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A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Pokey49 - 01-11-2025
I’m waking up in the early morning hours with an unusual cluster of symptoms. I’ve been unable to locate (Google) anything that is remotely close. They only occur while sleeping, waking me up in great discomfort. I’ll try to describe them best I can here in hopes someone might know what’s going on.
I wake up at 4-5 in the morning aching all over. While I have arthritis this ache is different. I’m restless causing me to toss and turn. Self massage helps alleviate the sxs a bit. My meditation style breathing helps with the discomfort and anxiety of it all. I often have a mild headache above my eyes. I’m often nauseous and feel what I term as “toxic”. I feel awful. My mouth is often dry but that’s nothing new as I’ve been a mouth breather all my life. My HR is usually in the mid 50s but this is nothing new either. A quick check with the Oximeter will show a variety of readings from below 95%-99%. After a bit of time the symptoms dissipate and I can go back to sleep to again wake up later with the same symptoms. But the symptoms are always late into my sleep cycle at 4-5-6 in the morning. I’m not sleepy during the day. A recent home sleep study indicated an AHI of 16 which is at the low end of moderate apnea. I should also point out 9 weeks ago I had an atrial ablation for AFib which has proven successful as I’ve had no AFib since. BUT the symptoms above started a while after the ablation. I didn’t have them beforehand.
I have no idea what exactly is happening but I think it’s concerning. I’m awaiting an appointment with a local pulmonology/sleep medicine practice. It’s definitely sleep related but I have no idea what exactly is happening. I’d appreciate hearing if anyone here has ever experienced anything similar. Thanks.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - staceyburke - 01-11-2025
Welcome to the board. We use OSCAR (totally free software from the top of the site) to give any real advise. OSCAR charts are needed and the ones we need are in my signature "organizing charts". You need an SD card in your machine while you sleep to download those charts.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Pokey49 - 01-11-2025
I’m not currently on or ever been on cpap. Trying to determine if I need to be and how to be. I can’t get a firm diagnosis one way or another because I can’t sleep in a sleep lab and for extenuating circumstances I can’t have the traditional sedatives used to help one sleep in a sleep lab.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - SarcasticDave94 - 01-11-2025
You say you had a sleep study of some sort resulting in 16 AHI. THIS is the test result to get you a ResMed AirSense 10 or 11 AutoSet and mask.
You do not need to take a new test. You have the info there. Request that detailed test result from the ordering physician of that existing test. Use that test result to get the ResMed.
You can get any of your doctors, even a dentist or primary care, to write a script for the AutoSet. There's zero requirement that it comes from a sleep specialist.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Pokey49 - 01-11-2025
Doesn’t it have to come from a doctor who accepts Medicare to prescribe the auto pap in order for Medicare to pay for it? I got a sleep study from an online outfit because my last in lab study was a failure and the MD who ordered it refused to do a
home sleep study.
The online outfit (Sleep Doctor) gave me a Rx for a Resmed 11 but they don’t accept Medicare and the machine costs as I’m sure you know $1000
So I’m trying to figure how to work with a healthcare system that’s not the easiest to work with.
I’ve got an appointment coming with a different sleep doc hoping I can show them the home sleep study results and get them to write a Rx for the autopap 11 and get Medicare to cover it. If not I guess I’m going to have to fork out the $1000 and do all this on my own.
I assume you are agreeing an AHI of 16 qualifies me for cpap??
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Jay51 - 01-11-2025
List of Professionals who can write a prescription for pap therapy:
- Medical Doctor (MD)
- Doctor of Osteopathy (DO)
- Psychiatrist (MD Only)
- Physician Assistant (PA)
- Nurse Practitioner (NP)
- Dentist
- Naturopathic Physicians
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - SarcasticDave94 - 01-11-2025
Your doctors that you work with should be working with Medicare, so that checks as OK. Next, the DME supplier the doctor sends the script ordering CPAP needs to work with Medicare. That's it.
It should not matter who originally ordered the test. If you have the test results, that's all there is needed for doctor to order.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Pokey49 - 01-11-2025
Thanks for the list of providers who can write a Rx for cpap. I think my hurdle will be getting one to do it based on a sleep study that was not under their purview. I hope at least one will believe I’m coming with enough proof of the need to accommodate me.
Do you download OSCAR to your computer or cell phone or both?? How does the data get from your cpap to OSCAR?? I’m technically challenged in this regard.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - SarcasticDave94 - 01-11-2025
OSCAR to Windows or Mac computers. The CPAP machine accepts a standard SD card. If you get a ResMed 10 series, the SD card can be up to 32 GB, the ResMed 11 series accepts 128 GB SD cards. It'll go in a slot on the left side of the CPAP. This SD needs in before you sleep capturing detailed data. Then the following morning eject the SD card after therapy ends. Use an SD card reader in the computer to upload data to OSCAR. You'll look at the daily detail tab and there's the charts. You'll take a screenshot with F12 Windows or fn F12 on Mac. This makes a screenshot file, ready to do new attachment in a post here.
Wiki link is in my signature to get better details.
RE: A perplexing cluster of symptoms i need help deciphering - Pokey49 - 01-11-2025
Ok that sounds great. Thanks. My best friend is a retired computer nerd and I’m sure he can help me figure this out and he’s a cpap user.
I noted the doc who reviewed my home sleep study is certified in Sleep Medicine, I looked him up, he’s legit,but he’s in California and I’m in Missouri. So I assume I’m going to have to ask one of my local docs to write a Rx so I can go to a DME supplier to get a resmed 10 or 11.