Sleep Study

[Guest guest]

Decided I couldn't function like this anymore!!! Was falling asleep

whenever I stopped moving, or sat down, even driving down the road.

Insisted my doctor order a sleep study. Since our HMO doesn't have

one connected to their hospital , they had to farm me out and pay

someone else which they don't like to do. With eight years of

documentation of problems, they finally aquessed. However, I was

shocked. I stopped breathing at night. Diagnosis - " sleep apnea " . No

wonder, I couldn't get to sleep, stay asleep, or get back to sleep. I

would thrash around trying to get comfortable - nighttime was a

nightmare. The pain was unbearable at times, so stiff I couldn't

move but had to move to work out the stiffness. So everytime I would

awaken fully, I'd feel an urgency to stretch and go to the bathroom.

I would awaken 6-12 times at night taking forever sometimes to get to

sleep or back to sleep. The sleep study showed I stopped breathing 30-

50 times a minute. No wonder I would wake up panicy with a " fight or

flight " response. The treatment of choice for " sleep apnea " is a cpap

machine which forces air down the respiratory passage to keep it from

closing. The paraphanalia looks like snorkling gear and is strapped

on the head. Felt claustraphobic when I first tried it on - anxiety

attack! Panic!!! Knew and was warned it would take some getting used

to if I could tolerate it. I was determined to make it work. So I did

deep breathing meditation all night forcing myself to keep it on. I

was bound and determined to give it a shot. Although during the first

two nights, I still woke up about six times and have choaked on the

air forced out several times. But I know my body needs restive sleep

so I'm willing to give it my 110%. If this is the answer, I will

force myself to use it until I see some results. Since learning of

this problem, a new online friend who has researched sleep disorders

has concluded that fibromyalgia is a sleep disorder. I knew lack of

sleep exascerabated my pain but never knew what caused it. Maybe we

have the cart before the horse, maybe the sleep causes the pain

instead of vice versa. Anyway, needed to share the fact that I never

believed that I wasn't breathing at night before I did the study and

I'll try anything to get relief (which I have). Hope you have a pain

free day. See you in my dreams:) Star