sleep apnea

I sleep with a CPAP and really want to get rid of it. Any success stories out there?

I was able to stop useing my CPAP about a month after my(Bypass) surgery! I am almost 5 years out doing great with no more sleep apnea! I feel rested every morning now! Merrilou

Great news. I have hope now. I take a sleeping pill at night so I don't hear anything but apparently I snore pretty good. Took the sleep test and they said my score wasn't quite high enough for my insurance to pay for the cpap machine. Soon I won't need it so they can put that in their pipe and smoke it. HAAAA Good for you!!!! Debbie

Merrilou - That's great news! I feel like I'm so dependent on that machine -- I can't wait to be able to sleep comfortably without being strapped to it!

Amy, I had mild sleep apnea before surgery but I never used a CPAP...my surgeon required that I have one for right after surgery but that's the only time I ever used it. So I don't know if I am doing better now or not. But the sleep apnea is definitely one of the problems that is one of the most commonly listed problems that is resolved after surgery. So I think a lot of people are able to quit using them after surgery. Corinna Q

Yes sleep apnea is definatly aggravated by excess weight. It puts pressure on the diaphram. However with some people, they are genetically predisposed to it because of the way their throat is formed. Most people dont' have it after losing the weight and others have a milder form of it after. There are plenty of people out there that are slim and have it. It is just not as bad as overweight people. Cathy

I was 280 before surgery, am now down to 220.  Had severe apnea (woke up about every 30 seconds in my sleep test!)  and kept waking up at night feeling like I was drowning because of the force of the air, I couldn't exhale.  I stopped using the CPAP and am fine now. Mike