I was just diagnosed today with moderate to severe sleep apnea. The figures the doctor gave me made me feel that I lean toward the moderate side. I do not have fibromialgia (sp.).

I was wondering if there was anyone out there that found that losing weight corrected the problem without going with a cpap. My husband says that just in the last 2 years I have started snoring heavily and in about that same amount of time I've noticed a lack of energy. I am not falling asleep during the day but find my energy levels are lower. I assumed that it was my weight causing me not to sleep well. I have about 110 pounds to lose.

I'm just interested in different views and whether some found that when they lost weight this problem went away, or would it be a good idea to lose some weight and have another study done again before deciding on going with the cpap right away.

Thoughts?
Guindalf

GUINDALF ~ I had a problem with snoring and fitfull sleep; but I think it got better after I lost some weight. I also now use two extra pillows to elevate my head, so that now I sleep better. I don't wake up as often as I used to. DH says that my snoring was getting quite bad there for awhile, but has lessoned quite a bit over time.

This is just my opinion, but losing any amount of weight seems to help us feel better in many respects; so it is very possible it will help. Some people have sleep apnea and don't really have a serious weight problem though; but that would be interesting to know for sure if there is any co-relation. I wonder if there have been any studies done on that: maybe if you GOOGLED 'Sleep Apnea', you might find some more indepth info on the issue.

Have you joined a group here yet? Do you have an eating plan in mind? Hope you come back as there are lots of great people and support here ...

ROSEBUD

They are saying now that the sleep apnea, undiagnosed for so many years, will cause obesity.

Do the CPAP. Ask for an AutoPap if they will give you one. Your life will improve so much that I can't even tell you.

Losing weight will almost always improve sleep apnea since the majority of cases are caused by obesity - HOWEVER, not all. I recomend you use your CPAP AND lose weight. Apnea puts a terrible strain on your system - your lungs and heart take a beating AND with lack of sleep comes poor food choices, problems making decisions and in some cases it can be VERY dangerous (ie falling asleep while driving). I had severe OSA - my sleep study showed 85 - 93 occurances per HOUR - that is more then one a minute. The CPAP saved my life - literally. It is hard to get used to - but once you are accustomed to it you look forward to going to bed because you know you'll get a good nights sleep. With my weight loss I am completely apnea free - YAHOO !!!! It is NOT something to mess with though.

Good Luck !!!!

^^That is what I am looking forward to!!! But yeah I resisted for awhile but really the AutoPap is my spouse, I love it & sleep with it every night. They have me on Provigil now too, which helps tremendously in the mornings.

Whoa!!! I just read that again!!! That is just wow...!!! I had 12 per hour on my back & 6 per hour on my stomach. And if you can come back from that & get off the machine, that gives me so much hope!!!

Was just diagnosed with hypopnea. Sleep study results indicate 24 episodes per hour while on my back and 3 episodes per hour while on my side.

Doctor is recommending a CPAP but I just don't know if I can do it. The portion of the sleep study when I was on a CPAP was just miserable and I was much more groggy and out of it the following day. SuchAPrettyFace, what is the difference between a CPAP and AutoPAP? And SuchAPrettyFace and witchyonadiet, how do you get used to sleeping while hooked up on something? If you sleep with a partner, how does it affect him/her? How do you travel? I can't see schlepping some machine through airport security ... What about camping?

Like Guindalf, I am exploring lifestyle changes to address this. For the past few nights, I've made a real effort to sleep on my side since the number of episodes on my side was significantly less. Of course I need to lose weight, but my understanding is that apnea/hypopnea related to weight is caused by excess fat around the neck, and I have a fairly slim neck considering my size. But if I can lose some weight and an inch or so, that might help. Am also considering elevating the head of the bed.

Am hoping some of the others here can share their thoughts and experiences. This is all so new to me; I thought my extreme fatigue was a wacked-out thyroid and I am still in some shock.

Thanks,

Even if it went away with weight loss, you have 110 pounds to lose. That's a long time to just live with the apnea.

I would go with the cpap immediately. Even moderate apnea stresses the heart. I stopped breating on average 90 times per hour, so every minute and a half. I was told that this was moderate, as there were many who have it much worse. I also don't ever enter the deepest stage of sleep (if your sleep study doesn't measure the stages of sleep, at your next one try to make sure that it does - some sleep study centers aren't able to, but if they are it's good to know).

At any rate. I do have autoimmune disease and fibromyalgia (which my neurologist believes is actually related to the sleep disorder, as not entering the deepest stage of sleep is known to cause pain, fatigue, cognitive issues and autoimmune disorders - rats deprived of sleep or deep sleep, die quickly of immune and autoimmune disfunction).

After I lost 30 lbs, the sleep apnea disappeared. My hubby could tell the difference in my snoring, and the last sleep study confirmed it. But, there's no way to know how much you will need to lose for the apnea to disappear (if it ever does, thin people can have it too).

The cpap makes such a huge difference in how you will feel, that I strongly encourage you not to wait. If your insurance offers you a rent or purchase option, you may want to rent at least for a while before deciding to buy. For our insurance renting was $8 a month, and comparing it to the buying option it would have taken the equivalent of 2 years of renting. Since I was only on the machine for a little over a year, the renting turned out to be the far better option.

It will take you a few days to be able to sleep over the sound, so if you're working try to start using it on a friday night (or your last workday for the week) so that you have a weekend to get used to it. Or even take a few days off if you can.

After you get used to it, it's actually hard to sleep without it. The whooshing sound becomes white noise that helps you fall asleep. When I was able to stop using the cpap, both my husband and I had trouble falling asleep because we heard every little noise in the house. For me, I liked the headgear with the "nose pillows" rather than the full mask, but you should have been able to try a few during your sleep study - or if you find that you don't care for one, the insurances are usually pretty good about paying for you to get something that does work for you.

Hi kaplods,

Thank you for your message. That is so amazing your apnea went away by losing just 30 pounds! And from 90 episodes per hour. Mine is much less and is hypopnea, which is defined as a 50% or more reduction in airflow associated with oxygen desaturation or arousal. Not as severe as apnea, but with similar effects on sleep quality and health.

According to the report of my sleep study, I do enter REM sleep. But I haven't yet spoken with my doctor and I am not sure how to interpret these numbers. So I don't know if the percentage of time I spent in REM is normal. I guess I should make an appointment so she can explain all of this to me!

Regarding the CPAP, maybe I am a little resistant because that part of my sleep study was so awful. But I suppose it takes adjusting. I worry that I'll have to rely on it forever. Also, the start up cost is a little steep, as is the monthly rental. My insurance covers only 50%, so the price estimate I received indicates I would spend about $340 for start-up and the first three months rental.

But you have given me much to think about and will certainly consider what you have written after I speak with my doctor and evaluate my options. Thank you so much, and congrats on your apnea disappearing and your weight loss!

I'm pretty sure I do enter REM (without REM, people die, and REM is dream sleep and I definitely do dream), so I'm not sure what the stage is called that I don't enter, or whether it's a subcategory of REM, or the stage you reach after REM (because I know REM is middle range sleep, not deep sleep).

The neurologist explained it, but it was a little over my head.

As to the CPAP, I'd probably have made a different decision if my insurance wasn't going to cover it, especially if the apnea had been less severe.

If you regularly use NSAIDs (prescription or over-the-counter ibuprofen, naproxen, relafen... even aspirin), especially if you have asthma, allergies, or sinus problems, you might consider (after talking to your doctor) whether they might be affecting the breathing difficulties. I accidentally found out that my relafen was causing all of my asthma and most of my allergy/sinus symptoms, and contributing to the apnea. I had no idea, as I had been on NSAIDS for a decade before I every had asthma symptoms - my doctor at the time and all doctors since never thought to consider the NSAIDs though it is well-known among doctors and pharmacists that NSAIDS can cause asthma symptoms and the sensitivity can occur many years after taking NSAIDS. Apparently it's common to just prescribe asthma medication, rather than suggest the patient try to do without the NSAIDS (I added fish oil supplements, one capsule twice a day, in place of the relafen, because they also have anti-inflamatory properties. Though they don't work as well, they do help).

I hope my weight loss will improve my sleep apnea, as I hate using my CPAP machine and am having the hardest time getting a small enough mask. I have had an open sore on the bridge of my nose for 2 months that would not heal until I loosend the strap which of course only makes for less suction. I no longer have any medical coverage so am not able to buy new supplies at the moment. I was also hoping that after being diagnosed that was the reason for me being an insomniac for 25 years and this would finally let me sleep again. Afraid not, I sleep just as badly now and much more uncomfortably to boot. Sleep apnea sucks !!!!