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.
Sleep apnea and the CPAP
Date: 2011-01-25 11:17 pm (UTC)I love it, mostly because I can pull the covers up over my head and still breathe. But also there is the white noise. I have a standard mask that covers the nose with a sort of bar on the forehead. I got a lot of weird zits around the silicone at first, but the ones on the side of my nose stopped popping up fairly soon and I use a cotton or linen hankie under the forehead brace to prevent the problem there.
I've found that the more often I clean the plastic/silicone pieces the sooner they discolor and/or fall apart. And the zit around the nose problem is worse. So I just check them for obvious grunge, wipe it off and only if that doesn't work apply soap and water. I usually need a new mask less than once a year.
I sleep on my side with the help of 2 or 3 pillow to prop my head to about shoulder height.
The worst thing about the test was that I was supposed to sleep on a plastic covered mattress covered only by a thin sheet. If I take another test I will bring a futon pad. Also, make sure you know what time you have to leave in the morning. I was booted out shortly after actually got to sleep. I was so glad I had someone to pick me up.
Sue H