Severe Sleep Apnea

I had my first sleep study a few weeks ago and just got a phone call back today.  The Dr. said I have severe Sleep Apnea, with a score of 50...not sure what the ranges are or what that means.

Anyway he said I needed a CPAP and I am scheduled to go back on the 12th.  Does insurance usually pick this up?  I have UHC and am scheduled to have the Lap Band on the 31st.  Do you have to buy the machine or do they give you one at the Sleep Center to take home???

This is all new to me, but I shoud have known, I have been really sleepy for the past 15 years!!! From my lightest weight (130ish to now, and hopefully back again soon...always tired),,,,

PS:  How loud is the machine, and how long did it take you to get used to sleeping with it?  Can you sleep on your stomach with it????

Hi I to have severe sleep apnea 126.2 episodes an hour.  Anything over 30 is severe. And what it means is you "stopped" breathing 50 times an hour for at least 10 seconds.

I have UHC and they paid 100% for the CPAP and Mask. I guess it depends on your plan. The second sleep study is to see what your machine pressure needs to be set at to keep your airway from closing off while you sleep. Then the DR will call in an RX to a pharmacy that does DME equipment. Some policies I have heard rent the machine instead of buying them. I fortunately have a very good plan where they just paid out right for it. You would have to check your policy to see what they cover for DME equipment or the pharmacy will tell you.

As for the machine mine is silent. My husband doesn't hear it unless my mask shifts during sleep and air leaks, but that usually wakes me up too and I just adjust it. Some nights it is easier to sleep with then others. I am a mouth breather so have a full face mask. Some times I struggle to get comfortable with it and sometime have no trouble at all. It really depends how tired I am. People have suggested watching TV with it on while in bed and you will "forget" its on. I have slept comfortably on my sides almost on my stomach, but I don't think i could be fully on my stomach. Again not with the full mask. If your lucky and only have to have the nasal mask then you may be able to.

Good luck it is a love hate relationship with the CPAP

I would suggest renting since the surgery should take care of it as the weight comes off.

My health insurance paid for it after the medical provider called me after one month's usage to see if I was compliant in using the CPAP at least 4 hours a night.

Remember that as you lose weight you will need to being rechecked to see if your settings need to be changed or stopped. In my situation, after losing 80 pounds, I hoped I would be cut loose. It turned out that I had the pressure increased! ) Lucky me!

I use nasal pillows and I still had a rough time adjusting to using the CPAP. Now I can't really sleep well without it.

Diana

PS. Pugs should be issued CPAPs at birth!

I was just thinking last night about my pug needing a cpap machine....how funny.  Poor little babies. 

Your insurance should cover the costs but I did not have insurance when I was first diagnosed.  Since it is a life threatening issue they normally will sell the equipment at a reduced rate (mine was 10% over cos) and I made payments.

I would not bank/bet on wl surgery fixing your sleep apnea.  Three people in my family have sleep apnea and two of them are not obese, one is a normal weight.  You can rent the machine but in the long run I would talk to your surgeon and ask if the surgery will get rid of the problem.

Good luck and feel free to ask me if you have any questions,

-Jaime

Thanks Jamie.  I am about 99% sure that surgery is not going to "cure" my apnea.  I think I have had it since I was around 20 years old.  I was only 130 pounds then, but I have been verrrryyyyy tired since then and I have gained 70 pounds.  So I think it is something I will have to deal with for quite a while....

I have been diagnosed with sleep apnea and hypersomnia.  Although I use a CPAP machine, lately I found myself dozing at my desk several.  I said something to my doctor and he had me try a drug called "Provigil".  It comes in 200 mg but it's scored and I only take half.  It really helps me feel more awake and alive, although it's nothing like a too-much-caffine feeling.  You just don't feel tired.  You feel better.

 I'm not sure if anyone is interested, but I make covers for the head strap and tubing to get rid of some of the ugly!  You can check out some samples at www.dressupsbybrenda.net if you think you'd like to dressup that ugly machine a little bit!

I suggest you get an autopap machine if you are going to lose weight. It has a built in algorithm that senses apneic episodes and adjusts the pressure automatically.

I also use the Provigil and it works very well with no side effects that I can tell.  It is very expensive though and some insurance policies don't cover it.