CPAPtalk.com

moresleep wrote:I've wondered the same thing. But, might as well put our trust in the growth of new neurons, and do what we can to help along the process--exercise, fish oil, even antidepressants, according to studies...

I have to agree with moresleep....why not bet your brain WILL get better. You seem like a young guy....try anything you can to improve brain function....you have nothing to lose! I read somewhere that alcoholics can develop what's called wet brain...where the brain actually shrinks due to excessive drinking....but once they stop drinking, the brain returns to normal size...and cognitive abilities improve. If the brains of long term drinkers can get better....why not oxygen deprived brains? Just a thought...

I am not sure if my memory problems are CSA related or not. However, I have noticed a large improvement in swallowing reflex.

I wonder if there is a correlation between episepsy and apnea? At the age of 59, I was diagnosed with epilepsy. I had had several minor seizures in the six months prior to having the major one where I was diagnosed. Up until that one, I had attributed the smaller ones to the stress in my life at the time. These were not the grand mal type seizures - just "zoning out" with the smaller ones and then losing consciousness completely with the big one. During the hopsital stay I was told that there was evidence of numerous TIAs.

After going on seizure medication, I started having difficulty sleeping -weird dreams, severe restlessness, would wake up with the bed clothes completely tangled up and pillows on the floor. I thought I was having seizures in my sleep, but EEGs showed no evidence. My neurologist just shrugged her shoulders when I expressed concern about the sleeping issues. I decided it must be sides effects of the medicine.

Then I started having cognitive problems, headaches, everything everyone on this forumn has described. Then the breathing got really bad...not at night though....during the day. Nobody could figure out what was wrong until I stopped breathing during recovery after gall bladder surgery and someone said "Oh, maybe she has sleep apnea."

I've probably had it for years. But, you know, if you are overweight, which of course I am, doctors don't take you seriously. They just dismiss you.

So, I am thinking that maybe apnea caused the seizures - or the seizures caused the apnea. Whichever, my brain is pretty much fried.

We are just at the tip of the iceberg learning about the brain. Neuroscience is fascinating. They are just realizing dead areas of the brain from a major stroke can completely regenerate over time with the right therarpy. Chronic stress is probably more harmful to your brain and body over time then having OSA. Just saying.

cherylann wrote:I wonder if there is a correlation between episepsy and apnea?

It seems likely to me that you had some sort of brain problems that either gave you epilepsy or "put you on the edge" of epilepsy. Then when you got apnea events, they give you stress, low oxygen, adrenaline rush, etc. it triggers seizures from the condition you already have.

It wouldn't surprise me if the seizure medicine makes your apnea worse. I'd be particularly careful to be sure your doctor checks you for central apneas, which may need more care in using CPAP or even require a more complex CPAP machine.

Don't get too discouraged about frying the brain. A lot of the problems tend to get better with CPAP. At least the CPAP will help keep it from getting worse.

jabman wrote:Here is an exerpt suggesting long term dammage, and the link to go with it.

Results. The evidence suggests that EH as seen during SDB causes damage to the brain with specific areas of gray- and white-matter loss, alteration in autonomic and motor regulation, and damage to higher cognitive functions. While there is evidence of spontaneous reactive mechanisms, it is not clear if they limit ongoing brain damage or contribute to additional damage. Retention of deficits in the brain even after treatment suggests long-term injury.

http://jada.ada.org/content/140/5/536.full

There is no doubt in my mind this has impacted me, in more than one way. It still amazes me how many newbies get agitated if you tell them they have brain damage, can't think clearly, make poor choices and even hear tones or misunderstand things.

That also 'splains some of the posts, misunderstandings, and mood swings you find on these apnea boards

Thanks, archangle. The sleep study doctor did say I have OSA and not central. But my sleep study and doctor visit was an assembly line type event. I don't have much faith in doctors. Too many misses with them in the last three years (including being left blind in one eye due to a surgeon's error). however, I do have a pulmonolgist now who seems genuinely concerned and is doing everything he can to figure this out, but I just keep getting worse.

I haven't had any more seizures since the "big" one in July 2009 at which time I was diagnosed. But, that is a very good point about the seziure medicine making my apnea worse (or maybe even causing it) because it was right after I started taking meds for it that the sleep trouble happened.

cherylann wrote:Thanks, archangle. The sleep study doctor did say I have OSA and not central. But my sleep study and doctor visit was an assembly line type event. I don't have much faith in doctors. Too many misses with them in the last three years (including being left blind in one eye due to a surgeon's error). however, I do have a pulmonolgist now who seems genuinely concerned and is doing everything he can to figure this out, but I just keep getting worse.

I haven't had any more seizures since the "big" one in July 2009 at which time I was diagnosed. But, that is a very good point about the seziure medicine making my apnea worse (or maybe even causing it) because it was right after I started taking meds for it that the sleep trouble happened.

Once you get a little more settled with the CPAP and keeping the mask on, you can use the software to watch for centrals.

Does the seizure medicine tend to have anything like a "sedative" effect? Medicines like that can relax your throat muscles or your breathing reflexes and make breathing problems worse.

Look up the side effects of all the drugs you're taking and see if any of them list any problems like that. Post what you're taking, if you're not worried about privacy.

My seizure medicine is dilantin. No sedative effect that I am aware of. I will look up the side effects. Thanks.

I figured out how to download my results tonight and posted them another thread. Thre is one comment "Central:.06". Not sure what that means.

One intersting thing about my episepsy is that is affects both lobes of my brain instead of just one which the doc said is rare.

BTW, how do you get the shading and quotes when you copy and paste someone's comment to which you are replying?

cherylann wrote:BTW, how do you get the shading and quotes when you copy and paste someone's comment to which you are replying?

Press the "Quote" button to reply to their post.

archangle wrote:

cherylann wrote:BTW, how do you get the shading and quotes when you copy and paste someone's comment to which you are replying?

Press the "Quote" button to reply to their post.

Thanks. This blogging, forum posting, whatever this is - is new to me. It will take me a while to figure it out.

What time of day did your seizures occur?

My seizures occured after getting up from sleeping. I was diagnosed with seizures in 1994 after two big ones that left me unconscious, stiff as a board, and when I woke I was very ill. I was hospitalized both times and the 2nd time they sent me to a neurologist who diagnosed me and put me on dilantin. I haven't had an episode since then. However, now that I know I have apnea, I too wonder if there is a connection between the seizures and apnea.

Interesting topic! I assumed that once we started getting treatment, our body started repairing itself, much as it does when you allow it to heal from other ailments.

cherylann wrote: This blogging, forum posting, whatever this is - is new to me.

This is forum posting. Blogging is maintaining an online "diary" (Web log -- shortened to 'blog). The term is misused much more often than it's correctly used.

Resister wrote:Interesting topic! I assumed that once we started getting treatment, our body started repairing itself, much as it does when you allow it to heal from other ailments.

Yes it does to a certain extent. But it can't re-generate dead tissue. Your brain has to learn to re-wire itself. They can do marvelous thing for people with brain damage, it depends on how much you want to try and work on it and whether you can find and afford someone to do it with. I have once before recovered from brain damage caused by very high and long duration fever when I was 13. Unknown to me at the time, my mother worked with the doctors to re-train parts. Yes I wasn't the same but I learned work arounds and became a very successful computer programmer and analyst for many years. I also have very few memories from before my illness.

The longer I have been on cpap the better I am functioning. But there is a difference. I will never be 30 or 40 again.

In a lot of ways I am living a totally different lifestyle. It was hard to give up the old one.