Is the brain damage produced by Sleep Apnea over the years permanent?

[chrisj]

Pretty much completely reversible within 12 months according to studies: https://aasm.org/brain-damage-caused-by-...eversible/

[RayBee]

Welcome planetf1.

I think my body is just slow to respond to most any type of change. I think I can say I started to see a noticeable positive turn after 6 to 9 months on my ASV. In all fairness though, my slow improvement probably wasn't entirely the fault of any one source. I attribute this squarely at three problems. One - Kaiser for their lack of interest and competence in adjusting my ASV machine settings for my personal therapy needs (kudos to ApneaBoard experts for their help here). Two - again Kaiser for their lack of tutelage and due diligence in finding the right mask and acquiring the correct fit (again kudos to AB and perseverance on my part). Three - time. It takes time to turn around the damage done over years living with undiagnosed sleep apnea. This wreaked havoc on my body and culminated in numerous and compounding health problems I won't go into here. Suffice it to say when my primary dock rattled off about two dozen ailments potentially attributed to sleep apnea, all but one or two garnished a "yup" response by me.

After 6 months or so, I really felt like I wanted to get off the couch and do something, anything, I had energy. I didn't want to nap in front of the TV all day anymore. And my brain fog was pretty much gone. I discovered a good thing along the way worthy of mention. If I couldn't use my machine for a few days, as in having bad allergies or a head cold, my overall feeling of wellbeing wouldn't diminish for 3 or 4 days off PAP. And if it did start to diminish, just 1 night on my ASV machine would instantly bring me back to feeling well with no more brain fog.

As far as the other too-numerous-to-mention other symptoms, Some are slow to improve, and others are quick to resolve. But this is tempered by the good old aging process, as mentioned previously.