Re: Sleep Apnia and forced air


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Posted by Ken Sturgeon on June 28, 2001 at 04:57:24:

In Reply to: Sleep Apnia and forced air posted by jdin on June 27, 2001 at 17:28:33:

I have had severe sleep apnea since 1996 and am on the CPAP therapy. The CPAP does work for me and I am thankful I have it. I don't know what people did before the invention of these machines. Sleep apnea is a serious condition. When I had my sleep study done, I literally woke hundreds of times during the night. The wake point that they measured through the various electrodes attached to my body was just beyond the point of REM sleep. This means that you do not get any deep sleep or rest. You wake up just as exhausted as when you went to bed. Because you also stop breathing completely for several seconds each time (one of my apneas lasted for over 30 seconds during my study) your blood oxygen level drops dangerously low. Try to think of a night where you were constantly woke up because of some kind of disturbance. A loud frat party next door. Dog barking. Baby waking several times or what have you. Most likely you still got some REM sleep that night, but still woke up tired. Now imagine you got no REM sleep and this happens every time you sleep or take a nap. Some people have throat operations that open up the airway. The obstruction is caused mostly by the soft palate and tongue relaxing and falling back in the throat. The operations can include trimming the soft palate, uvula and even the tongue. Tonsils can be removed as well. Often times, these operations are not successful in curing the apnea. My older brother had an operation where they removed the tonsils, trimmed the soft palate and uvula and it didn't cure him. The only other option is the CPAP therapy. Several doctors I have seen said that they didn't think it would work for me either. I didn't want an operation also for the reason I would loose my ability to circular breath. Losing weight does help, but there is also no guarantee it will cure it. Men tend to have sleep apnea more than women do because men tend to gain more weight in the throat area than women. In regards to long tones while using the CPAP, it depends on the pressure setting it is on. Mine is at 13cm of pressure, which is not high enough to get a decent buzz. Yes, I tried it. I don't know what setting would be high enough, but it would be difficult to control since you have no control of the air speed. Anyway, having sleep apnea posses no difficulties breathing while awake and therefore does not effect the ability to play tuba or any other wind instrument. I hope this at least sheds alittle bit of light on the subject. Since the question was asked, I felt it appropriate to explain from my personal experience.

Ken



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