I'm new. I think I have apnea. Advice?

I would not want to impugn your doctor, but I will say that I complained for several years to my doctors about being tired all the time. Not one suggested I might have sleep apnea. Like you, however, I suspected I had it, just from listening to what friends and colleagues who had it described to me. I wasn't conscious of waking up, except whenever I had a cold, or flu, when I was unable to fall asleep at all because my throat would close off -- which at the time seemed it could be simply due to swollen glands and/or airway passages. I went to 5 different doctors over 7 years of complaining. In the end it was my dentist who offered me a home sleep study -- at cost, too. I think that was $500. A lot of people here will tell you home sleep studies are useless, but the one I took worked out well. It found that I was having over 90 events per hour, and my blood oxygen levels dipped below 80. (No wonder I was routinely waking up with headaches.) With the results of that test, my doctor could no longer ignore me, and I finally got a referral to a pulmonologist. That pulmonolist took one look at the study results and immediately prescribed for an auto Cpap machine. That first night on the machine was like heaven.

Afterwards I got an education on sleep apnea, and now it seems obvious to me that I had ALL the classic symptoms. Extreme fatigue. Nodding off while driving, or at stop lights. Headaches in the morning. Getting up to go pee 3 to 5 times per night, and then peeing lots each time. Gradually gaining weight and becoming obese. I am flabbergasted that SO MANY doctors ignored my complaints, and didn't even ask additional questions.

Thanks kaiasgram. I guess there's no harm in sticking with APAP for now. I get some air in my stomach if I sleep on my side with the mask on, but I guess that's not a big deal.

In reading a little about UARS, dental appliances are commonly mentioned. I think I've seen things sold on Amazon that you get soft in hot water, then put in your mouth to mold to the shape of your teeth, wear it at night, etc. I can't imagine something in my mouth all night being comfortable, but if I need to try something else, I suppose it's something to try.

One question I have about flow limitation, I've read that being consistently in the double digits may be something to be concerned about, and I've read that .5 is halfway obstructed and 1 is full obstruction, etc. My FL graph seems to only go to one. Are the double digits referred to actually double digits with a decimal point in front (like over .09)?

BarnhartWill wrote:Thanks kaiasgram. I guess there's no harm in sticking with APAP for now. I get some air in my stomach if I sleep on my side with the mask on, but I guess that's not a big deal.

In reading a little about UARS, dental appliances are commonly mentioned. I think I've seen things sold on Amazon that you get soft in hot water, then put in your mouth to mold to the shape of your teeth, wear it at night, etc. I can't imagine something in my mouth all night being comfortable, but if I need to try something else, I suppose it's something to try.

One question I have about flow limitation, I've read that being consistently in the double digits may be something to be concerned about, and I've read that .5 is halfway obstructed and 1 is full obstruction, etc. My FL graph seems to only go to one. Are the double digits referred to actually double digits with a decimal point in front (like over .09)?

I think the mouth guards that you buy at the drugstore, Amazon, etc. are not the same thing as a dental appliance designed to treat UARS -- the former are generally to protect the teeth from grinding and clenching. The dental devices for UARS are designed to help hold the tongue and/or lower jaw forward so it doesn't fall back and further obstruct the airway.

Would you mind posting or sending me a PM with links or references to the info you read on flow limitation? Questions pop up frequently about the meaning of those FL numbers in our SleepyHead reports, and it has never seemed very clear what they really mean. Thanks!

BarnhartWill wrote:Thanks kaiasgram. I guess there's no harm in sticking with APAP for now. I get some air in my stomach if I sleep on my side with the mask on, but I guess that's not a big deal.

In reading a little about UARS, dental appliances are commonly mentioned. I think I've seen things sold on Amazon that you get soft in hot water, then put in your mouth to mold to the shape of your teeth, wear it at night, etc. I can't imagine something in my mouth all night being comfortable, but if I need to try something else, I suppose it's something to try.

One question I have about flow limitation, I've read that being consistently in the double digits may be something to be concerned about, and I've read that .5 is halfway obstructed and 1 is full obstruction, etc. My FL graph seems to only go to one. Are the double digits referred to actually double digits with a decimal point in front (like over .09)?

Same question here. I get FLs regularly around 0.20 to 0.30, clustered in spikes around the same time I'm cycling through REM (90 mins). I wonder if I should be concerned or if this is normal.