My bad news...

[SleepingUgly]

Well, as you can guess from my other thread, we got bad news at the sleep studies: Our 8-year-old needs CPAP. This is the worst of the news. Other also not-so-great news is that I require a pressure of 12-14, and couldn't tolerate the previously prescribed pressure of 11-13. And my father, who also had a sleep study, also needs CPAP! We should get a group rate or something.

[Resister]

Giving you a mommy hug.

[rested gal]

SU, that sure wasn't pleasant news (what an understatement) for your family to receive.

It would have to be hard to look for a bright side right now, but... if your son had to have the bad luck to have OSA, thank goodness he's been diagnosed early in his life before going through years and years of damage from sleep disordered breathing.

You've written so many excellent posts here, describing your own CPAP journey. I'm sure what you'll share, if you choose to do so, about how your son handles CPAP and what you'll be doing to help him, will be of enormous benefit to the many parents who read this forum.

Trying to be lighthearted now -- Hey, this means you'll have to be 100% compliant with your own CPAP therapy now, doesn't it? Setting the right example, and all that jazz. After all, you have an extremely intelligent son. He's gonna figure out how to check the data. On his machine AND on "mom's."

[mars]

Hi SU

Sorry to hear that life has become "one damned thing after another".

Sorry - no group rate - just a group that will support you all the way .

Good job you have the inner resources to deal with all this .

Best wishes

Mars

[Goofproof]

Sleep in shifts, using one machine, your family could become the test family for new machines, should qualify for a family endorsement discount. Really sorry to hear the bad newsm hope you all adapt easy, at least finding out early may ward off some future problems. Jim

[jnk]

I'm sure it'll take a while to process that information emotionally.

As for the 8-yr-old, I'm a little jealous. I believe I also had apnea at that age. And I believe that if I had gotten treatment back then (which is, of course, impossible, since the treatment didn't exist then), I might actually be a nice guy today!

(Come on. That got at least a slight chuckle somewhere inside, didn't it? I hope so. It was my best shot.)

You'll all do a great job of it. I'm sure.

[dsm]

SU

Not good news - 8 yo & a hosehead !!!.

Thinking of you & what it means for you all. I have a bro and sis in-law & nephew who all snore to high heaven - nephew has been seeking help for his snoring (in his late 20s). My sis-in-law is in the medical profession (teaches ultra scanning to practitioners, around the Asia Pacific region - but !!! smokes like a chimney ). I casually mention cpap (they know I am on it) & every time my wife tells me not to interfere !!!. They also laugh it off as if it is an 'extreme' solution. I rarely say much anymore - just watch & wait

You are lucky that your family appears to appreciate the value of the therapy.

Good for you & them !.

DSM

#2 - it just occurred to me that if any of my kids (5) or grandkids (13) ever show any real symptoms of SDB - I would be strongly on to them about what to learn & what to do & how to do it & where to do it & if it came to the crunch would fund it. I want to believe my side of the family are likely to live longer. It is such a frustrating thing to see people you know who must be living with increasing doses of hypoxia & you really can't do any thing for them without being seen as interfering !.

I just trust that SDB awareness will grow to a far greater audience than it reaches today. I heard one vendor rep saying recently how the people on cpap today are "the low hanging fruit" - I know what she meant but also am thinking the likes of us here at cpaptalk who are actively learning, teaching, supporting others are the real lucky ones & if we are that fruit aren't we just so much ahead.

[Slinky]

Awww, SU! I'm so sorry about your son having OSA. But, as others have said, better to find out now and get started on CPAP before potential damage is done. Small consolation at the moment, I'm sure, but ....
(((hugs))).

I also can relate to your dismay at the suggested raise in pressure for you. As you know that has been and is a problem for me as well. I wish I had some helpful advice for you on this score ... but I don't. Just more (((hugs))) for all the good they do. *sigh*

Some days are diamonds, some days are stones.

[napstress]

Sorry to hear the news on all three fronts, SU. Good luck getting the little guy acclimated.

[smiles2you]

Wow! That is a lot of stuff to deal with! How smart you are to have your son tested and get his treatment going early. My heart goes out to you!
I have read many of your posts and learned so much from them. Your family is lucky to have you. I wish the best ahead.

Can I ask a couple of questions? (I might have just missed this, and if so, just refer me to a previous post.) Did your son previously have a T&A? How did his symptoms present after that? I ask because I am struggling with this in my family. My 5 year old had a T&A this past spring, but still has trouble sleeping. I have OSA, but believe I have had it or UARS my whole life. My mother, who turns 80 this month, was just diagnosed with severe SA after her sleep study was ordered when she had an episode of A-fib.(She has fairly severe CAD.) My father, whose craniofacial anatomy my son, daughter, and I also have, has severe dementia and has snored EXCESSIVELY since I can remember. His nickname in college was "sleepy" and I think he has suffered with OSA for a long time.

What has been the decision process for testing and treating your son, if I may ask?

[Madalot]

I'm sorry to hear all this, SU. I hope you can get your son on treatment soon and that he adjusts okay.

It's a lot to deal with for sure.

Keep the board posted, okay?

[robysue]

SU,

This is indeed sad news. I sincerely hope your 8 year old son manages to navigate the transition to being hosehead quickly. I also hope that as he moves through the rest of his childhood he manages to keep this part of his day-to-day life in perspective. I cannot imagine what it must be like to be an 8 year old (or in just a few years a teenager in middle school and high school) and have to deal with this condition and therapy. My heart goes out to you.

It's also sad to hear that your father will also be adjusting to life as a hosehead and that you need more pressure---with your on-going aerophagia issues, that's most unwelcome news. And of course the hard part is that you'll want to try to be upbeat about your own therapy if/when either your son or dad hit snags of their own. And that will be tough.

Keeping you and your family in my prayers

[BlackSpinner]

So sorry for you SU.

Yep it is now time for mamma to get back on the horse and prove that one doesn't give up just because one fell off the horse and was purple all over. Breathe deep and seek peace because they can tell when one is faking it.

[nanwilson]

SU...I'm so sorry to hear the rotten news, but perhaps there is a silver lining in all this. If his apnea has been caught this early he may not suffer the consequences of heart disease as most of us do.

[VVV]

Sorry about all the problems.

Our 8-year-old needs CPAP.

Assuming this is obstructive sleep apnea, should we not be treating young people with palate expanders and braces to generally enlarge the jaw?

I haven't looked into it much but there seems to be many possibilities including some new devices that work directly on making the jaw grow.

Prayers for you and family,