

Since you define your sleep issues as "recurring and intense", this would allow you a relatively quick path to a possible solution.

Good luck!

[Country4ever]

I'm not saying this is true for you, but I had a sleep study around 2000 and I only slept 1 hour and 45 minutes. The doctor said it was normal. That was really hard to believe, since every night I would wake up gasping, having daily migraines, and the rest of my health was a mess. I had one about 8 years later, and it showed moderate apnea. So.....I'm just wondering about your doc's accuracy in interpreting your test.
Also........there are other sleep problems besides/in addition to apnea........like alpha wave intrustion, narcolepsy, etc.
There are also health issues that can make you severely tired (fibromyalgia, CFDS).
Maybe you could get a second interpretation of your sleep study, by a different doctor?
Also.....maybe you could rent/borrow a recording oximeter and see how much your oxygen drops at night. That might show you things sooner than trying to get used to a cpap machine. Then you could go from there.

[kteague]

Just want to co-sign on the suggestion to post your results here. One negative result doesn't necessarily mean nothing is wrong, it may just mean your sleep was not adequate to obtain a diagnosis - or some other reason. Just out of curiosity, see if your report mentions limb movements. I had a few sleep studies that didn't capture my sleep apnea because my limb movements were masking it. Gotta be able to get good sleep for problems to manifest.