Do I really have Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

FedEx did eventually show up and I set up the water distiller....and set off to make some. It sure takes a long time distill water. It tends to be warmer by the thermostat than the rest of my condo...and running distiller just made it that much more worse. Guess I'll try to account for that in the future. Like run it when I'm at work....

Sure got nasty inside the distiller fast....I know people that complain about how bad the city water is...but when I first moved here I thought the water was great....guess my frame of reference then was a city where the water was even worse :D But, now that I've been leaving here a while....I have been finding the water pretty bad. Though I don't think I could drink distilled water, but the pur pitcher doesn't remove all the bad taste .... though a few week ago, a pur filter clogged....swabbing out the inside there was quite a bit of rust. I don't remember it being this bad when I first moved in...though I guess with more people living in the area now has affected things.

Meanwhile...last night was not too different from last night. Other then a slight rearrangement of stuff around my bed (due to the introduction of a PowerSource 400 and another Night Stand so now my CPAP machine is completely on the night stand and the hose comes straight off the back instead of deflecting off my alarm clock (CPAP as far forward without its feet being off the stand, and the alarm clock as far back the same...and in opposite corners)....now the alarm clock has moved to the other night stand. Might help me from turning it off before I'm completely awake. Though I think the CPAP will have a bigger effect on stopping that from happening. The main changes would be that I washed the nasal pillow using baby shampoo instead of (Dawn Concentrated) dish soap and the humidifier was filled with distilled water.

Didn't notice any difference humidifier wise, though didn't really expect to. Still have it set lower than I would like to avoid rain-out. According to the tracking number, my order containing the cover was processed yesterday in Nashua, NH....so probably no chance of priority mail getting it to my box today. So, it'll have to wait until next Saturday's trip to my box to get it. Of course, if they had sent it to the shipping address I had specified on the order....I'd have it much sooner. Perhaps I'll have to explore other measures for rain-out prevention in the meantime....

But, I did notice the change to baby shampoo....sadly there was hint of baby shampoo smell instead, when I first put on my mask. Guess I need to work on my cleaning technique. In the morning there was still that smell after the mask was removed, and nose is sore again....wonder if I should give the next size down another try.

I did get up once during the night....got a sip of water while I was up, but not because I had to.

I also did dream last night, don't know if that was good or bad....I guess I was hungry....

On the subject of the murmur....after I had moved out and finally gotten around to having a family doctor of my own (after years of self medicating the stomach pain....mostly rolaids and mylanta, though I did also have access to 'recycled' tagament and zantac....neither of which were available OTC back then...had a pharmacist friend that would bring some of the left over drugs from customers that had passed away)....the time I landed in the hospital and missed a week of work wasn't enough motivation then to get one. But, then I woke up one morning, wondering why I was doing what I was doing to myself. Decided to do start working on having my mother control all aspects of my life.... Those were my mid-20's.

Now working with my own doctor, and he was a good one (can't say the ones I've had since were as good as him)....though perhaps it was because he was a young doctor and it was Canada. While in the US I have older doctors, and when I first moved here...I was on an HMO. Now I have a job, where there is no HMO plan anymore. Just two different PPO plans (and choice of 3 providers)....plus QHDP? Anyways....he had me see a cardiologist and all sorts of tests....conclusion no heart valve problem. Much, later had dentist confirm with my doctor that pre-medication wasn't necessary.

Though I had mixed feelings with taking all those antibiotics....it seemed the most effective way of ridding my bad breath...though it messed up my digestion. Makes it hard to enjoy the wonderful Call Hall ice cream here. Though my boss has more fun with food allergies in his family...he's the expert at buying groceries when there are milk, soy and gluten allergies in his household. He's the only one without food allergies....

Though evidently the antibiotics were concealing a problem in my mouth....

Had a co-worker that had developed allergies to just about every antibiotic known to man....there was only one ultra expensive one that he seemed to tolerate, but he avoided having to take antibiotics at all cost....because he afraid of what would happen when that one ceased being an option for him....

On another subject....co-workers have been telling me I should see "40 Year Old Virgin"....though I don't think they actually know that I am one. Wonder what that'll be like when I'm 70. But, I'm just not a fan of Steve Carell.....

I was more thinking of what it would be if I was 70 and hooked up with a 20 year old...or something :o When my brother first started teaching at a University....he had this freshman student in his first class, he then went on to teach at a different University. She later tracked him down, and now she's his wife. But, I guess I too old now to hook up with a freshman now....now that some comment that they weren't even born yet when I graduated from University.

Oh, it took longer for me to see a dentist regularly....first it was because I had to....5 cavities, 6 cavities, 7 cavities.....each visit about a year apart....then a big long stretch of no dentist again....now living in the US, and paying for dental insurance and watching the premium go up every year...I decided that should use the benefit that I'm paying for.....8 cavities....then a few visits of no cavities.

Though in my current job, the employer pays 100% of the employee part....and since I'm single... But, I have gotten regular with seeing a dentist...probably only because no cavities streak continued. But that changed when I saw the dentist last November. Got 3 fillings. Though two were to fix up old fillings....I lost a lot of baby teeth to tooth decay...during which the first of my permanent acquired a bunch of fillings. That tooth had two fillings redone on it. Neighboring tooth got a filling to, due to receding gum lines.

Anyhoo....

The Dreamer.

TheDreamer wrote:UPS was here this morning. I now have a UPS and a Night Stand...time to rearrange how I have things laid out....

Waiting on FedEx to show up with my water distiller.

The Dreamer.

Interesting I didn't know you could buy small distillers like that. I was wondering if you know how long those little ones last? I'm wondering if it's worth spending $100 instead of continually buying the jugs of distilled water from the store?

TheDreamer wrote:Well, my aunt (retired MD) has chimed in on the results....she says "the recommendation for the sleep study results seems very appropriate" and "Hope this new treatment will improve your health greatly for the new year."

Wonder if I want input from my mother, she's bound to try to dissuade me, put me down, put down doctors, etc....say that everybody on the planet has OSA, and its just greed.... Kind of like she said everybody on the planet has scoliosis, and that I did look crooked as a child, but I was just lazy and she didn't beat me enough (claims my other aunt used to beat my cousin to fix her crooked back). And, then there was her answer for my being diagnosed with depression...its all in my head, and I just need to stop being depressed.

The Dreamer

Actually, with treatment of sleep apnea, depression can be better. Anyone who says depression is all in your head doesn't understand it and has obviously never been depressed. Depression is a real and treatable medical issue just like diabetes or sleep apnea.

nobody wrote:Interesting I didn't know you could buy small distillers like that. I was wondering if you know how long those little ones last? I'm wondering if it's worth spending $100 instead of continually buying the jugs of distilled water from the store?

Well, I don't know about the cost-effectiveness of this route....but I don't drive, and its a 1.5 mile walk to the grocery store. And, it is up hill coming back from the grocery store. So, it was easy to rationalize getting a home water distiller. The walk is also complicated when I have a lot of things waiting for me at my PO box.

I don't really think about whether I'll drive again...even though I might be doing something about why I nearly broke my neck after flipping my car on the highway...because I dozed off while driving.

The Dreamer.

I did a rough calculation....and its make about 200 gallons of distilled water for me to break even. More if utility rates climb....

The Dreamer.

but to save money wasn't the factor in my decision....though not buying and throwing out 200 plastic jugs probably helps somewhere too....