Sleep Apnea Test -- What a joke!

[njean]

Well, I went for a Sleep Apnea test Wednesday night, after procrastinating about it for months!

I had told my PH dr that I thought it would be a waste of time because I am a very light sleeper and I just couldn't see myself sleeping with all those wires attached! He smiled and said, "oh, you'll sleep --- most people don't even think they've slept, but you will!" :rolleyes2: Yeah right!!!!!

Well, got there around 8:00 pm, got all wired up by around 9:00 and then told that TV had to be turned off by 10:30. I normally don't go to bed until around 11 or so at home & watch TV until I start getting drowsy.

So, reluctantly, I get into bed and get onto the business of sleeping. Being that I'm on such a high dose of Lasix, the tech had to come in once to detach me so I could use bathroom ....that was at about 11:30! Still wide awake....toss and turn, toss and turn.

At around 12:00, he comes in to reattach a wire on my head --- still wide awake!!! Toss and turn! At 2:00 am here he comes again to check my wires and helps reposition me on the bed, because I'm all tangled up by now and very agitated by the whole thing!!! :mad2: I go back to tossing and turning!!!! :frown2:

Finally at 3:15, he walks in and says, "well, it appears that we're not going to be able to get any sleep from you because we've only clocked in 2 minutes so you're free to go!" So at 3:30am I was redressing, getting my pillow and other personal belongings and headed out the door!!! :mad2:

They had me sign a form giving an explanation why they had to stop the study and that I could reschedule at another time.

I signed the form and wrote in "don't hold your breath" where it stated a reschedule time!!! :biggrin2:

 

[drivetopless]

Ask if they have a home monitor version that could be tried. They could possibly get some screening data to see if it is worth pursuing further.

 

[Duffey]

Norma,

You need to come visit me and have your sleep study performed at the hospital where my better-half works.

We'll party beforehand so you'll have no trouble sleeping.:wink2:

 

[njean]

Norma,

You need to come visit me and have your sleep study performed at the hospital where my better-half works.

We'll party beforehand so you'll have no trouble sleeping.:wink2:

Ha, ha! Funny you say that because I told the tech that the only way they'd get any sleep from me, was if I was drunk out of my mind or completely sedated!!!!

So get the booze ready, Mary!!!

 

[Superbob]

LOL! I don't think I could sleep "on command" either, Norma.

Now after a real party like those back in my frat-boy days, maybe! But they'd have to hook me to those wires after I'd passed out.

 

[Duffey]

Sleep apnea test and Pre-sleep apnea PARTY in SE MO! Pick at date and we'll get everyone sedated in advance!:biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2:

 

[Bina]

oh norma, couldn't they have given you a teeny little dose of Ativan ?
Or maybe a teeny little shooter of Schnapps ?

 

[njean]

oh norma, couldn't they have given you a teeny little dose of Ativan ?
Or maybe a teeny little shooter of Schnapps ?

Nope, NO Ativan for me! I got a double dose of that in the hospital when I had my appendectomy and the combination of that & the high antibiotics I was on, had me yelling at my husband to find the d**m gorilla that was hiding underneath the bed!! LOL!

 

[Bina]

oh my stars, a double dose of Ativan could really cause gorillas to take over the bed.
I am totally against sleeping pills and tranqs, but before my heart cath a nice nurse offered me .5 mg of Ativan to
"chill out" and I was pleasantly mellow for the cath.
Now, if needed I can take 1/2 of the .5 mg and survive dental visits, etc.

 

[Mentu]

I think DT has the right idea...ask about the in home version of the sleep study. Having just gone through this experience three weeks ago, I absolutely appreciate what you are saying. I have gone to sleep every night with my machine for over 10 years so having to ly down and try to go to sleep without it was awful. I tried meditation, poetry, and white noise and in the end, they only got 96 minutes of useable monitoring out of 9 hours in bed. I'll let you know if I hear of a better way.

Larry

 

[Greg a]

I remember Jerry Van Dyke as "Assisstant Coach Luther Van Damme" and Craig T Nelson winding up at a sleep clinic ...........funniest damn episode of entire "Coach" run ....I could identify 110%

 

[Dennis S]

Did you have it done in Albuquerque? I had one done there, and I was not at all impressed! To me, it seemed all about making money. I asked them for copies of my medical records. For all of their supposed "reams" of data, what I got was basically a re-hash of information I had given them in response to their questionnaires. And to even get that was an unprofessional hassle-after several requests by letter and telephone didn't work, I went to the reception room and told them I wasn't leaving without the records I was entitled to. This caused a bit of a stir, and I was quickly ushered away from the other patients into a tiny room. Within minutes I got some medical records, but to me they were a joke.

I couldn't escape the feeling I was in the middle of a huge profit center. And I wasn't impressed when the young technician (who surely didn't sound at all like someone with any medical training) tried to tell me I was risking death if I didn't completely follow through with their program. By the way, if you are irked now, just wait till their bills hit your mailbox.

 

[Diane]

I had a sleep study once too. First off, who can sleep with all their "rules"? If they want to get a good study, then they need to let you do what you normally do. Like you, I don't normally go to bed until after 11:00 pm and I usually have the TV on. But I had to go to bed at 10:00 or 10:30 (can't remember which) and there was no TV in the room. Now I know they will say that's bad "sleep hygiene" to go to sleep with the TV on but if that's what I do when I go to sleep, then let me do it!

So since I couldn't have the TV on, I read for a little while. When I got drowsy and was ready to try to go to sleep, then they had me doing all this stuff to check out the machines.....look forward, look sideways, move your legs, take a deep breath, etc. By the time they finished all that, I was wide awake again! I tried to lay real still with my eyes closed thinking I would fall asleep but I couldn't. I tossed and turned and eventually dosed off a bit but I heard all the footsteps down the hall and the doors opening & closing. I normally sleep so hard that a bomb wouldn't even wake me up so I wasn't really sleeping. I was major grumpy when they made me get up at 5:30-ish when I usually sleep until 7:00 to 7:30. They made me fill out some form about how well I thought I slept, etc. I told them on their dumb form that I did not sleep well because they wouldn't let me do what I normally do.

The doc used to mention that I should do another one but he and I have gone 'round and 'round about that dumb test and have finally agreed to disagree. I will not do another one of those tests. I am major claustrophibic and cannot tolerate wearing a mask for a test much less to sleep. Since I will not be wearing a CPAP in this lifetime, there is no point in going thru that dumb test again.

 

[njean]

I had a sleep study once too. First off, who can sleep with all their "rules"? If they want to get a good study, then they need to let you do what you normally do. Like you, I don't normally go to bed until after 11:00 pm and I usually have the TV on. But I had to go to bed at 10:00 or 10:30 (can't remember which) and there was no TV in the room. Now I know they will say that's bad "sleep hygiene" to go to sleep with the TV on but if that's what I do when I go to sleep, then let me do it!

So since I couldn't have the TV on, I read for a little while. When I got drowsy and was ready to try to go to sleep, then they had me doing all this stuff to check out the machines.....look forward, look sideways, move your legs, take a deep breath, etc. By the time they finished all that, I was wide awake again! I tried to lay real still with my eyes closed thinking I would fall asleep but I couldn't. I tossed and turned and eventually dosed off a bit but I heard all the footsteps down the hall and the doors opening & closing. I normally sleep so hard that a bomb wouldn't even wake me up so I wasn't really sleeping. I was major grumpy when they made me get up at 5:30-ish when I usually sleep until 7:00 to 7:30. They made me fill out some form about how well I thought I slept, etc. I told them on their dumb form that I did not sleep well because they wouldn't let me do what I normally do.

The doc used to mention that I should do another one but he and I have gone 'round and 'round about that dumb test and have finally agreed to disagree. I will not do another one of those tests. I am major claustrophibic and cannot tolerate wearing a mask for a test much less to sleep. Since I will not be wearing a CPAP in this lifetime, there is no point in going thru that dumb test again.

Ha, ha, ha! My feelings exactly!!! If the doctor keeps insisting for me to re-do, I'll tell him to do it himself & see how much sleep they can get out of him!!!

And the room, was freezing!!! They said they had to keep it COLD!!! I tried covering my head with a sweater I took but it kept getting stuck to the wires on my head! LOL!

Needless to say, when I left, I looked like 'Furina' from the Lil' Rascals!! I was hoping I wouldn't get stopped by a policeman at that ungawdly hour!!! :eek2: :biggrin2:

 

[Diane]

Ha, ha, ha! My feelings exactly!!! If the doctor keeps insisting for me to re-do, I'll tell him to do it himself & see how much sleep they can get out of him!!!

LOL! I didn't think of that! My doc and I have a "discussion" about it every 2 or 3 years (he keeps thinking I will change my mind). Next time he brings that dumb test up to me again, that's what I'm going to tell him!

 

[Marguerite53]

I couldn't escape the feeling I was in the middle of a huge profit center. And I wasn't impressed when the young technician (who surely didn't sound at all like someone with any medical training) tried to tell me I was risking death if I didn't completely follow through with their program. By the way, if you are irked now, just wait till their bills hit your mailbox.

My tech was just a dad trying to put himself through nursing school and making some extra money; hard worker. The real info comes from the pulmonologist who looks over your results -- some mystery person who (as Dennis also made reference to) had indecipherable notes/numbers/percentages of why I must have a CPAP machine. I was borderline everything so I remain unimpressed with the results. Why? Because I never sleep on my back; that is what they had me do. I had the worst migraine headache ever that night (I rarely, rarely get headaches like that) so I was immediately suspicious of noxious invisible hospital type chemicals which would undoubtedly irritate my sinuses and cause me to snore more than usual.

My PCP always wants to know when I am going to go in for a "fitting". Will that get them another deluxe luncheon somewhere? I do wonder; especially after having watched these pharmaceutical salespeople swoop through clinic lobbies with treats and hoopla goodies for the back room.

But the worst offense was recently. My husband lost his job. Then we ran out of Cobra. We had to do the dance of filling out all the forms for private insurance only to be told (we knew) that I was uninsurable due to my heart valve replacement. Well, not only did the heart valve come up -- SO DID THE SLEEP STUDY!! I am uninsurable because I snore? Because the values they attached to me in that torture room of a sleep study habitat were somehow definable as unhealthy I have to be forever branded as uninsurable?

Well, I am hoping that for all of us the pre-existing condition thing changes with health insurance companies. But in the meantime, I am really rather incensed about that!!

I know that these machines are very valuable. I believe that in many instances they do save lives. But if you have a partner there in bed with you, and you are just snoring and not gasping for air, or making the bed shake because your body jolts when you finally catch your breath (my husband on his back) is the machine really necessary? Perhaps those of us with the Rebel gene will have similar epitaphs, ".... if only they had plugged in to their CPAP that night...." :tongue2:

Good for you Norma Jean. Screw 'em!! :thumbup:

Marguerite

 

[catwoman]

Norma:

My husband did a sleep study years ago (maybe 12-15), and they set it up for 2 nights -- just in case. At that time, he fell asleep at the drop of a hat (when we had guests at our home, at work, etc.). So he didn't have problems sleeping that first night. Then they woke him up halfway and said, "We know what's wrong with you." He didn't have to go for the 2nd night.
Couple of weeks later, he got a call asking when was he going to go pick up his CPAP machine. I think it was the DME vendor -- No one had coordinated results of the sleep study. John called our PCP, who had NOT gotten the study results yet.
It all worked out OK, though.
John had suffered from anemia for years. When we got married, he mentioned that he had never been able to sleep very well. The CPAP machine has really helped him.
Not sure how I'd handle being told to sleep on demand.......

 

[Eva]

Sorry, Norma, you had to go through all this without any results. My first sleep study in 2005 was a nightmare...I did not know what to expect. I normally cannot easily fall asleep outside my own bedroom. At 2:00 am, the technician warned me that if I did not fall asleep within half an hour, they would need to reschedule the test. Luckily, I fell asleep around 2:30am! Yet, it took me three days to recover!

Last November, my experience was much better. I had it at a nearby hospital. Since I knew what to expect, I went prepared...I took my sleeping pill with me and informed the technician as it is important to note it in the report, since sleeping pill or relaxants do somehow worsen the obstruction. Still, I could not sleep until around 2:00 am!!

Norma, if you suspect you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), try another clinic or a hospital where you might feel more comfy, as I highly encourage you to force yourself to reschedule...your heart will love you!

Here are some quotes about OSA and heart.

The American Heart Journal: http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/118/10/1080

Quote:

(1) The most likely primary mechanism for any OSA-related pulmonary arterial hypertension is hypoxemia, which is known to reflexively induce an acute increase in pulmonary arterial pressure

(2) Sleep studies are probably an appropriate part of the evaluation of the patient with pulmonary arterial hypertension. When elevated in patients with OSA, pulmonary artery pressures have been reported to fall after treatment with CPAP.........

Unquote.

Quote from Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep-apnea/DS00148/DSECTION=complications


.....Sudden drops in blood oxygen levels that occur during sleep apnea increase blood pressure and strain the cardiovascular system. If you have obstructive sleep apnea, your risk of high blood pressure (hypertension) can be up to two to three times greater than if you don't. The more severe your sleep apnea, the greater the risk of high blood pressure................Studies also show that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with increased risk of atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure and other vascular diseases.
..............
Unquote.

Good luck.

 

[olefin]

Norma Jean, sorry you had such a bad time with the testing.

I had the test locally a few years ago. The tech was very professional and I didn't have much problem going to sleep. It was some trouble having to get up twice to pee with all the wires. The test went well, we reviewed it all the next morning. Seems I was holding my breath for as much as a minute. But the good thing, it only happens when I'm on my back. He suggested sleeping in a tee shirt with a small hard ball attached to the back to keep me from sleeping on my back. I did that for a while but soon got use to sleeping on my sides. Now days I 'usually' sleep on my sides.
I'd had sleep apnea for many years. Quite often Betty would wake me up for sometimes she though I had died. :wink2:
It wasn't causing me any problems but it worried Betty. Now she can sleep better.... most of the time. :wink2:

 

[njean]

Sorry, Norma, you had to go through all this without any results. My first sleep study in 2005 was a nightmare...I did not know what to expect. I normally cannot easily fall asleep outside my own bedroom. At 2:00 am, the technician warned me that if I did not fall asleep within half an hour, they would need to reschedule the test. Luckily, I fell asleep around 2:30am! Yet, it took me three days to recover!

Last November, my experience was much better. I had it at a nearby hospital. Since I knew what to expect, I went prepared...I took my sleeping pill with me and informed the technician as it is important to note it in the report, since sleeping pill or relaxants do somehow worsen the obstruction. Still, I could not sleep until around 2:00 am!!

Norma, if you suspect you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), try another clinic or a hospital where you might feel more comfy, as I highly encourage you to force yourself to reschedule...your heart will love you!

Here are some quotes about OSA and heart.

The American Heart Journal: http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/118/10/1080

Quote:

(1) The most likely primary mechanism for any OSA-related pulmonary arterial hypertension is hypoxemia, which is known to reflexively induce an acute increase in pulmonary arterial pressure

(2) Sleep studies are probably an appropriate part of the evaluation of the patient with pulmonary arterial hypertension. When elevated in patients with OSA, pulmonary artery pressures have been reported to fall after treatment with CPAP.........

Unquote.

Quote from Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep-apnea/DS00148/DSECTION=complications


.....Sudden drops in blood oxygen levels that occur during sleep apnea increase blood pressure and strain the cardiovascular system. If you have obstructive sleep apnea, your risk of high blood pressure (hypertension) can be up to two to three times greater than if you don't. The more severe your sleep apnea, the greater the risk of high blood pressure................Studies also show that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with increased risk of atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure and other vascular diseases.
..............
Unquote.

Good luck.

Sigh..... I know what you're saying, my friend. And I probably will re-schedule but not that soon. The weather is suppose to stay bad for a while, a great while!!! :wink2:

Anyway, like you said, I know what to expect this time, so I'll arm myself with some xanax and sleeping pills before I go. Or I might ask Bina or Mary to send me some of their "hooch"! LOL! :biggrin2: