HELP! Please chime if your sleep apnea took a while to resolve

I'd like to hear from other people whose sleep apnea took a while after WLS to go away.

My situation
I already knew I had sleep apnea before looking into WLS, and I used a CPAP successfully and had gotten used to sleeping in reasonable comfort with the machine in use. Continued to use the CPAP in the hospital, and for a week or so post-op.

Then, one night, I was having a lot of trouble sleeping (this is not normal for me). My pouch was filled w/air and it was very uncomfortable. I turned off my machin and it took a loooong time to fall back to sleep. After that I stopped using the CPAP because I knew I couldn't handle that kind of pain and discomfort every night.

The respiratory therapist at the sleep center suggested I do an "at home" experiment with an automatic CPAP that adjusts the pressure based on what your body needs. My PCP wrote the prescription, (he agreed that it was too soon for me to return to the sleep lab for an overnight study at their facility) but I hadn't done the at-home study because I felt fine when I woke up in the morning (and also, in retrospect, because I felt that my sleep apnea seemed better--and if it wasn't better, I kinda think I didn't exactly want to have to confront that maybe it wasn't better).

That is, until a few weeks ago. I've been waking up with headaches--a telltale sign that maybe my apnea wasn't all better.

So, I decided to do that at-home study with the adjustable machine. Picked it up today--I will use it for a week.  Once I return the machine they will be able to see what my pressure needs to be based on averages, and they will adjust my machine.

SO, PLEASE chime in if you have found your sleep apnea didn't go away right away.

TIA,

Sab

Hi!   I havn't had WLS yet, still waiting to see if i can get insurance approval. But from what I've 'heard' from lurking around other boards is that it can take quite awhile before sleep apnea goes away/gets better. I would definantly do the at home study, it sounds like your apnea has gotten better since surgery and your pressure doesn't need to be so high. If it turns out your pressure needs to be reduced, you'll know its getting better and you're on your way to be apnea free!

I had some questions of my own, if you don't mind? I was diagnosed fairly recently, and due to anxiety the mask gave me have only been using my cpap regularly for the past month or so. So far I havn't noticed any changes (morning headaches still present, still VERY tired, needing naps during the day, ect.) I was wondering how long it was before you started feeling better on your machine? I kinda thought it would be helping by now. I'm on a pretty high pressure, too. (18.5!) I have to keep the mask really tight in order to keep it on right.  

Thank you, and good luck!!!

-Heather S.

Hi there Heather! Thanksfor letting me know about what others have said about their apnea post-op resolution. I don't mind one bit that you have questions of your own--that's what a message board is for!

I was wondering how long it was before you started feeling better on your machine?
I pretty much started to feel better once I got accustomed to the sleeping with the CPAP--the first several weeks of using it was really an adjustment and I didn't get to sleep as quickly as I normally would during that time...but as I got more and more used to the machine, I noticed that I felt better in the mornings.

FWIW--last night was the first night I used the auto-CPAP that is measuring my varying pressure, and it was the first time in about 4 months that I used a CPAP. I woke up this morning and I wasn't wearing the mask--I guess I took it off in the middle of the night without remembering.

What I do know is that I felt much better upon waking this morning than I have for the past several days. I am not exactly feeling energetic this morning (it's not yet 8 am here on the West Coast and I haven't even had breakfast yet--but need to have it soon) but I don't have a nagging headache like I did in the ole nasty headache like had yesterday.

Good luck w/getting approved. Honestly, with your apnea pressure as high as it is, it is hard for me to imagine how they would deny you. Sleep apnea is a co-morbidity and the insurance companies know that.

You would think it would be no problem getting approved. Besides sleep apena I have high blood pressure, asthma, edema in my legs & feet, a BMI of over 70, arthritis in my knees, and severe low back pain when I walk. And I'm only 29. :-(  But I have Oregon Health Plan (OHP) insurance, they've only recently started allowing the surgery. The only way they allow it is if you are diabetic, which is the ONLY thing I DON'T have (or so it seems). I'm trying to fight it, but I have to get an official denial first, and they are taking their sweet time about it.  In the mean time, I just started Atkins, trying to get a jump on my doctor supervised diet program that I'm sure they'll require, just in case I can actually get the surgery. I've thought about going down to Mexico to have it (much cheaper out of the states!) but don't know if I can afford it without insurance.

Anyway, I'm glad you're feeling better this morning, sounds like it did a lot of good, even if it didn't stay on all night.
Take care!

-Heather S.

Wow--your insurance company sounds very, uh, "enlightened". All the things you've listed are classic co-morbids

So sorry you're going through all of this--but it will get better, I promise. OH has been a really great place for me--a few bad apples and a few weird ones, no doubt, but in general it's a very supportive community.

Hang in there kiddo!

Hugs,

Sab

Thanks Sab! I love this place. Its great to talk to people who are actually going through or have gone through the same stuff you have. I try to talk to my family about my struggles/issues and they have no clue. (all have been skinny their whole life. darn skinny people anyhow! ;-)  


-Heather S.

I noticed that I was very "dry" each morning.  I went back for a sleep study after 3 months and my setting was lowered.  I am currently 6 months out, still use the CPAP and hven't been having any problems.  Hopefully, I'll be able to drop it soon.

I never took to using the CPAP machine, but I did suffer.  My husband would freak out in the middle of the night listening to me.

Now, about a month out, he freaks out because I sleep so quietly.  He wakes me up now just to make sure I am still alive.  From one extreme to the other. 

So to answer your question, I lost about 10% of my body weight and I stopped having the episodes.  

I was first diagnosed with sleep apnea about 25 years ago, and had my VBG about 17 years ago.  I have found, over the years, that my sleep apnea has never gone away, but has gone into remission for a time.  But, then, I've never been able to lose much weight, and what I do lose always comes back.  And I've never been able to tolerate wearing either a CPAP or a BiPAP machine.  But I have found other things that have helped me along the way.

When I first had my surgery, after I lost about 40 pounds my sleep apnea subsided to where I didn't have apneic episodes.  But it didn't go totally away, according to sleep studies.  Now, who's to say what might have happened had I been able to lose more weight.

I've tried a number of different masks over the years, and different machines.  But I am so claustrophobic that I can't even tolerate wearing a seat belt when I drive.  During my last three sleep studies, I've had to be heavily sedated to even allow them to get me hooked up, which makes me question the validity of the testing.  I tend to go more on subjective evidence to know when I'm having more trouble.  I snore more, I feel less rested during the day, and have sleepy spells.  I used to sleep with my head elevated, with a foam wedge, but nowadays I find that what works best for me is to keep my neck straight, sleeping on my side with two pillows so that my head doesn't drop down below my shoulders.  I keep to a routine at bedtime, and have identified which foods negatively affect my sleep pattern.  And, of course, keep trying to lose weight.

I've been on the CPAP for about 7 years now and am 6 months post op RNY. I've lost 60 pounds (I'm at 153) and I still need the stinkin' Cpap. I tried to nap today without it and kept waking myself up snoring. *sigh*. I was so excited with the thought of losing a bunch of weight and getting rid of the machine. I too am wondering if I'll every get rid of sleep apnea. Or if the lungs and muscles get used to having the air pumped into you.