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+--- Thread: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? (/Thread-When-did-you-first-begin-to-suspect-that-you-had-apnea)
When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - OMyMyOHellYes - 04-28-2015
When you first began to suspect you had apnea, what were the top two things that made you suspicious? Especially if it wasn't a bed partner nagging you?
I started suspecting it around 2003. I had to take a trip with a coworker that had a CPAP machine. I had heard of them but knew nothing about apnea and CPAP. I discussion, I started hearing some things that were sounding familiar: I loved sleeping on my back, but had gotten to the point where I just couldn't fall asleep in any position but on my side or maybe in a recliner. Daytime sleepiness was common - but I blamed it on blood sugar spikes. That went on for a couple more years and I generally felt miserable and then in late 2005 on a long trip I ran off the freeway into the median and I didn't remember a whole lot from the last couple of miles.
Had a discussion w/ my GP at the next physical that sounded something like "I really don't think that I have apnea, but I'm sleepy a lot-but I think that is related to blood glucose spikes. I don't ever feel like I sleep well, and I have trouble sleeping all the way through the night and I always get out of bed feeling sleepy and tired. I had this coworker that had apnea once and he had some of those same things going on. And I really, really don't think I have it, certainly not bad enough to need one of those silly machines, but what do you think? Maybe some kind of sleeping pill might help? ... "
OMMOHY
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - trish6hundred - 04-28-2015
Hi OMyMyOHellYes,
I wondered if I didn't have apnea when my mom had her stroke in 2006 that was caused by OSA, and my dad snored and gasped for breath occasionally, (you know the drill,)every since I was a kid so I just thought I was a shoe in. Then, in 2008, I REALLY knew I had apnea, because my husband shook the bed to get me to turn over because I was snoring and gasping, so I mentioned it to my doc and then, had two sleep studies because I didn't sleep much during the first one. I noticed that I was spent before I got started.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - TyroneShoes - 04-28-2015
Sadly, about 20 years before I ever did anything about it. If I had it all to do over again....
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - OpalRose - 04-28-2015
When I look back at my symptoms over the last 7+ years, I know now I've had sleep apnea for all that time. I had never heard of apnea, and knew nothing about it. It wasn't until I was taken to emergency room one night last year because I couldn't catch my breath. After many tests and ruling out other medical issues, I was told I had sleep apnea.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - trailrider - 04-28-2015
I'm in my late 40's. I was always tired since university. It got rough after my second kid at 28. I had a thyroidectomy (cancer) at age 29. I hung in there and was always fatigued and miserable. I was given anti-depressants at age 35. That helped stabilize my mood and took the millstone away. But I still gained weight. My doctor then figured it was only sugar spikes and lack of willpower. I kept wanting naps ALL the time. Yeah it affected my career. But I switched to one that met my needs better and I am very happy in my current position (well paid, little management hassles). The depression kept getting worse and even after switching to a more potent drug, I was maxed out and still feeling down. So my doctor (new from four years ago) asked me about my sleep. I said huh? And she referred me to the (yep) local psychiatric hospital. The sleep doc there is a psychiatrist and explained that severe depression can be made worse by apnea. Treating the apnea will reduce the severity of the depression. I did one of those Epworth type tests for sleepiness and another for depression.
So here I am, on a machine for the rest of my life. I feel better, the depression is still there, but is very minimal now and not impeding me. And I have more energy and less fatigue. I still wake up umpteen times a night fussing with hoses and mask. But my AHIs are between .1 and 3, which is way better than 36. Rousing 236 times a night is not conducive to good rest. Sometimes I still want to nap. I figure my body is wanting to catch up on sleep. It took a long to get here, and it will take a while to get better. But I have a cute machine to help me on my way. And this board! I'll be fine.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - PaulaO2 - 04-28-2015
I had no clue. I snored like mad most of my life. One of the few things I inherited from my father. No, actually, I didn't start snoring until I was in college. So around 20. But apparently I was on heckuva snorer. That's also when I started hating naps because I woke up with racing pulse and feeling crappy. This would have been '84 or so.
But about a year before I was diagnosed, there was a report about it on NPR. My snoring didn't sound like the recording they played but it might explain why I snored so loud. A while later, my GP sent me to the sleep doc since my thyroid level was fine but I was still tired.
And here I am now. Been a hosehead for I guess about 8 yrs? 7?
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - GrammaBear - 04-28-2015
For many years before I was diagnosed, my husband kept insisting I snored so loud and gasped for air that he could hear me three rooms away from our bedroom. I was always tired, did not sleep well at night, in fact if I slept 20 minutes at a time that was a 'good' night. At my first visit with my Endocrinologist, he asked me to stand up - then he whipped out a tape measure from the pocket of his lab coat and measured my neck.
He looked into my mouth and said "You have a narrow airway." I would like you to have a sleep study. Of course I didn't know what that meant, but when all was said and done, the sleep doctor said I had 165 events in 90 minutes of sleeping. They cut the sleep study short because there was no doubt about the diagnosis. I don't always sleep well now, but the cpap makes it soooooo much better than it was. I wish I had listened to my husband long ago when he first started commenting about my snoring.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - Beans - 04-28-2015
I've felt tired for the last 5 years but it wasn't until eight months ago when I went camping that I noticed I was making a snorting noise when I woke up to turn over in the sleeping bag. Six months ago I noticed I was waking up gasping in the middle of the night.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - truetopath - 04-28-2015
I would say probably about 5 years ago I started noticing the gasping and such, and the feeling the crap. Cpap has been a lifesaver.
RE: When did you first begin to suspect that you had apnea? - Dafod - 04-29-2015
I had a hunch that it was possible about 7 years ago but totally discounted it as I was early forties, lighter of weight, didn't snore, had a wife who never noticed me not breathing (although she sleeps like the dead). It was at about this time my 69 year old father was diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment and sleep apnea.
I had started to wake in the morning with a sore head (frontal lobes) which generally was relieved by hot packs or a hot shower and coffee. But since I had a bout of cluster headaches at the time after a 2.5 mile ocean swim race I put it down to over training. Then over the past 7 years my fatigue just got worse. An ENT doctor recommended Nasonex spray, claiming my sore head was due to being a mouth breather and arching my neck. This removed the sore morning headache syptom but then I started having issues with tendons all over my body which stopped my ocean racing and my running (patella tendonitus and arm tendons). I believe the tendon issue was due to the apnea combined with the cortisone that didn't allow my body to heal after exercise - so I got a home sleeping test since I thought I should rule it out. Its only been 2 months and my knee tendons are allowing me to run now and swimming is back on the agenda - so it seems my body is healing.