My Apnea Story

26 members

Description

A collection of Apnea Stories
Comments Discussions Members

Apnea and Narcolepsy

by Andie

May 15, 2009

I have both Obstructive Sleep Apnea and mild narcolepsy. I use a CPAP (for many years) and take Provigil daily and I was still constantly exhausted. I have tried many different masks and they are all uncomfortable. My doctor has just prescribed Ambien for me and I am sleeping longer and have a bit more energy. So now I take an upper in the morning and a downer in the evening, which I am not too happy about.
  • up

    Mike

    Andie, welcome to the forum. I was wondering about narcolepsy -- some people report not being sure that they have it. is it something that you can not know whether you have? i have the notion that it's pretty dramatic and you fall asleep suddenly, and that you would know it if you had it. what has been your experience?

    May 15, 2009

  • up

    Andie

    Hi Mike - thanks for the welcom. The morning after one of my early sleep studies, I stayed at the center. I was asked to sit in a comfortable chair and was monitored to see how long I could stay awake. I kept falling back asleep each time they came in and woke me up, and that is how my doctor diagnosed narcolepsy. For me, it is a relatively mild form. I don't suddenly fall down asleep, but I also don't drive long distances. The Provigil helps me to stay somewhat alert, and I am supposed to take two 15-minutes naps a day. Not easy to do in a workplace. Hope this information helps.

    Mike said:
    Andie, welcome to the forum. I was wondering about narcolepsy -- some people report not being sure that they have it. is it something that you can not know whether you have? i have the notion that it's pretty dramatic and you fall asleep suddenly, and that you would know it if you had it. what has been your experience?

    May 19, 2009