Is it Sleep Apnea if...?

[AshieMac]

Is it sleep apnea if I only wake up once an month/once a night (well lately 3 times in 2 weeks) not being able to breath and coughing? Should I bother my Dr. if it doesn't happen that often?

[maggiemag]

Until you have a real sleep study, you won't know if you have sleep apnea or not.  You could wake many many times during the night and not be aware of it.  If you think you might have sleep apnea, you are not bothering your doctor to request a sleep study.  You owe it to yourself and your family to take care of yourself.  Plus maybe you have reflux and not sleep apnea, but a sleep study is the only way to know for sure.

[AshieMac]

Thanks for the tip! I didn't wake up last night, but I guess that doesn't mean much. My problem with a sleep study is 1) I don't sleep well anyway and 2) I think I must be the lightest sleeper on the planet- I don't know how I'd ever fall asleep for the study if people were around. But, I'll talk to my Doctor anyway.

[maggiemag]

Don't believe all the horror stories you read about sleep studies!  I've had 5 and it really is not that bad.  Sometimes they will let you take an Ambien for sleep as it does not affect brain waves.  They look like you are sleeping in a hotel room.  Bring your favorite pillow and pajamas and something to snack on or drink before bed, plus a book.  No one will be in the room with you but there will be a camera recording.  I just ignore all that and try to sleep.  The health consequences of untreated sleep apnea are serious if ignored.

[AshieMac]

that doesn't sound so bad...I'm going to look in to it my next day off work I think.

[emudeer]

I was diagnosed with severe sleep apneia. I was only getting 1 hour of sleep (REM) per night and this had gone on for years. I thought this was normal, because my father and brother both had the same thing but none of us knew about this sleep apneia. The sleep study was very simple. They just attached approximately 13 - 17 wires to different parts on my head, using a waxy type substance that would stick to my scalp and the wires were attache to the waxy substance. And then they watched with a camera from another room. The dr. could tell when i was awake by watching the scan waves on the computer and they used this info to analyze the sleeping disorder. I now use a cpap machine every night and am finally starting to sleep much better.