Sleep Debt

[robgb]

So I've heard a lot of talk about sleep debt and some that have suggested the idea is nonsense. Nevertheless, I tend to believe it's true.

My question is how long does it take to work off your sleep debt. I've been on CPAP therapy for about a month now, have mostly good nights, some bad (if I sleep on my back), but I'm finding that on some days I'm still getting sleepy during the day.

So I'm curious to know when and if I'll ever be able to rid myself of about thirty years worth of sleep debt.

[PaulaO2]

It really varies from person to person. Some people use the CPAP and start feeling better immediately. Others take a year or more to "catch up".

I felt good a few weeks in but thinking back, I think it was about 6 months or more before I realized how much energy I had that I didn't realize had been missing.

[robgb]

There are days where I feel better than I've felt in a long, long time. Then there are days, like today, when even though my stats show a perfectly good night's sleep, I still feel drowsy. Makes no sense to me.

[cincysinner]

I am wondering the same thing... how much debt do I have to pay off. I did just order a Zeo device, with that and the data from my machine I hope to see how I am sleeping and maybe find some causation as to how I feel (some days good, some bad).

[zonk]

I,m into sleep debt theory, there are varied views expressed in this poll
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...p-debt-yet

we shouldn't blame all on CPAP
CPAP does what suppose to do, prevents airways from collapsing so we can get some air into our lungs while sleeping

sometimes there,re other causes such as, insomnia or/and other sleep related problems, bad sleep hygiene, both recreational and prescriptions drugs, other health problems, stress, bad mattress or pillows, pain,, etc ...

as for the question how long takes, everyone is different
me had to go through finding what mask works best, tweaking both humidifier and machine to optimize the treatment
its was a gradual improvement, took me over a year to sleep over 6 hours using the machine
now about 7 hours but there,re some good days and bad days but more good days than bad days

[Sleepster]

There are days where I feel better than I've felt in a long, long time. Then there are days, like today, when even though my stats show a perfectly good night's sleep, I still feel drowsy. Makes no sense to me.

That's been my experience, too. I've been on CPAP therapy for 16 months and I'm still improving. It took me only a week or two to see some improvement, but like you there were and are good days and bad days.

I imagine you're asking yourself, "Is this as good as it's going to get?"

I stopped asking myself that question because I've been improving so long now.

It used to be that waking up with that well-rested feeling was rare, now it's common.

[robgb]

Well, I've only been on the device for about a month and the results, overall, have been dramatic. Before CPAP I would start getting sleepy at 10 AM and just feel like I really needed to take a nap. So I'd drink coffee and that would wake me up until about noon. Then I'd eat lunch and feel so damn drowsy that half the time I WOULD take a nap (I work from home). And those naps usually stretched to three hours. Then I'd wake up and last another four hours or so before I felt it was time to go to bed.

This past three or four weeks, under CPAP therapy, I spend most days feeling focused and alert. Even when my AHI is higher (which happens some days), I still feel much better than I did before CPAP.

But when I have days like today, where I started feeling a little sleepy around one p.m., I suddenly get concerned that I'll somehow go back to the old days. It's a ridiculous concern, but I have the unreal hope that I'll NEVER feel sleepy during the day again. So it's a little depressing when I do.

I suppose I should be thankful I've been doing as well as I have been, but after feeling so good some days, I get greedy.

[DocWils]

Sleep debt is utter rubbish. There is no medical evidence whatsoever, and tons of evidence that one good night's sleep should restore one's exhaustion. What you think is sleep debt is actually something more prosaic - you have become accustomed to a certain sleeping pattern and it takes you brain a while to sort out how to return you to "normal" sleep routines. Once that is achieved you should feel much better. There is no such thing as "catching up on xx year's sleep deprivation" - simply not a real thing, no matter how nice and reassuring it sounds.

[PaulaO2]

And keep in mind that "normal" people have good and bad days, too. Sometimes we're tired just because the alien abduction drugs hadn't worn off as quickly. Other times, Mercury is in retrograde or whatever.

[Ugly]

So I've heard a lot of talk about sleep debt and some that have suggested the idea is nonsense. Nevertheless, I tend to believe it's true.

Wait until people start discussing the interest rates!

My question is how long does it take to work off your sleep debt.

Okay let's be serious for a moment. Some concepts are hard to fathom for those of us who aren't "experts" and even then having tons of knowledge and references about a subject doesn't make it real. Best example: Star Trek. Despite all the technical manuals and dictionaries (eg. Klingon) that I possess doesn't actually make any of it more real. And so it shall be with sleep debt. Now, there actually may be some aspect of reality to it. But I don't personally believe that if a person is on a diet of 8 hours sleep per day and they sleep six that it will even itself out by sleeping 10 hours the next night. It is that definition of sleep "debt" that I dispute. Sleep all you want. Even go into a coma and you may not "catch up" on sleep lost. And having more sleep than "required" doesn't mean you have that much extra energy to use against another night. Eg sleep ten hours one night doesn't mean you can get away with six the following night (mind you I'm using 8 hours as an arbitrary figure and it's likely that every person is different.) So as an "exact science" I would say sleep debt is a crock. Oh there's some substance to it but I doubt sleep "deprivation" can be remedied by evening (as in making even, not between afternoon and night) out the sleep/non-sleep hours, even if you charge "interest".

It's important to note that I am not a doctor or a professional and everything I say is of my own warped opinion that you can ponder if you wish but don't take it as advice. It's my own personal opinion.