No CPAP for Me

I had my follow-up appointment to get the results from my sleep study. The verdict: I don't have sleep apnea. Thank God! The overall impressions from my sleep study indicate that I had some spontaneous arousals from sleep that couldn't be linked to anything in particular. The sleep medicine doctor said they're probably just associated with my pregnancy....probably my frequent restroom breaks or attempts to find a comfortable sleeping position. I did have a few abnormal breathing incidents (8.9/hour), but they only occurred during REM sleep, which apparently isn't uncommon because this is the most relaxed state of sleep. The most important finding is that my oxygen level is not dropping to a dangerous level during the night. That was great news, both for me and for Zoe! My snoring was rated as "mild", which was a surprise because Trevor makes it seem as though he's sleeping with a lumberjack at night. LOL. In the end, there will be no CPAP for me. YAY!!! The doctor wants me to consider sleeping with a mouth guard to help with the snoring, but mainly to help with the limited breathing interruptions they detected. Apparently the base of my tongue is wide, which predisposes me to breathing problems during sleep. My mouth looks like this according to the doc (grade IV diagram):




Due to the lack of clearance between the base of my tongue and my throat, my air passage becomes obstructed when my soft pallet relaxes. This is more than I ever wanted to know about my mouth, tongue and air passage. Using a mouth guard will help to bring my tongue forward and clear my air passage; however, prolonged use of the mouth guard can cause me to develop an under bite, so I'm not crazy about that. We'll see. I think I'll wait until Zoe is born and see if things improve.

Sleep Study Complete!

Last night, as Trevor and I were finishing up dinner and watching last Sunday's episode of the Amazing Race (love that show!), I received a call from the sleep center informing me they had a cancellation and asking if I could make it there to have my sleep study completed. As much as I wanted to remain in the comfort of my home, I decided to go in lieu of waiting until December 2. What an experience! I'm so glad Trevor was home from work and able to accompany me. He was a great sport and slept in a recliner all night. (Sleep center rules) I love that man!!!

We arrived after 10pm and were shown to our "suite". Thankfully, the environment didn't feel clinical and was somewhat cozy....until they wired me up. Within about 1.5 hours, they had me connected to an endless number of wires. I'm talking wires for days. I looked like a robot with exposed wires, but Trevor assured me that I looked as beautiful as the day he married me. LOL. Electrodes were attached to my face, collar bone, shins, scalp, and behind my ears using a conductive glue. In total, I had about 15 electrodes and wires dangling from my body. Nasal airflow sensors were taped to my face and situated under my nose (talk about tickling!) and near my mouth, chest and abdomen belts were placed on me, and an oximeter was taped to my finger. I was also fitted for a CPAP mask in the event sleep apnea was detected during the study. Boy are those uncomfortable! One of them made me feel like I was suffocating.

Once I was fully connected, a calibration test was conducted. That was strange. My technician, Evan, directed me to do various things over an intercom to ensure all the electrodes were working. I was told to move my eyes rapidly left to right/up and down, move my ankles one foot at a time, clench my teeth, hold my breath, make breathing motions w/ my stomach while holding my breath, take deep breaths, close my eyes, blink my eyes, etc. Once everything was calibrated, the sleeping began. I was being watched on camera all night and the two-way intercom was always on. Spooky. Twice I awaken by two techs entering my room with flashlights because they weren't getting a good reading on my oximeter. Finally they made the decision to remove my oximeter and....you guessed it, tape it to my face. As if I had any more space on my face for yet another measuring device. When I had to pee I just woke up and told my tech over the intercom. It felt like I was talking to God:

Me: "Evan" (in a groggy voice)

Tech: "Yes, my child."

Me: "I have to pee."

Tech: "No need to fret. I'll be right there, my child." (In enters Evan, disconnects my electrode box, places it around my neck and sends me to my private restroom)

Now, peeing with wires going down my legs, while squatting, was a challenge because I was trying desperately not to pee on the wires. LOL. Plus, (TMI - sorry) since pregnancy brings about its fair share of flatulence, I was trying not to "poot" while peeing because the bathroom had ZERO acoustics so I know it would've echoed over the entire sleep center. LOL.

Thankfully, the "I need to go pee" requests only occurred twice, so that wasn't too bad. When my time was up, Evan came over the intercom with a monotone "Good morning. The sleep study is complete." And just like that it was over. He came in and peeled off all the electrodes and asked the most foolish question I've heard in awhile....."So, how did you sleep?" I wanted to say, "Um, how would you sleep if you were wired up like a bomb?"

Poor Trevor needed some WD-40 to get out of the recliner. LOL. We left the sleep center beat down tired! But it's complete. Evan couldn't tell me how I did; he said the doctor will discuss that with me. However, I was excited that I wasn't made to put on the CPAP mask during the night which must mean that I didn't stop breathing. Fingers crossed....