I've developed a sleep phobia.

[Gogetah]

I recently found out I had sleep apnea with a low aph of 14 and it never really bothered me too much at first but now that I hear about people dying from it I'm scared as hell to go to sleep. I also have anxiety and hypcondria I'm scared of death and I always feel like I'm dying. I've had chest pains pain in my cheek heart palpations and my right arm has been going complete numb for the last 2 months I did a ton of tests all came back fine ekg echo etc but now my blood pressure high and my heart rates been 100+ and icefelt like crap the last 2 or 3 months so I went back to Dr again and hes concerned about my heart and apnea and wants to do more tests so now I lie Gere thinking every night is this my last night alive? I've been avoiding sleeping because of this and apnea has ruined my life..I wish I never knew j had it..m

[PoolQ]

I too dreaded going to sleep, but for me it was because of apnea- I just could not sleep. My guess is that no matter what causes a person to not sleep, the effect is the same and it really sucks.

The good news is that this therapy WORKS. Get a machine and start learning to use it. It will become your best friend. The machine will take good care of you while you sleep, learn to trust it. Educate yourself on equipment, masks, and sleepyhead. Don't just read about the problems that can be caused by sleep apnea, that's for people that chose to not use machines after decades.

You joined in August, do you already have a machine? If not, why not. If you do have one please fill in the information in your profile.
Let's get started getting you tuned up! Come on, let's get it done.

[Gogetah]

I don't have a machine and it's because of money and I need to do another sleep study and meet with a guy and it takes awhile to get an apt and I'm just scared sh*t less and I feel like sh*t... I also dread the machine because what if I become dependant on it and then I don't have it one time and die from it. I'd rather do surgery

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It's just alot to deal with lately mom has cancer and I got all this going on so I stress more and the anxiety is killer.

[archangle]

Think of one night of untreated sleep apnea as being a bit like smoking a pack of cigarettes. It's really unlikely to kill you tonight. Even over a one year period, the odds of dying from being a pack a day smoker aren't that high. However, it adds up over the years, and does give you a lot of health problems even if it doesn't kill you.

You might find some degree of help from not sleeping on your back, or from sleeping in a recliner.

What state or country are you in? Do you have any kind of insurance?

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Sounds to me that your biggest problem is anxiety, and then maybe sleep apnea.

I would seek treatment for that?

[Jim Bronson]

Sounds to me that your biggest problem is anxiety, and then maybe sleep apnea.

I would seek treatment for that?

I agree. All of your symptoms except perhaps for the numb arm could be related to anxiety. It also seems like you're depressed over the possibility of dying in your sleep. You should see a P-doc about these symptoms and get treated for the apnea. CPAP therapy is the gold standard for SA.

I've been on CPAP therapy for about 14 months. I went on a three-day vacation in August and decided not to take the CPAP machine with me. I had a great time, and I'm pretty sure I didn't die. I actually slept pretty well without it, but when I go again, I'll take it with me. It seemed weird to sleep without it, and I was glad to start using it again.

[Gogetah]

Thanks for the input doesn't help my dr told me his best friend died at 33 from it. I hear all these stories and my dr seems to think it's apnea related idk I'm just scared to death I'm not going to wake up the thought of not breathing every 4 minutes in Mt sleep scares the sh*t out of me. My aunt also died from it at 45.

[archangle]

You've lived without CPAP for years. Your body has adapted to apnea to some extent. The odds of dying from a few more weeks without treatment aren't that high.

[OpalRose]

Thanks for the input doesn't help my dr told me his best friend died at 33 from it. I hear all these stories and my dr seems to think it's apnea related idk I'm just scared to death I'm not going to wake up the thought of not breathing every 4 minutes in Mt sleep scares the sh*t out of me. My aunt also died from it at 45.

Gogetah,
Agree, you are probably not going to die from SA this night or next month...
but your doctor is correct in telling you those stories. You seem reluctant to start CPAP therapy, but yet have created a lot of anxiety for yourself over what may happen if you don't use it.

In time, untreated sleep apnea will without a doubt cause or aggregate a host of illnesses, like High blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, etc. so what is worse, suffering from diseases you don't yet have or getting on with what you know you have to do to live a healthier and more restfull life.

As far as health insurance goes, a lot here are in the same boat. Talk to your doctor and see if you can get an overnight study done. Or check some of the suppliers in the suppliers list above. I believe Supplier #30 can offer a study, script and machine in a package deal. There is also Supplier #2 that sells good gently used cpap's for a great price.

I know your thinking that I don't understand what you are going through, but I do.
I also suffered anxiety issues before I started Cpap. Never slept more than 1 or 2 hour a night. My doctor told me I wouldn't be alive in 5 years if I didn't use Cpap.
Yes, that may be a scare tactic, but it worked for me.

Over a year later, and I wouldn't go to sleep without my machine.

[Gogetah]

I'm just wondering if any of you are in your 20s I feel like I'm the only one my age with apnea and I'm worried about spending the rest of ky life on the machine. If surgery I'd recommended should I do it