Waking up below zero
Tuesday, January 25th, 2011 06:26 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rolanniWow, a lot of opinions on yesterday's discussion question!
Speaking as someone who writes books that have been dinged as "too easy," "too hard," "cheesy," "guilty pleasures," "badly written," and "literary masterpieces" (often the same books), the only thing I can add is that every reader brings a different expectation to the table, and that no two reading experiences can be the same, because we all live alone inside our heads.
The qualification and certification processes are fascinating to observe, though.
FWIW, I was raised up by a band of feral newspaper reporters and advertising copywriters. Keeping it simple is one of the basic tenets of both forms. Good reporters must especially excel at being able to communicate sometimes very emotional, and very complex information clearly. So "easy read" in which "easy" stands in for "clear" and "accessible" is sorta the Grail.
Yesterday became All About Doctors. Not only did Steve have an appointment, but I got a lightning appointment with my doctor, too. Nope, not jealous, but. . .Steve reports that I sometimes stop breathing when I'm asleep, and then start up again, noisily. And I have for a couple years now woken up from time to time with a "recurring dream" that I'm not breathing, and start gasping for air. Which, yanno, I figured was Just Stress.
Turns out that it might be sleep apnea, and the gasping thing is my brain yelling, "Hey dummy; you're not breathing! Wake up!"
So -- a sleep test in my near future. I'm not worried about getting any of the answers wrong, because I intend to brush up with Mozart, who has a double-doctorate in the Art and also the Science of Sleep.
However! I think that some of you on the FL have had this test? What can I expect?
For today -- a couple hours at the day-job, then a drive to Bangor in the maybe-snow, for -- wait for it -- a doctor's appointment.
Speaking as someone who writes books that have been dinged as "too easy," "too hard," "cheesy," "guilty pleasures," "badly written," and "literary masterpieces" (often the same books), the only thing I can add is that every reader brings a different expectation to the table, and that no two reading experiences can be the same, because we all live alone inside our heads.
The qualification and certification processes are fascinating to observe, though.
FWIW, I was raised up by a band of feral newspaper reporters and advertising copywriters. Keeping it simple is one of the basic tenets of both forms. Good reporters must especially excel at being able to communicate sometimes very emotional, and very complex information clearly. So "easy read" in which "easy" stands in for "clear" and "accessible" is sorta the Grail.
Yesterday became All About Doctors. Not only did Steve have an appointment, but I got a lightning appointment with my doctor, too. Nope, not jealous, but. . .Steve reports that I sometimes stop breathing when I'm asleep, and then start up again, noisily. And I have for a couple years now woken up from time to time with a "recurring dream" that I'm not breathing, and start gasping for air. Which, yanno, I figured was Just Stress.
Turns out that it might be sleep apnea, and the gasping thing is my brain yelling, "Hey dummy; you're not breathing! Wake up!"
So -- a sleep test in my near future. I'm not worried about getting any of the answers wrong, because I intend to brush up with Mozart, who has a double-doctorate in the Art and also the Science of Sleep.
However! I think that some of you on the FL have had this test? What can I expect?
For today -- a couple hours at the day-job, then a drive to Bangor in the maybe-snow, for -- wait for it -- a doctor's appointment.
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no subject
Date: 2011-01-25 01:14 pm (UTC)They will do a split study because of insurance. If positive (I'm guessing it will be)at 1 am they wake you up and say let's put this mask on.
There had been a video showing it, but I still freaked when I tried to lie back down with it, felt I was smothering.
Ask if you can get there a little early and do "mask desensitization" before the study. Sitting up and awake in a chair getting used to breathing with the mask on - doing that would have saved me $250 in copay for a second night's study.
Bring your own pillows if you care about them although a good place will have an assortment.
They attach a boatload of wires to legs, torso, scalp, etc, and if/when you get up to use pot, they all go to a single sensor connection that goes with you. Stuff in scalp is sticky - like a sugar paste - you will want to shower there if offered.
Tell them you read in bed before sleeping, and with glasses if you need them - this affects long term mask selection
This is the kind I use:
http://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed-swift-fx-nasal-pillow-cpap-mask-headgear.html
no subject
Date: 2011-01-25 03:01 pm (UTC)Find the right mask, make sure you can adjust it to fit you, use a humidifier if your area is dry (I'm in Florida, so I don't seem to need one, which cuts down on extra cleaning issues) I'm so much more energetic and less sleepy now!
no subject
Date: 2011-01-25 04:23 pm (UTC)Sleep study: what everyone else has said. They wire you up and have you go to sleep. If you're fussy about pillows, take your own; I also took my teddy bear. In my case, they did two nights, one diagnostic and the second to calibrate the CPAP. For the diagnostic portion, they insisted that I sleep on my back, because they can get a better picture that way; I sleep very badly on my back! I turn out to have severe sleep apnea; the CPAP machine has made a huge difference to my health, alertness, and general well-being.
(edited to fix typo)
no subject
Date: 2011-01-25 07:38 pm (UTC)This can also be a sign of diabetes.
Susan in Orlando
no subject
Date: 2011-01-25 08:08 pm (UTC)Doing well with my CPAP machine. Ongoing costs for monthly/quarterly supplies somewhat surprised me, though. There really ought to be a way to deep clean and reuse hose and mask components on long-term basis, IMHO. (Engineer at heart) I keep thinking that surely these components could be carefully cleaned and then run through a Hospital's (or clinic's) autoclave, and then be "good" for another 3 months. This disposable approach (clean daily and dispose at 3 months) seems wasteful.
But now, sleep is GOOD! Don't be afraid...it's worth the initial slight discomfort. And, no, after the test is over you don't ever again have to wear all that ridiculously outdated set of monitoring equipment with wire tails everywhere. Geez! You'd think they'd bring this testing procedure into the 21st century, rather than continuing to rely on best of 1950's technology! ;-)
Disposable
Date: 2011-01-28 09:24 pm (UTC)Actually, the sleep study lab *does* clean and reuse between patients.
I am terrible at ordering my consumable supply. Record is 8 monthes on a mask. If you compare my 8 month old mask to my new mask, the new mask is more comfortable and gives a better seal when I roll over on it. The 8 month old mask is uncomfortable and does not seal properly. As far as I can tell, the straps on the headgear lose elastity, the seals lose elastity and grip, the hose loses its seal to the CPAP, the hose's rigid wire support gets repeatly crushed and the humidity tank plastic becomes cloudy.
-=FIN