The Dreaming of Beauty Sleep

I didn’t even know what sleep apnea was let alone suspect that I might have it. It’s true I was always exhausted upon waking and had a hard time believing most mornings that I had even slept at all. Dark circles under my eyes were now a daily issue as well as the constant struggle of nodding off and on throughout the day.

My name is Kristie. I am a mom of 2 grown sons, a grandma of 5 wonderful grandkids, married for 40 yrs to my high school sweetheart and I’m a voracious reader, crocheter, and knitter. It was about 20 yrs ago that I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and simultaneously sleep apnea.

My neurologist said it is fairly common for MS patients to have sleep apnea. I experience constant fatigue, with restless legs and spastic body movements during sleep so that I often wake feeling hungover and unrested. My doctor thought that testing for sleep apnea could only help me to navigate and manage all of my symptoms. So I was scheduled for a sleep study at one of our local hospitals.

My sleep study experience

I arrived at the sleep lab at 9:00 PM. It resembled a cozy hotel room with ambient lighting and a comfy-looking bed beneath a plush quilted comforter. I wondered if I could sneak it out with me somehow when the testing was over. I changed into some new pajamas I had just bought for the occasion, silly I know, but I got a compliment from Shirley the Sleep Tech. So many electrodes and wires were then booger-glued to my head, into my hair and scalp, my chest, my back, my legs and a video camera started to roll (creepy, I know) and then I was told to go to sleep. HA!

Halfway through the night Shirley popped in, turned on all the lights and proceeded to fit me with a CPAP mask, turned on the air, and told me to go back to sleep. HAHA!

At first, I felt very uncomfortable, almost like I was drowning and gulping for air. But once I relaxed and started breathing more steadily I was able to drift off again. Morning came so quickly! I felt so refreshed, no sleep-induced hangover!

Benefits of using a CPAP

I’ve used my CPAP for 20+ years now. I’m on my third machine upgrade since my diagnosis and I can’t imagine trying to sleep without it, even for naps. No more snoring, no more sore throats from sleeping with my mouth open, no headaches or sleep hangovers, less breath-holding, less restlessness altogether. I don’t wake up every day as refreshed as the first time with a CPAP, I continue to struggle with symptoms caused by having MS, but I know that without my CPAP I would feel a whole lot worse.

Final words, here are a couple of good “side effects” from using a CPAP machine:

• I live in Colorado where we have pretty dry weather. The humidifier attachment to the CPAP machine adds some much needed humidity for nighttime breathing.
• Because of the air passing through the machine tubing can bring outside aromas into your nose, you will experience some good and bad smells. We don’t need to mention the bad ones, however, I will share my two most favorite good aromas that lingered in my machine and tubing - Freshly brewed coffee and fried bacon, and the salty floral sweetness of the air from our Hawaiian vacation. I smelled Hawaii for a whole week after returning home, every time I turned on the machine. It was sad when I could no longer smell it.

What was your sleep study like? Share your experience with others below.