How to Cope with Sleep Apnea

Like millions of Americans, I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea - a condition where the airway constricts during sleep causing difficulty in breathing. The condition is serious and can lead to chronic fatigue, heart disease, or even death if not treated.

However, unlike the millions of Americans who have been diagnosed with Sleep Apnea, I no longer suffer from this condition. Here's what I did to overcome Sleep Apnea and free myself from the intrusive CPAP machine.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• The support of your doctor. After a diagnosis of Sleep Apnea always inform your doctor of your efforts to combat Sleep Apnea so that he or she can monitor your condition and progress.

1. Most Americans find out that they have Sleep Apnea after an overnight stay at a "Sleep Center", these facilities are usually part of a hospital or clinic. Each sleepy patient has a private room that is monitored by a trained technician. During the night the technician monitors the patient's breathing, heart rate, blood oxygen levels, and sleep patterns. If you are the patient, expect to fall asleep with a multitude of cords and wires connected to your body.

2. The next morning, the Doctor will read the summary of the various reports. The warning signs that your Doctor is looking for are unexpected breathing patterns, obstructed breathing, low oxygen levels in the blood stream, "restless leg" movements, and/or failure to reach the deep sleep levels that let you enjoy the complete recuperative effects of a good night's sleep.

3. Most patients who are diagnosed with Sleep Apnea are prescribed a CPAP machine. A CPAP is a ventilation machine that provides positive air pressure to overcome the resistance of a restricted airway to ensure that air is getting through to your lungs. If it fails for any reason during the night, an alarm will sound.

4. In my case, I couldn't tolerate the CPAP machine. I needed a sleeping pill to overcome my resistance and fall asleep although, even with the pill, I could only rarely sleep through the night. To get off the machine, I had to overcome the chronic condition of Sleep Apnea. There are two ways to combat Sleep Apnea that have at least some track record of success.

5. First, I lost weight. In all about 30 pounds over a year's time. It wasn't fancy, I just walked, walked, walked.

6. Second, I taught myself to sleep on my side. I sewed a pillow to the back of a T-Shirt that I wore each night. It took some time to overcome a lifetime of habit, but I finally did it. I can now sleep properly without the awkward reminder of that T-Shirt.

7. Finally, I made a return visit to the Sleep Center to be sure. The results? No Sleep Apnea!

Tips & Warnings

• There are many different styles of face masks and nozzles for CPAP machines. Keep trying to find the most comfortable solution.
• Do not stop using a CPAP machine without confirming that you no longer have Sleep Apnea. Always let your Doctor know what you are doing.
• Sleep Apnea is a serious condition that can lead to chronic fatigue, high blood pressure, or heart disease.
• Although CPAP machines are very expensive, there's no market for used CPAP's because of possible legal responsibilities for an individual who sells a used machine.

Resources

• Losing weight can provide a permanent solution to sleep apnea. Try eDiets. New plans, discounts and hope. Lose weight and sleep well.

[busymother]

on 11/2/2008 Great idea with the t-shirt to keep you from rolling over.

[dsarokin]

on 10/3/2008 Very informative. Thanks for posting this.

[jimdris]

on 10/2/2008 Great idea - you should market that pillow!