This is driving me nuts

[pettyfan45]

I am a 23 year old male and I had an in lab sleep study in late December and they calmed I had mild obstructive sleep apnea (I had an AHI on 14, RDI of 16, and I had 36 hypopneas in the 160 minutes of sleep I got). My primary doctor thought my weight was causing this, so he told me start losing it (never told me how much I should lose mind you), so I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now and I have experienced no change. I am still tired all the time, have a headache all day that nothing over the counter seems to help, fall asleep at my computer at home, I wake up sweating and short of breath occasionally, and sometimes wake up with chest pain that goes away after a few minutes. Should I see about getting another sleep study to see if me losing this weight has helped at all or should I try lose more and see that helps before that. I am also wondering if some of my other medical conditions could effect this like ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) or Cerebral palsy with muscle weakness ( because of that I have issues walking for prolonged amounts of time and chronic pain in my legs)

Thank You for any help,
Pettyfan45

[Julie]

Your MD is uninformed - weight gain is often caused by SA, and losing it is difficult until you're treated (with Cpap). In your case, it would be even harder because of your CP and ADHD, and most people who lose 'some' weight stil need Cpap - exceptions possibly being those who lose e.g. 100 lbs through bariatric surgery, which I doubt you'd qualify for.

What you need to do is get the full results (not just the summary pg and yours by law) from your MD and come back here (same thread please) with them so we can see what's what... very likely we can help you if necessary getting set up with Cpap.

[BleepingBeauty]

I am a 23 year old male and I had an in lab sleep study in late December and they calmed I had mild obstructive sleep apnea (I had an AHI on 14, RDI of 16, and I had 36 hypopneas in the 160 minutes of sleep I got). My primary doctor thought my weight was causing this, so he told me start losing it (never told me how much I should lose mind you), so I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now and I have experienced no change. I am still tired all the time, fall asleep at my computer at home, I wake up sweating and short of breath occasionally, and sometimes wake up with chest pain that goes away after a few minutes. Should I see about getting another sleep study to see if me losing this weight has helped at all or should I try lose more and see that helps before that. I am also wondering if some of my other medical conditions could effect this like ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) or Cerebral palsy with muscle weakness ( because of that I have issues walking for prolonged amounts of time and chronic pain in my legs)

Thank You for any help,
Pettyfan45

Weight loss changes the need for apnea treatment in *very few* people. It's not a bad idea to lose weight, but it's NOT a cure for sleep apnea in the vast majority of people. (There are lots of skinny people with apnea; being overweight may be a contributing factor in an apnea diagnosis, but that doesn't mean that getting thin will negate the need for a machine.)

I'd advise you to get back with the doctor and insist on getting a machine to treat your symptoms. Even mild apnea is a problem that needs treatment.

Good luck!

[tiredandscared]

I am a 23 year old male and I had an in lab sleep study in late December and they calmed I had mild obstructive sleep apnea (I had an AHI on 14, RDI of 16, and I had 36 hypopneas in the 160 minutes of sleep I got). My primary doctor thought my weight was causing this, so he told me start losing it (never told me how much I should lose mind you), so I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now and I have experienced no change. I am still tired all the time, have a headache all day that nothing over the counter seems to help, fall asleep at my computer at home, I wake up sweating and short of breath occasionally, and sometimes wake up with chest pain that goes away after a few minutes. Should I see about getting another sleep study to see if me losing this weight has helped at all or should I try lose more and see that helps before that. I am also wondering if some of my other medical conditions could effect this like ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) or Cerebral palsy with muscle weakness ( because of that I have issues walking for prolonged amounts of time and chronic pain in my legs)

Thank You for any help,
Pettyfan45

Continue losing weight. Also if you're able , go visit a ENT so he can examine your throat for whether its an anatomic intrinsic problem or something temporary. Get a cpap asap, its neccesary regardless of it being permanent or temporary. Even if its improving. You might not be at the stage where you'll feel changes yet. Worst case scenerio your sleep apnea will be permanent. But you should focus on mitigating the damage first. If its not an anatomic issue you stand a good chance of curing it with weight loss. Did you have sleep problems before your weight gain?

[Julie]

I strongly disagree about going to an ENT as they're as likely as not to suggest a surgical 'cure' (unless you have known nasal issues), which in fact has been shown many times over to not work, though in fact can even make subsequent Cpap more difficult to use. As well, whether or not the origin of your SA is anatomic (or in fewer cases neurologic - yours might be one of them) is not as important as getting treated. But is is important to get your records as SA comes in different forms and not all machines treat all of them - you need to know your exact diagnosis.

[tiredandscared]

I strongly disagree about going to an ENT as they're as likely as not to suggest a surgical 'cure', which in fact has been shown many times over to not work, though in fact can even make subsequent Cpap more difficult to use. As well, whether or not the origin of your SA is anatomic (or in fewer cases neurologic - yours might be one of them) is not as important as getting treated. But is is important to get your records as SA comes in different forms and not all machines treat all of them - you need to know your exact diagnosis.

He doesn't need to follow the ENT recommendations. Just get himself checked for what he can expect with weight loss.

[Julie]

With all due respect T&S, your personal and deluded fixation on weight loss and OSA should not be fought in this thread - stick to your own.

[ChicagoGranny]

Get a cpap asap. Even if its improving.

You finally said something I agree with.

Yes Pettyfan, Get that CPAP while you are young and not much damage has been done.

ADHD

There is a very good chance that you will see some significant improvement in ADHD symptoms after you get a good CPAP therapy going.

I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now

Very good! Work on getting it down to normal - it is unlikely to be a cure for sleep apnea, but it does so much good for you anyway.

Cerebral palsy

Do you have any problems swallowing or speaking?

go visit a ENT so he can examine your throat for whether its an anatomic intrinsic problem or something temporary

Yes, a consultation with an ENT who is familiar with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a good thing for every obstructive apnea patient to have. But I would not rush to make an appointment until we have discussed some of the other issues.

Lastly, let us know how many teeth you have? Are they overcrowded? Are any of your teeth crooked? Have you ever had orthodontic braces? Have you had any teeth extracted? Do you have a recessed chin? A narrow jaw?

[ChicagoGranny]

I strongly disagree about going to an ENT as they're as likely as not to suggest a surgical 'cure' (unless you have known nasal issues), which in fact has been shown many times over to not work, though in fact can even make subsequent Cpap more difficult to use.

I don't agree with this approach.

At some point he may very well find a consultation with an ENT to be very valuable.

But it is fine for you, Julie, to warn him that if the ENT recommends any kind of surgery, he should first discuss it with length in the forum before scheduling surgery.

With all due respect T&S, your personal and deluded fixation on weight loss and OSA should not be fought in this thread - stick to your own.

Don't be a bully, Julie. You don't know everything and your judgment is not always the best.

[Julie]

At least I've never accused you of something completely unfounded out of nowhere (going back a few weeks). But this is not the place for that is it - speaking of bullies - why can't you just post your info and go?

[pettyfan45]

Your MD is uninformed - weight gain is often caused by SA, and losing it is difficult until you're treated (with Cpap). In your case, it would be even harder because of your CP and ADHD, and most people who lose 'some' weight stil need Cpap - exceptions possibly being those who lose e.g. 100 lbs through bariatric surgery, which I doubt you'd qualify for.

What you need to do is get the full results (not just the summary pg and yours by law) from your MD and come back here (same thread please) with them so we can see what's what... very likely we can help you if necessary getting set up with Cpap.

how do know how I would go about getting the full results or if they would even still have them because the test was over 6 months ago (don't know if they are allowed to discard them after so long)
I don't know much you guys would be able to help me get a CPAP because I have Missouri Medicaid so I think a Dr in here in Missouri would have to put me on it or if it would even be covered seeing how I have mild apnea

[pettyfan45]

Get a cpap asap. Even if its improving.

You finally said something I agree with.

Yes Pettyfan, Get that CPAP while you are young and not much damage has been done.

ADHD

There is a very good chance that you will see some significant improvement in ADHD symptoms after you get a good CPAP therapy going.

I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now

Very good! Work on getting it down to normal - it is unlikely to be a cure for sleep apnea, but it does so much good for you anyway.

Cerebral palsy

Do you have any problems swallowing or speaking?

go visit a ENT so he can examine your throat for whether its an anatomic intrinsic problem or something temporary

Yes, a consultation with an ENT who is familiar with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a good thing for every obstructive apnea patient to have. But I would not rush to make an appointment until we have discussed some of the other issues.

Lastly, let us know how many teeth you have? Are they overcrowded? Are any of your teeth crooked? Have you ever had orthodontic braces? Have you had any teeth extracted? Do you have a recessed chin? A narrow jaw?

The only close to issues with speaking is I have a bit of a speech impediment from a malformity in my soft palit at birth (but was repired at the age of 5), but I can still be understood in fact I co-host a podcast on Wednesday nights if that helps XD
I have all but 4 of my teeth (they were removed because they were impacted) and I have an overbite but but never had brace. If I had a recessed chin or narrow jaw then no one has told me

[tiredandscared]

Get a cpap asap. Even if its improving.

You finally said something I agree with.

Yes Pettyfan, Get that CPAP while you are young and not much damage has been done.

ADHD

There is a very good chance that you will see some significant improvement in ADHD symptoms after you get a good CPAP therapy going.

I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now

Very good! Work on getting it down to normal - it is unlikely to be a cure for sleep apnea, but it does so much good for you anyway.

Cerebral palsy

Do you have any problems swallowing or speaking?

go visit a ENT so he can examine your throat for whether its an anatomic intrinsic problem or something temporary

Yes, a consultation with an ENT who is familiar with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a good thing for every obstructive apnea patient to have. But I would not rush to make an appointment until we have discussed some of the other issues.

Lastly, let us know how many teeth you have? Are they overcrowded? Are any of your teeth crooked? Have you ever had orthodontic braces? Have you had any teeth extracted? Do you have a recessed chin? A narrow jaw?

The only close to issues with speaking is I have a bit of a speech impediment from a malformity in my soft palit at birth (but was repired at the age of 5), but I can still be understood in fact I co-host a podcast on Wednesday nights if that helps XD
I have all but 4 of my teeth (they were removed because they were impacted) and I have an overbite but but never had brace. If I had a recessed chin or narrow jaw then no one has told me

I do think stuttering is a predisposing factor.

[pettyfan45]

Get a cpap asap. Even if its improving.

You finally said something I agree with.

Yes Pettyfan, Get that CPAP while you are young and not much damage has been done.

ADHD

There is a very good chance that you will see some significant improvement in ADHD symptoms after you get a good CPAP therapy going.

I went down from 248lbs in March to about 224lbs right now

Very good! Work on getting it down to normal - it is unlikely to be a cure for sleep apnea, but it does so much good for you anyway.

Cerebral palsy

Do you have any problems swallowing or speaking?

go visit a ENT so he can examine your throat for whether its an anatomic intrinsic problem or something temporary

Yes, a consultation with an ENT who is familiar with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a good thing for every obstructive apnea patient to have. But I would not rush to make an appointment until we have discussed some of the other issues.

Lastly, let us know how many teeth you have? Are they overcrowded? Are any of your teeth crooked? Have you ever had orthodontic braces? Have you had any teeth extracted? Do you have a recessed chin? A narrow jaw?

The only close to issues with speaking is I have a bit of a speech impediment from a malformity in my soft palit at birth (but was repired at the age of 5), but I can still be understood in fact I co-host a podcast on Wednesday nights if that helps XD
I have all but 4 of my teeth (they were removed because they were impacted) and I have an overbite but but never had brace. If I had a recessed chin or narrow jaw then no one has told me

I do think stuttering is a predisposing factor.

I don't stutter (like Quirrell from Harry Potter or something like that) it is more I have issues getting some sounds to come out right like ones similar "sh"

[Julie]

Hi - when I said we could help with Cpap, I meant in terms of adjusting to using it, recommending equipment, and answering any questions you might have about using it. As far as insurance, etc. goes, that's between you and them, but members do compare notes here and share experiences about it.

Your medical records should absolutely be available (from your doctor) for years - it would be illegal if they were not - six mos. is nothing. And many of us were diagnosed with mild apnea, but that doesn't mean we don't need Cpap or that we don't use it, plus apnea tends to get worse with age (over a long time though), and sometimes with weight gain.

You really should follow up on things because even a 'mild' diagnosis means you have some problem, and it's important that you be treated... where is your doctor in all of this - why hasn't he/she given you a prescription to get a machine and mask?