Sleep Apnea

patrickredeyes
patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
edited September 2009 in All Encompassing Trip
My father has this and at times it is the most disturbing thing to watch and listen too. Today we had to head to the ER due to my father falling out of bed this morning. He has a hair line crack in his shoulder and is bruised up pretty bad. While at the ER myself and mother and my sister watched as my father slept in the bed. I just hate seeing him thrash around and talk in his sleep. As usual I worry about it. We found out due to his condition and with all the other meds hes on there is nothing we can do about it. Even after loosing 60, 70 lbs he still has it. So who also has it and has it ever made you thrash so much that you have fallen out of bed?
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  • chiquimonkey
    chiquimonkey Posts: 9,337
    never have experienced it, but just wanted to wish your dad well and hope he recoops from the fall quickly!
  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    chiquimonkey wrote:
    never have experienced it, but just wanted to wish your dad well and hope he recoops from the fall quickly!


    Thanks so much.

    I'd like to think he is getting better but I have come to realize that in a very slow way his health is just getting worse and worse. He actually fell three times in about 36 hrs this weekend. Once Saturday morning thank god nothing went wrong. Then Sunday afternoon he was outside and decided to come in when the rain started. He lost his balance and fell backwords. Scary part was he was inches away from hitting his head on a huge computer monitor I had just put out on the deck to be thrown out. If that would have happened I would have never forgiven myself. He was shaken up but ok and then this morning happened. Also I am now at bad terms with my one sister. She said some really bad stuff that I would have rather had a complete stranger say to me then my own sister. She is just always had issues with my other sister and her family. Well she went off on me. So when we went to the ER we didn't call and tell her until we were home. I'm venting but these last few days were really bad. Leaving for Denver is on my mind now. But I have to go cause I need to and just to get well inside and out. But it's just fucking hard to deal with.
  • chiquimonkey
    chiquimonkey Posts: 9,337
    patrickredeyes wrote:
    chiquimonkey wrote:
    never have experienced it, but just wanted to wish your dad well and hope he recoops from the fall quickly!


    Thanks so much.

    I'd like to think he is getting better but I have come to realize that in a very slow way his health is just getting worse and worse. He actually fell three times in about 36 hrs this weekend. Once Saturday morning thank god nothing went wrong. Then Sunday afternoon he was outside and decided to come in when the rain started. He lost his balance and fell backwords. Scary part was he was inches away from hitting his head on a huge computer monitor I had just put out on the deck to be thrown out. If that would have happened I would have never forgiven myself. He was shaken up but ok and then this morning happened. Also I am now at bad terms with my one sister. She said some really bad stuff that I would have rather had a complete stranger say to me then my own sister. She is just always had issues with my other sister and her family. Well she went off on me. So when we went to the ER we didn't call and tell her until we were home. I'm venting but these last few days were really bad. Leaving for Denver is on my mind now. But I have to go cause I need to and just to get well inside and out. But it's just fucking hard to deal with.
    i'm sorry you have to deal with all this :( and having differences within the family just makes it worse. people deal with stuff in different ways, and sometimes not in the best way. hopefully she'll come to her senses and realize what she said was wrong.

    all you can do is just care for your dad and yourself. the healthier you are, the better equipped you'll be to be there for him too. take care!
  • blackredyellow
    blackredyellow Posts: 5,889
    I never knew that it could cause you to thrash around... My dad has it (pretty bad I guess), but he never has movement like that. His heart was actually somewhat damaged by it, because he stopped breathing so much while sleeping that his heart was not getting enough oxygen and then going out of rhythm. With a breathing machine that he wears to sleep and medication, he is doing great. He said he feels like he's 10 years younger.
    My whole life
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  • _
    _ Posts: 6,657
    My grandmother had it. It caused her to be tired a lot. But she slept on one of those giant wedge pillows, and I think that helped some. I'm pretty sure what helped her the most was the breathing mask/machine she wore at night.

    I'll send all my good vibes to your father, you, and your family!
  • Prince Of Dorkness
    Prince Of Dorkness Posts: 3,763
    My husband has it. oddly enough I think our Boston terrier has it too.

    Needless to say I don't get much sleep either.
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  • Travelar
    Travelar Posts: 3,445
    A friend of mine has it and he wears this mask that forces air into his lungs. He says he sleeps a million times better since he got the mask.
  • Indifference71
    Indifference71 Chicago Posts: 14,924
    I'm pretty sure one of my roommates might have it. He's in really bad shape(prob 60-70 lbs. overweight) and the sounds that come from his bedroom while he is sleeping are disturbing. It sounds like there is some sort of animal in his room. I've also noticed that you could be talking to him and then not even 5-10 seconds later, he is snoring like crazy. Is that one of the symptoms of sleep apnea?

    I feel like I should talk to him about it because he really needs to start taking care of himself, but its kinda an awkward thing to bring up. But it sounds like even if you do knock off the weight, you could still be suffering from sleep apnea.
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    pat...sorry to hear about your father...i'm sure it's not a pretty sight seeing/hearing all that...

    i have this, and although i'm trying to take steps to loose the weight i need, i am also getting the surgery to loose the tonsils and correct the septum. been a long time coming. i'm hoping the snoring subsides. i don't thrash around like your father does, in fact i'm quite the opposite. nonetheless, good luck with it.
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  • mindi
    mindi Posts: 1,862
    Has he ever been to one of those sleep clinics to see if they can help?
    Also would a sleep aid like Ambien help him sleep better or would that just cause more problems?

    I hope you guys can figure something out soon :(
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  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    mindi wrote:
    Has he ever been to one of those sleep clinics to see if they can help?
    Also would a sleep aid like Ambien help him sleep better or would that just cause more problems?

    I hope you guys can figure something out soon :(


    Well I just found out 5 mins ago they are admitting him to the hospital again. They are gonna do a CAT/MRI scan of his brain and do a sleep test. One thing that was brought up today was maybe he didn't loose his balance when he fell but maybe he fell asleep. Just fucking scary shit.

    Mindi my dad is on about a dozen different meds so I don't know about the sleep aid. We had thought about it but now at least were gonna see and hope find out what is going wrong. He had been home for 6 weeks now and for the past 2 or 3 weeks his sleep apnea has got worse. To the point where you can be talking to him and he falls asleep on you. Myself and mother and sister are just at a loss of words now.
  • pretext
    pretext Posts: 1,294
    mindi wrote:
    Has he ever been to one of those sleep clinics to see if they can help?
    Also would a sleep aid like Ambien help him sleep better or would that just cause more problems?

    I hope you guys can figure something out soon :(

    Really sorry to the OP. I hope you and your family find some relief, and soon.

    Sleep aids don't help much because they don't address the airway closing off - which is what leads to stopping breathing, and thus never getting into a normal sleep cycle.

    I was diagnosed with a mild form of it a few months ago. I also did the sleep test with the mask another poster referred to. God bless anyone who can sleep with that thing on. I felt like I was tied down to my bed. Pretty much my options were: 1. The mask (CPAP). 2. Surgery - my ENT wants it as a very last resort. 3. This retainer type thing that pushes your jaw forward to keep the airway open - costs thousands, little covered by insurance. 4. Weight loss. This is the way I've gone so far. I rejoined the gym and am there at least 5 days a week. But even losing weight is tough because I take an incredibly weight-gaining medication. It's probably added 40lbs to my normal weight over the last 5 years. Said medication also can cause nightmares/vivid dreams - which is my main sleep symptom (aside from exhaustion). But I've also been stable on it for awhile. So my other doctor and I are trying to get off the medication. I'm really hoping I can do that, but it's hard to say.

    The one thing I've found that helps: laying down and resting (awake) for a couple hours before or after sleep. Unfortunately, I have this work thing that gets in the way a lot. ;)
  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    UPDATE: Well my dad was admitted last nite to the hospital again. Doing a 2nd MRI of his brain and going to be doing a sleep test on him also. He is also having intense PT done on him too. I hope he is able to handle this all. No idea on how long he will be in the hospital , not too long I hope. All he kept telling me yesterday was he wants to go home.
  • dawng
    dawng Posts: 644
    patrickredeyes wrote:
    UPDATE: Well my dad was admitted last nite to the hospital again. Doing a 2nd MRI of his brain and going to be doing a sleep test on him also. He is also having intense PT done on him too. I hope he is able to handle this all. No idea on how long he will be in the hospital , not too long I hope. All he kept telling me yesterday was he wants to go home.

    I hope your dad is able to come home soon, and that they figure out what is wrong. Will be keeping your family in my thoughts.
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  • OneTooFree
    OneTooFree Posts: 265
    my friend Jon was diagnosed with sleep apnea about 6-8 months ago. he was always tired & irritable and would never sleep for more than 2-3 hours at a time maximum. he went to a sleep clinic where he was told about the apnea, and they gave him a machine that helps regulate his breathing as he sleeps now. it's like he's an entirely new person now. he has energy, he goes out, he laughs a lot more... it's so nice to see him actually want to be part of our group of friends

    very sorry to hear about your father. i hope things start getting better for him
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    mindi wrote:
    Has he ever been to one of those sleep clinics to see if they can help? (

    did this 2 months ago. not fun. wires glued to me everywhere, and they woke me up in the middle of the night to put on the mask and hook me up to the aforementioned machine.

    my choice was to sleep with this machine for the rest of my life to prevent the apnea, or try surgery....i chose the knife.
    I love to turn you on
  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    Well he is gonna have the sleep test done 2morrow nite. I wish that was the only news but we also got word that his brain needs to be scanned again. His speech has become worse and his eye and hand coordination is off. Just one thing after another. :(

    Also today my older sister and I became Power of Attorney with our father's health care decisions if he is incapacitated later on down the road. Our mother will have imput of course but we have the final say. My other sister can also have imput but that's all. I'm sure once she finds out she will be pist. But it was our mother's choice and IMO the right decision. Were not on the best of terms with out other sister and feel she would only cause more stress like she always does.
  • Earthgirl
    Earthgirl Posts: 695
    I have sleep apnea, I had a sleep study done and found out I stopped breathing 8-10 times an hour.. so now I sleep with a mouth guard that pulls my jaw forward to open up my airway. I didnt even know I had it, a friend of mine said she freaked out one night because i was turning blue and not breathing in my sleep.. i bet she saved my life, because I would never have known.. except for ajedicgecko calling me jake break LOL in Colorado. Now I sleep much better at night and I dont snore.. :)
  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    Earthgirl wrote:
    I have sleep apnea, I had a sleep study done and found out I stopped breathing 8-10 times an hour.. so now I sleep with a mouth guard that pulls my jaw forward to open up my airway. I didnt even know I had it, a friend of mine said she freaked out one night because i was turning blue and not breathing in my sleep.. i bet she saved my life, because I would never have known.. except for ajedicgecko calling me jake break LOL in Colorado. Now I sleep much better at night and I dont snore.. :)


    Scary stuff and i never heard of the mouth piece working. Glad it works for you and your sleeping better. :)

    My dad had his sleep test last nite and has a total of 900 pages of data from it.
  • South of Seattle
    South of Seattle West Seattle Posts: 10,724
    I get to meet with my doctor about this on Wednseday! Yay! :?
    NERDS!

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