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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 20, 2009 at 10:48pm

I'm surprised those Breathe Rite strips worked for you, that's great! ! I said earlier I thought the nasal pressure pushed -thru and vaporized any nasal spray, for me anyway, even the saline, it's great if the humidity and air actually clears up nasal congestion, wish it worked that way for everyone!

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 20, 2009 at 11:05pm

Hi Shelia! I'm glad you had your heart & lungs checked, that's relieving. My Dad keeps having the same thing, chest looks ok...heart ok...pacemaker set ok... yet he has violent coughing spells when he gets excited, emotional, agitated, and gets out of breath, especially if he's emotional under duress with family problems (not me). To be 100% honest, I worry about congestive heart failure and his symptoms, and as a friend here, your symptoms too, and if you need to lose weight, also, as a friend, I don't care how tired you get, that can be replacement of minerals, iron, etc that can be easily dealt with. There's no question weight loss helps in most apnea cases. I lost 20 lbs going back to grocery night crew, and sleep much better, but still use my machine. The flabby tissues in the mouth and tongue are a result of our diets, weight, in most cases. My Kaiser family doc said he would almost NEVER do surgery for apnea, saying "that changes the whole mouth contour such that the food could go down the windpipe..." wow! Chew on that one! (sorry for that) Hope we can support you in anything.

Shelia Shafer said:

Thanks for all the great suggestions and advice. Gordon - I had chest x-rays done in 2007 and again in the ER a couple of weeks ago. Everything was fine. Also have done a pulmonary function test and treadmill heart stress test last month. Both fine. I feel like it's something with my lungs, but they can't find anything, so.... I have LOTS of allergies and had asthma as a child. And I live and work in Dallas where the air quality is not good. jnk - I too go from side to side because of the hip and shoulder pain.

I had a full workup a year ago with this pulmonologist the day after my sister died, but I was in shock and didn't remember a lot of it. I called to get the results again and see if there was something we could do in way of a mask, and he started ordering this test and that test. I finally said whoa, what do you hope to gain from another sleep study, and described all my symptoms to his nurse. That's when I finally got a one-on-one, slower pace, talk to me kind of appointment. He finally showed me and explained the graphs from my sleep study which helped me understand a lot and I was able to go over all my symptoms with him. That's when he suggested the nasal pillows, as I've been custom fitted with three different full face masks. He also said I had a huge tongue and thought my tonsils were swollen. He was surprised to learn that my tonsils were removed when I was a kid. And I get a stuffy nose when I lay down - even without the mask or machine, so I feel like it's something in my physical makeup. The doctor also said, to my surprise - Cindy - that losing weight might help a little, but probably would not cure my particular sleep apnea. I get really tired of the lose weight and your life will be perfect routine.

I recently moved and am trying to arrange my bedroom so that I can have my machine between my bed and my chair so I can just up and move when I need to without a huge disruption of sleep.

My daughter told me for some time that I had sleep apnea, and I knew I snored. I went through two major surgeries and then this last time after major hernia surgery is when I met this doctor. No one before had ever taken it seriously or said anything about it. He's a board certified pulmonologist and critical care doctor, and to wake up from surgery with him hovering over me was kind of scary. Anyway, I've stuck with it, trying to figure it out and get better.

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Permalink Reply by Shelia Shafer on October 21, 2009 at 10:47am

Gordon - my dad died of congestive heart failure at the age of 71. That's one reason I'm so pro-active about my heart. When I started having my left ankle swelling a year ago and lower leg pain I got really pro-active. No one can find anything. I've gone from doctor to doctor to doctor and more tests than I can count. My blood pressure, sugar, and cholesterol are all good, even though I'm morbidly obese. Perhaps the doctor thinks if I can get good rest, have more energy, I'll exercise more. I don't know.

I'm an emotional eater and I've gone to two different doctors (I have a good EAP) for counseling to help me figure it out and learn new ways to comfort myself besides food. They both told me that if I get my life the way I want it, the weight will come off by itself. Refused to counsel me about food, or about how to get my life the way I want it. Who's life is ever the way they want it anyway? We all have issues, family members, work and other stresses to deal with. I need to learn and develop habits of healthy ways to comfort myself. Very frustrating.

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Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on October 21, 2009 at 10:52am

Tis the key Cindy. i believe that if anyone of us could get all of these things in balance are good health would become effortless.

Cindy Brown said:

Interesting point. I'll have to ponder the psych issues. Maybe we'll cure the world of all it's illness with just a little sleep, good nutrition and exercise.

Cindy, who is glad it's almost time to go home.

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 21, 2009 at 11:43am

Hi Shelia, that's great you are aware of your symptoms. I worry that my Dad may have fluid in his lungs, but so far he's checked out ok, although they keep needing to turn up his pacemaker, but I can't run his life. Just a suggestion: I grow almost all our own vegetables, red potatoes, tomatoes, gr. beans, cabbage, lettuce, beets, to name a few. Is there any organic home gardener that you could buy from? Even get someone in the neighborhood to do a little cooking for you, like a babysitter? It's a long shot, but your eating habits could change.

Shelia Shafer said:

Gordon - my dad died of congestive heart failure at the age of 71. That's one reason I'm so pro-active about my heart. When I started having my left ankle swelling a year ago and lower leg pain I got really pro-active. No one can find anything. I've gone from doctor to doctor to doctor and more tests than I can count. My blood pressure, sugar, and cholesterol are all good, even though I'm morbidly obese. Perhaps the doctor thinks if I can get good rest, have more energy, I'll exercise more. I don't know.

I'm an emotional eater and I've gone to two different doctors (I have a good EAP) for counseling to help me figure it out and learn new ways to comfort myself besides food. They both told me that if I get my life the way I want it, the weight will come off by itself. Refused to counsel me about food, or about how to get my life the way I want it. Who's life is ever the way they want it anyway? We all have issues, family members, work and other stresses to deal with. I need to learn and develop habits of healthy ways to comfort myself. Very frustrating.

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 21, 2009 at 11:50am

Meant to mention Shelia, it sounds like you're aware of thrombosis, regarding any pain in your leg, and the seriousness of that, so glad you would have that checked out, my wife had to have an urgent sonogram for that to check for blockages.

gordon nelson said:

Hi Shelia, that's great you are aware of your symptoms. I worry that my Dad may have fluid in his lungs, but so far he's checked out ok, although they keep needing to turn up his pacemaker, but I can't run his life. Just a suggestion: I grow almost all our own vegetables, red potatoes, tomatoes, gr. beans, cabbage, lettuce, beets, to name a few. Is there any organic home gardener that you could buy from? Even get someone in the neighborhood to do a little cooking for you, like a babysitter? It's a long shot, but your eating habits could change.

Shelia Shafer said:

Gordon - my dad died of congestive heart failure at the age of 71. That's one reason I'm so pro-active about my heart. When I started having my left ankle swelling a year ago and lower leg pain I got really pro-active. No one can find anything. I've gone from doctor to doctor to doctor and more tests than I can count. My blood pressure, sugar, and cholesterol are all good, even though I'm morbidly obese. Perhaps the doctor thinks if I can get good rest, have more energy, I'll exercise more. I don't know.

I'm an emotional eater and I've gone to two different doctors (I have a good EAP) for counseling to help me figure it out and learn new ways to comfort myself besides food. They both told me that if I get my life the way I want it, the weight will come off by itself. Refused to counsel me about food, or about how to get my life the way I want it. Who's life is ever the way they want it anyway? We all have issues, family members, work and other stresses to deal with. I need to learn and develop habits of healthy ways to comfort myself. Very frustrating.

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Permalink Reply by Shelia Shafer on October 21, 2009 at 1:03pm

Gordon - I've had two dopplars for thrombosis - both came back fine. Don't know anyone really that gardens with an excess for me. ;o) When I'm near a farmer's market, I stock up. Should have my budget settled down enough soon to start shopping at Whole Foods. Don't know anyone who could really cook for me either. Both daughters have extremely busy lives with their kids. I've looked into Seattle Sutton - the cost works out to $12 per meal - a little steep. Have been thinking of and checking out "Independent Living" retirement communities. There are three in the Dallas area that include meals. I think the combination of three healthy meals being prepared for me, an on site personal trainer, a "restaurant style" dining experience and the companionship and accountability would go a long way for me. Not cheap, but cheaper than Seattle Sutton. :o)

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