[Treatment] My severe OSA is .. cured

[Peter_C]

I just love some of the side benefits of health issues, like weight loss - of course, it's only good if you want/need to lose weight...

[cured]

Well, I think I really am cured.
I just down loaded the 02 Sat data from 3 hours this night.
(Pain meds only last 4, so i have not had a real night's sleep yet)
But considering no asthma or allergy drugs for 2 weeks, no cpap, etc.,
for the 3 hours i recorded the 02 sat, most of the ti me i was above 88% oxygen.
I had a few spikes down to 80 and even a fewer more down to 75. However,
given the sleep test where i spent almost 1/3 of the time in the 60-75% range, Praise the Lord!
The surgery worked! Given the pain involved, thank goodness.

Had 2 complete meals today. Wife is cutting pain meds. WoW!

Cannot speak for any others, but now that i'm on the other side, glad it's done and i don't need mask.
And with the loss of 22 lbs so far, i had chicken, rice, corn, and ice cream for dinner. 3 hours later, my sugar reading was 118.

Again, if you hate the mask and machine as much as i did (do) and you are anatomically a match given the sleep endoscopy, give careful thought to the post operative pain. I probably won't post anything else on this until i have the sleep test in January, unless someone has some specific questions. I wish you all well in your fight to get sleep. Painful as it is, it's good to know that there is an option other than "get used to the mask".

[Don in Austin]

Well, I think I really am cured.
I just down loaded the 02 Sat data from 3 hours this night.
(Pain meds only last 4, so i have not had a real night's sleep yet)
But considering no asthma or allergy drugs for 2 weeks, no cpap, etc.,
for the 3 hours i recorded the 02 sat, most of the ti me i was above 88% oxygen.
I had a few spikes down to 80 and even a fewer more down to 75. However,
given the sleep test where i spent almost 1/3 of the time in the 60-75% range, Praise the Lord!
The surgery worked! Given the pain involved, thank goodness.

Had 2 complete meals today. Wife is cutting pain meds. WoW!

Cannot speak for any others, but now that i'm on the other side, glad it's done and i don't need mask.
And with the loss of 22 lbs so far, i had chicken, rice, corn, and ice cream for dinner. 3 hours later, my sugar reading was 118.

Again, if you hate the mask and machine as much as i did (do) and you are anatomically a match given the sleep endoscopy, give careful thought to the post operative pain. I probably won't post anything else on this until i have the sleep test in January, unless someone has some specific questions. I wish you all well in your fight to get sleep. Painful as it is, it's good to know that there is an option other than "get used to the mask".

"Cured" is relative. Sounds like you are significantly better off than you were and I am glad for you about that. However, multiple dips down to 80 saturation level and even some to 75 in only 3 hours most would consider to constitute severe OSA and in dire need of treatment. But, I am glad for you that your OSA is no longer as hyper-severe as it was. I hope that one way or another your condition improves further.

Don in Austin

[cured]

thanks Don,
Just to complete the picture, the pain med is Dilaudid. My wife, who was a nurse, says it suppresses breathing.
Also, I have not had any of my asthma or allergy medicines in 2 weeks. So, guess we'll see in January when i retake the sleep test, but from where I'm sleeping, things are looking good that it was a very effective surgery, if also a painful one.

[LOVEDOG]

In early 2013 I began suffering with what was essentially walking pneumonia. Had been previously diagnosed with moderate OSA a few years before but told them i was not interested in the mask. By the time pneumonia resolved, i was falling asleep at work and while driving on interstate on way home. Had home sleep test at my wife and dr. buddy's insistence. Averaged over 75 apnea/hr. Took a while to get fitted for machine and mask because i didn't wan to and i was not about to be prescribed an inferior machine type from a sleep doc i never saw (courtesy of home sleep test).
Began cpap at end of may. Daytime sleepiness gone. No trouble driving. Had to modify settings considerable to even be able to put the BLANK thing on. I hated it from the first day until the last on 9/26.
Turned to this forum for a cure because i knew it would only be months before i could not keep promise to wife about using the evil device. Only found stuff about you'll get used to it and there is no cure.

Well, for those of you like me, there may be. I just had the TORS sleep apnea surgery on 9/27. Wife is amazed. No snoring, no gasping, no choking. They took out pallet, tonsils, other stuff, and the base of the tongue. I would not wish this pain on my worst enemy. Been a week and it's the first the pain meds have made any progress at all against the unremitting agony of trying to swallow with organs that were cut open. Have not eaten in a week.

But, they say 2 more weeks of recovery and i'm done. No machine, no pain.
you have to be like me. The doc told my wife i was a perfect match forn the anatomy they are looking to succeed against. to that end there was a physical exam, an MRI, and a sleep endoscopy where they put the camera in your nose and watch the throat collapse.

so, if i knew the pain that i would have to undergo, i would hold off. But i didn't, so .. Please pray that i mend quickly. If you hate cpap as much as i were you feel like you're drowning, never felt like you had a good night's sleep, just that you could work without falling asleep, check it out for yourself and see if you're a good candidate. Guys, you need a good, compassionate, caring wife. Ladies, only try this with a caring sister.

We'll see final results in 3 months. i have to go back for a sleep test at the hospital. But for now i think for others, it would be best to see if they can improve the post operative care. I'm rambling under the influence of the pain meds. let me know if you have questions

Hello! I wish you a speedy recovery! I just wanted to let you know that my spouse had this same surgery and was completly cured of severe sleep apnea. The only difference, my spouse was never put on cpap. After the sleep study, the doc said you need this surgery. The doc was a very highy respected maxofacial surgeon. This was 20 years ago!

Lovedog

[vsheline]

As for the mask, I had to sit on the edge of my bed, steeling myself through prayer to the Lord to just put it on. Then I had to manage througfh a panic attack as i laid down in settling mode where even though it was set to run from 4 to 8 or i think eventually 4 7.6, it felt like there was no air and i was drowning.

Hi cured,

For others' sake who may be feeling like they are not getting enough air when receiving PAP therapy, I would like to point out that changing to a bi-level machine, so that the the inhale pressure (IPAP) can be boosted farther above the exhale pressure (EPAP), usually makes breathing much easier.

Or, if one cannot obtain a bi-level machine and if the pressure prescription is low, simply raising the pressure a little (like up to 9 or 10) may make inhalation easier. I know I felt like I was suffocating when my pressure was lower than 9 or 10.

I sure do hope you're cured. Thanks for sharing your experience.

I would expect your oxygen levels will probably improve in a week or two, meaning after you are able to be completely off the pain meds.

Take care,
--- Vaughn