NEWBIE HERE FROM KITCHENER!

Hello Everyone, I am brand new on here. I am trying to figure out how the board work, any tips would be appreciated. I think this is an amazing way to share information and learn. 

I attended the orientation at Guelph  hospital yesterday. It was very hard walking in there of the first time. However everyone seemed very nice and it was quite informative! This afternoon I made  the appointments to meet the nurse on June 3rd and the dietician  &  the Social Worker on June 16th! I am excited , scared , worried and happy all at the same time. I have got most of my tests done that are required....sleep study on May 03 and getting the abdominal ultra sound done on Monday to peek at the liver as well I will be getting all the blood work done.  

Not sure if any of the folks that were at the orientation yesterday ( April 24 from 4-6 at Guelph General) will find there way to this board or not. BUT if you do, please connect with me. I think it would be helpful to have a buddy to go through this process with.

Take are and I wish you all a great week end.

Hi,

I am new to this too.  I am still waiting for my referral to be processed.  Do you know, does everyone do a sleep study and what does it involve?  I have seen it mentions a lot, but I have no idea what is it.

Thanks.

Hi , the Guelph clinic sent a package with the orientation invitation and there was this small questionnaire  called the STOP BANG....and if you answered more than 3 of the questions they want you to have the sleep study. Also at the meeting yesterday they mentioned anyone with a BMI of 50 or more would need one.  My BMI is not 50 but I answered yes to more than 3 of the questions on the  STOP BANG.

Your doctor would need to make a referral to a sleep disorder clinic for you. I am going May 03 at 7:45 at night....apparently they hook you up to monitors and observe you as you sleep....the report would tell if you have sleep apnea or any other major sleep disorder.

I am a little nervous as I am wondering how will I sleep knowing people are watching me lol...I will let you know how it goes :)

Thanks.  I agree, I think that would be difficult to have a "normal" sleep will being observed or monitored.  Good luck.

I just had my sleep study 3 weeks ago, it was not as bad as i thought.  They will hook you up to a lot of wires and you will be put into a room they do watch you.  I had a very hard time going to sleep there were 6 other patients having their study done & i could hear them all talking in the hall as they were getting hooked up and set up in their own rooms.  But eventually i must have fallen asleep.  I think what is most important is they want to make sure you do not have any sleeping disorders before you get put under for surgery.  Most people will discover the reason they sleep so horrible is because they have sleep apnea that was never diagnosed.  I was told that if they noticed i stopped breathing they would come into the room and wake me up and put the cpap machine and allow me to fall back asleep and they would continue to monitor me.  I did not have anyone come into the room and wake me so i'm going to assume i do not have sleep apnea.  I'm waiting to hear back but really interested in what they found.  I am pretty sure i might have restless legs i move all night long and the technician said she had to come into the room because i had dropped the box that all my wires were connected to from moving so much in the bed. (oops LOL) I usually wake up feeling horrible most days but that could just be related to my weight and other medical issues.  Good luck with your sleep study i'm sure you'll be able to sleep even if its just for 1 or 2 hours they need data to study i found what helped me was i went in very tired that way i knew i had no choice but to fall asleep because i was exhausted.

Thanks for the information. I am just scared they are going to hear me snore lol...stupid things we worry about. Can we wear our own PJ's?  I need to be there at 7:30PM.....do I have to go to sleep then?  LOL....of all the tests I am having WHY does this one make me so anxious?

Yes wear your own PJ's and make sure they're tops and bottoms, you'll have a lot of wires. You don't have to sleep then, as I recall they "put me to bed" at around 10. Takes a while to get you all hooked up and you won't be the only client there. Not to worry, you have your own room.

I was a little anxious about the sleep study too - I think it was because I knew they'd have a camera on me and I'd be asleep and not aware of what they may be doing. lol Silly really, it was nothing. You'll do just fine. :)

ya you can wear your own pj's make sure the bottoms are comfy and baggy because they do have wires on your legs to see if you have restless legs.  I was set to be there for 9:30 i was told i could go read if i wanted for a bit.  They asked my normal bed time and since i usually fall asleep between 9 - 11 i just opted to go into the room and try and fall asleep on my own.  if i had known there was going to be 6 other people i probably would have scheduled a later time to come in since i was the first to get hooked up and put into my room.  I was worried about them hearing me snore and to be honest i have no clue if i snored or not LOL.  I know when i got home i layed on the couch and snored my face off or so i was told LOL.  The main thing is there is nothing to worry about i found the room to be really warm if they offer to turn a fan on do it because i was almost stripping in bed

lol thanks for the info about PJ's and it is reassuring to know I am not the only one who worries about silly things....but really someone watching you while you sleep is kind of creepy!

Welcome!  It sounds like you're well on your way to surgery - wonderful. Ask lots of questions and join in any conversation that interests you.

Karen :)