Well I guess I get to join this club officially as of tomorrow when I get my CPAP machine.

The constant morning headaches were driving me nuts and getting up at 2 am was irksome as well and I googled these symptoms and I said to my GP is it possible I have OSA??

I just said to him something has to give and I'm sick of this!! Anyway 2 tests and many months later I got the results

Stopped breathing 18 times during the night
90% blood O2 level instead of 99%
No REM sleep at all
Physically awake from 1-2 AM

I'm just glad I'm already on provincial disability because there is no way I could hold a job with this problem... I get my 6 hrs at night and it's like I haven't slept at all and it's all I can do to become functional by 11 am and even then I feel like going to bed 2 hrs later.

I'm just looking for some online support because I sure as heck am not getting a whole lot in the "real" world

Welcome to Apnea Board, Sleepyhead.

Glad to hear you were able to get the provincial disability.

The rules are a bit different south of the border. My OSA is quite severe, 80-100 episodes per hour, 02 desaturation well into the 70s, and so on. I have fallen asleep pretty much every place you can think of, including the dentist's chair, the shower, standing and typing on a keyboard, and talking on the telephone, just to name a few.

I lost my job because of my OSA, so I filed for Social Security Disability, but after nearly two years of waiting, they denied my claim for benefits.

I finally managed to land another job, albiet earning a little more than half what I was making before.

Good luck with your therapy, and if we can answer any questions for you, or if you'd just like to vent, we're here to help.

Carl

Hi sleepyhead, I know how you feel. Just wanted to let you know i can sympathize with you. I'm from Nova Scotia and am also on disability from my work. My body has gone through so much trauma in the last 5 years it's not funny. I haven't been officially diagnosed with sleep apnea but went through the last five years of waking up feeling like i was gasping for breath. It started after i was given a medication and i got this extreme pressure feeling on my back like i couldn't get enough oxygen although my daytime oxygen levels were normal. Then acid reflux started. Couldn't keep food down for a couple of years. I could not function and is just until recently that i've been able to get a good night sleep. I'm terrified of having Central Sleep apnea because I read that you tend to know that it is happening to you when it occurs and is usually related to serious illness. My whole body and mind went through extreme trauma. I'm now taking clonazepam and risperdal at night which gives me a good night sleep but i'm not sure if i am still stopping breathing so am awaiting sleep apnea testing which probably won't be until November sometime as the waiting list is very long here. I'm also going for pulmonary function tests the end of August. Just wanted to tell you your not alone and if you can give me any insight into any symptoms you may have had that can ease my mind somewhat. Also did you have your testing done in a hospital or at home. They do it at home here and i'm concerned that the results won't be as good or wonder if they can determine which type of apnea it is because the at home test dosen't monitor any brain wave function. Ok thanks hope to hear from you.

Can't you ask your doctor to give you a scrip for a home trial of a recording autopap machine? There shouldn't be any waiting list for that.

Carl

Thanks Carl I'll ask about that i didn't know there was such a thing.

Lisa

Hi there hopefully this works... this type of forum is a little different. Well for me I already have acid reflux and I'm already being treated for clinicial depression. What sent me to the sleep clinic is that the constant headaches were still bothering me despite being on preventive meds and especially the last 3-4 months I had begun to feel like I had a hungover from the night before.

I'd get up and immediately want to go right back to bed get up at 11 am and be bone tired again by 3pm, go to bed and have a nap, get up at 6pm and be in bed again by 8pm. I was just getting sick of being a 90 yr old man in a 38 yr old body!

My testing was done in a sleep lab... the rooms were nice and it was air conditioned. Didn't care for the pink duvet though lol lol.

My symptoms were morning headaches, uncontrollable high blood pressure, frequent trips to the washroom during the night, my personality had changed, irritability, my sex drive was right out the window, too tired to even think of that.

I'm not sure if my heart has been affected by waiting for 2-3 months to get the machine because it races periodically and doesn't take me long to get winded, I will get that addressed when I see my GP in two weeks