Your family will probably notice your sleep issue before you do.
If your family is worried, you should be.
If you live alone, you may not be aware that you stop breathing while you sleep.
Do you feel tired all the time?
Do you fall asleep easily during the day?
Sleep apnea victims often fall asleep while standing up or driving.
To avoid serious injury or death, time is of the essence.
Beyond these obvious signs of sleep apnea, the condition may go unnoticed and untreated.
Over the 10 years that I spent advocating for patients that I suspected had sleep apnea, the length of time that it took for those patients to schedule a sleep study, and to get those results read by a doctor shocked and alarmed me.
Often patients have to schedule a second sleep study after the first one shows they have DANGEROUS sleep apnea just to evaluate which equipment would treat the condition best! MONTHS go by before ANY treatment is provided on a routine basis.
WHY are patients waiting for many months to a year for treatment of dangerous sleep apnea!
The only thing that makes this care cost effective is if the patient dies in their sleep before they accumulate too very many medical bills!
What is the motivation to ignore a potentially fatal illness?
Ignorance keeps many of these people from having any type of evaluation for MANY years before their doctor finally starts asking questions. More often than not, the doctor asking the questions is an emergency or critical care doctor wondering why you fell asleep in the middle of your day.
Caregivers in rural areas are more likely to miss sleep apnea just because they don’t see it very often.
BUT, many times patients are SENT HOME without sleep apnea equipment EVEN WHEN sleep apnea has been documented DURING their hospitalization!
WHY?!
What’s WRONG with this picture?
Come on now! Why is this issue not causing more alarm?
You can’t put all the blame on overwhelmed physicians. I think we should hold the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology accountable as well.
A joint statement from the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology called for large-scale studies to determine the mechanism for the link between sleep apnea, and the increased risk for dying from cardiovascular disease.
Come on now. They acknowledge that “de-saturation of blood oxygen levels is a stressor”.
Talk about an understatement!
Dangerously low blood oxygen levels are extremely harmful and potentially fatal!
Every time you stop breathing your oxygen level falls and your carbon dioxide level climbs causing a very harmful shift in your acid/base balance.
Sleep apnea effectively fries your body with acidity. (Check out the ruler, your pH drops when you stop breathing!)
Why would they advise further research instead of treating the extremely dangerous condition that has already been identified?
DO SOMETHING to get the help you need TODAY.
Why is the American Heart Association choosing to fund further research instead of spending those dollars on solutions for the individual?
After all, the lead researcher, Terry Young, PhD, professor of epidemiology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison said,
“In epidemiology you rarely get such strong, robust findings. This strong association between sleep apnea and increased risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular risk was striking.”
Enough endless spending on research. Finances and Science are only valuable resources when put to good use.
The Obesity Epidemic Will Make Sleep Apnea
MORE Prevalent in the Near Future.
Weight gain is also a side effect of sleep apnea.
The time to evaluate and act is NOW!
Your life is in danger every time you sleep!
Have this discussion with your doctor!
Lose Weight and Utilize Home Oxygen
Many blessings,
Carrie Tucker, RCP
The Life Breath Coach
Heart Failure Solutions
PS– Remember everyday:
- Relax and Release tension
- Exhale Slowly
- Be active in a way that adds Joy to your life
Plus pure water ~whole foods~sunshine~and laughter
Glad to hear you are using it nightly. Drs. can definitely be frustrating, just remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease! Try to explain what it is that scares you when you wake at night, and ask if there isn’t another setting you might experiment with to see if it solves your issue. I have learned that being vague and allowing them to be the hero, is the best way to get your Dr. to “save the day”. Most seem to love being the hero. Let it be his/her idea and you might get some where. Hate to sound cynical, but hey whatever works!
Take care, and many blessings,
Carrie
I use it every night without fail. The only problem is that I wake up and there’s no pressurized air sometimes, which scares the hell out of me. I have a respironics auto biflex machine, so I don’t understand why the dr. won’t prescribe it to be on automatic. Drs. can be so frustrating at times. I was tested for COPD and thank god I don’t have that. I also use inhalers as I have chronic bronchial asthma.
Hello Linda,
Thank God you got help! CPAP is used to keep the airway open. BIPAP is used when the problem is more than just your airway. You actually need your sleep apnea machine to breathe for you, when you don’t.
I’m sure your doctor explained this to you. I review it here, as a reminder that the equipment is critically important. Many patients tire of using the equipment, and of course it doesn’t help if you don’t use it!
Be well,
Many blessings,
Carrie
I have sleep apnea and apparently have had it for years and years and didn’t know it. An off handed comment to my dr. led me to sleep studies and first a CPAP machine and now a BIPAP machine. My oxygen levels are much better. In January, I developed pnuemonia and my oxygen levels were so low, I didn’t know what time of day it was or where I was. Very scary to saw the least. That was the beginning of a 5 month oxygen use. I’ve read millions have signs of sleep apnea and many realize but do nothing about it. Most people don’t realize how important oxygen is. I am so grateful to the dr. that put me on the right track. There is much information on this site that is very helpful. Thank you, Carrie.