A while back I posted about going in for a sleep study. I recently went in for my follow up visit to get the results.
I was floored to hear that I was waking myself up almost 47 times per hour (46.9 to be exact), and would stop breathing altogether for up to 54 seconds at a time. I was getting a total of 27 minutes of restful sleep each night, which is about 6% of my total sleep. The normal person gets about 25% total sleep time in the restful stage. No wonder I often felt tired!
They talked about it being a combination of upper airway and lower airway problems, and recommended CPAP therapy. If it meant feeling better I was all for it. I realized that I may have been living at half-speed for many years now, and was anxious to get a taste of the good life.
Another day later I was sent home with a CPAP machine and accessories. I strapped it on that very same night. While it is weird sleeping with a contraption on your face, I felt a difference the very next day. It is getting better and better every night.
How does this relate to diabetes?
Everything is whacko when I am tired. I see this in a few key ways that affect my diabetes management efforts.
- When I’m tired I want to eat, eat, eat. Junk food in particular.
- When I’m tired I am much less resilient and am easily swayed to make unhealthy decisions.
- I am much less active when tired. Duh!
- My state of mind is distracted, depressed, and not diabetes focused.
And those are just some of the things that come to mind. In a nutshell, I’m a mess.
I’m glad to be sleeping better, and anxious to get my CPAP machine dialed in and calibrated for my needs (which calls for another sleep study next week).
Thank you to all that have offered information and support – I appreciate it!
Great news Scott, I think I have the same issues, as I snore bigtime and I am always tired.
Are ya gonna show pictures of you wearing this contraption?? 🙂
http://www.feelgoodstore.com/cgi-bin/feelgood/cate_id/welpilbod/prod/72529/item_detail_fg.html?keywords=&srcmode=&sortbyprice=
Scott, I would think you will feel like a totally different preson. One of my friends thought her fatigue was due to aging. She went camping and her tentmates said she was “breathing funny” during the night. Sure enough she had SA and now feels completely renewed (and looks it, too).
A co-worker swears by this pillow in the link above. (The price would make me swear).
YIKES!That is crazy! I bet you didn’t know the account I manage at work (and insurance claims I chase around) is for a CPAP, DME and sleep therapy provider! Sometimes I find myself reading the medical records of patients and think, “AHHH! I have sleep apnea, THATS why I am so tired all the time”….then I remember my Maddison situation, LOL…..I hear these success stories every day from my patients! I am so happy you are getting the sleep you need! Consider this starting over, anything is possible now!
That is so great, Scott! I’m so happy for you that the study helped and now you’ll finally be able to get some real sleep 🙂
Scott
Wow, that’s amazing. I hope the CPAP machine continues to work well for you. It sounds like you’ve a lot of lost sleep to catch up on.
I can’t get over how many times you were waking up every hour! No wonder so you were so tired.
Once you are dialed in and have used it for a couple of weeks, you are going to wonder what you ever did without it!
Scott, that is great news! What a relief to get some restful sleep. Bet your wife is happy too 🙂
Oh geesh! Poor you! Hopefully things get better soon 🙂
47 times in an hour! Holy crap that is crazy!!!
OMG dude, I am so glad this is getting dialed in so you can get some sleep. Crazy stats though.
Hey Scott –
Great to hear you are feeling better. I have noticed the same issues from being tired, in addition to my body just not reacting to carbs/insulin as I expect it to when I’m tired. Or more so when I’m tired, since reacting as I expect it to is of course not a very usual occurence : P
Of course, I’m usually tired from the darn diabetes keeping me up in the first place! Catch-22.
Good luck with your improved sleeping. Catch a few zzz’s for me!