Free Sleep Kit from Ambien

[Ranger X]

--X--> Sleep Kit

It comes with a 10-day sleep diary and information on getting a good night's sleep.

 

[rhowcow2]

Thanks. I'll give it a try. Good night. Pleasant dreams. Have a good night sleep.

 

[mcveigh]

I work in a sleep lab doing tests on people with sleeping disorders, this kit can be a help to your Dr. bring the info to hiim/her and tell them you want to see a sleep specialist.
Believe it or not doctors have to spend little or NO time studying sleep in medical school. By far the most common sleeping problem is Apnea. It is when you stop breathing at night. (those pauses in someones snoring) It is very common (my dad has it) and treatable!. The number one cause is gaining weight (think about all those cokes at 2AM while gaming and/or coding!)
here is more info
Ambien used to be the best sleep aid on the market but IMO Sonata is a little better. We use both in the labs b/c they are a fast acting drug and out of your system in a few hours.
Anyway just thought I'd pass along some info. By the way- I'm at work right now treating someone for sleep apnea and snoring.

PS: If you snore you should have a sleep test done. Snoring isn't normal.

 

[NetworkDad]

Thanks, good information.

 

[jjlee101]

It's true med school students don't learn that much about sleep. We studied maybe 2 days and nothing real specific. Especially not to many disorders.

 

[MrHans]

here i am unable to sleep reading this stuff...

um, snoring isnt normal? i was under the presumption that the majority of people snored, not the opposite.
kidding aside, thanks for the link, i'll check it out when it arrives

 

[Mysterie]

mrhans, snoring may not be normal because it is a sign of some problems (ie. weight, etc.). Not only that it causes sleeping disorders for partners. and as I rememeber, Apnea, also has a nasty effect, sometimes people stop snoring and breathing altogether. Now that would be very bad.

Now me, my disorder stems from being a college student, all that cramming, research papers due, etc. Stress from bills to school doesn't help. This would be nice to help out but *sigh* probably can't use it till I graduate.

 

[mikeford]

I have apnea, and so do a number of my friends. Rather than debate normal/abby, lets just say its VERY unhealthy. That said I have to say a night in a sleep lab is one of the worst experiences I have ever had. I simply cannot sleep on my back. As soon as I drop off my airway just closes, no maybe etc., air no longer goes in or out my nose. I breath through my mouth or not at all.

The sleep study of course requires you to lay on your back, so I got to enjoy a couple dozen passes of falling asleep, followed by immediately waking starved for air with my heart pounding. The next step in torture was Cpap, basically a mask goes over your nose and air is pumped in to keep "constant positive air pressure" in the nose throat air path. Part of this is a chin strap so you can't breath through your mouth. This did NOT go well.

Later I found something less than half the people who try Cpap ever learn to tolerate it. One of my friends just loves his. The result for me was that I became so paranoid about breathing, that sleep was very difficult for months afterward, and for more than I year I was VERY sensitive to the slightest breeze, even a fan blowing in my face. Trust me, thinking about whether or not you are breathing "well, or correctly" makes for excellent panic attacks, and makes the basis of some effective methods of torture.

The reason I mention it here, is that you may want to think twice before entering a sleep study, or even getting yourself on to some list of people with sleep disorders (ie the free booklet). This is an evolving medical area, and the best doctors I know of do things very differently now compared to maybe 5 years ago (surgery is seen as much less effective for example). Do not just ignore the problem, but this is NOT IMHO a good area to just do what the doctor tells you. You must learn about the issues and your personal condition at least enough to make informed questions. One last BIG point is that if you are a night owl like me, be aware the sleep study expects you to be normal, ie falling asleep around 10 PM. If you don't go to sleep until 3AM, expect a LOT of trouble, up to a total waste of time for all concerned.

 

[mcveigh]

Mike it sounds like you had a bad experience with a pretty crappy sleep lab.
1) you don't have to sleep on your back. we like for you to b/c that is when your apnea will be it's worse.But if you can't get some sleep it realy does the study little good.
2) a chin strap is actually rarely necessary. there are other options such as full face masks that cover the mouth also and bi-level therapy. Using a CPAP is kinda like riding a bike, it's hard and diferent at first but after a little while it is natural.
3) depending on the lab, unusual sleep cycles can be hard to test. At my lab we can't do people unless they have a fairly normal cycle, but I have a friend who works for a hospital and they keep a shift going 24/7 so you can go to sleep at your regular time. Ask around
4)unfortunately insurance companies have a big say in what treatment you receive. Like you said your best bet is to educate yourself and seek out many opinions.

 

[Souka]

Thx Mr. X!

 

[OutlawWolf]

Thanks Ranger X.
I can't sleep b/c I was up making soap.
Did you watch that movie?