I'm Newly Diagnosed whats it all mean?

[mobrien]

Hi I was diagnosed last week and not sure whats going on, I had a meeting with a consultant at the beginning of February and the results cam back last week. The consultant was great and tried to explain it to me but it went in one ear and out the other being a bad 6 months during which time I have been told I am diabetic, have very high cholesterol and high blood pressure so to be told I have OSA just about topped it off .

Anyway the results came back at 7hrs sleep during this time I had 449 dips and my oxegen thing went down to 72% consultant said I was a classed severe on the scale they use and I got my CPAP straight away. I must admit I do feel less tired having used it for 3 nights now but I'm still not sure how this comes together or what it means any advise/information gratefully recieved

[Richard]

What's it all mean?

Don't think of being treated with CPAP therapy as the straw that breaks the camel's back; it's a very positive step towards better health.

With the machine your high blood-pressure will reduce. Your high chloresterol and diabetes will be easier to control and you will begin to feel a great deal better generally. A blood-oxymetry of 72% is not healthy, but the CPAP machine will help keep it in the 90%+ where it should be.

It is well-documented that OSA, left untreated, will lead to far more serious cardio-vascular illness, so early diagnosis is vital.

Persevere with the CPAP and your health will improve, but it is not an overnight fix.

Best of luck

Richard

[cheryl4andy]

hiya im fairly new to all this too just since Feb. im diabetic plus have high blood pressure and high cholesterol too so your not the only one other wise im great LOL im actually beginin to love my CPAP in a kinda masochist way hehehe canny live with it canny live without it ,just like a man lol x

[Biggles]

Hi, I'm not so new CPAP as it's been 5.5 years for me. Remembering back it did take me a little while to sort the mask problems; I have a problem with the blue silicon stuff - we just don't get on with each other

I was sent my lovely life saving equipment and have basically just got on with it. Recently I found this wonderful forum full of interesting things and information. My life has changed and improved enormously since the CPAP and I joined together every night. I'm off for my first overnight stay at a sleep clinic in a couple of days; never done that before as my initial diagnosis was carried out at home. Will be interesting if I learn anything (I'm now with a different health authority).

The most important thing that was stressed to me in the beginning was to try and use the mask for a minimum of 4 hours per night. It really didn't take me very long to discover that I adore sleep and now can sleep for 9 hours or so. I had had no real knowledge of how much I had been deprived.

Best wishes and I'm sure it won't be long before you discover the benefits of CPAP, it is a bit strange at the beginning. Even my husband is happy as I no longer kick him at night

[jasonuk75]

Hi mobrien,

welcome, glad to meet u, i started on cpap just before xmas 4 months ago, av had high blood pressure for 4 years on meds, 4 weeks ago diognosed with type 2 diabetes, so know wot ur saying, glad ur feeling a bit better after starting using cpap, key i found was to use cpap every night, and any probs try to get answers ask question, from ur dr, and from here on the forum,
i had loads of questions to ask here on the forum ive always had answers, it takes a while to get use to cpap, now i put mask on and drift of to sleep land! feel a lot better for using cpap, its still early days for me, things are lot better then they were

Jason

[cleveyu]

New diagnosis

I felt the same way when I was diagnosed with moderate Sleep Apnea. Not to worry, it really won't crimp your lifestyle, except that if you've been prescribed to use a CPAP machine, it will take a little while to get used to it, especially the mask. Other than that, your lifestyle won't vary much. Having Sleep Apnea also means it would be ideal to weigh less, and to cut back on high fat foods. Also, there are sleeping positions that are best suitable for people with OSA.

[mobrien]

thank you all for your willingness to share it has put my mind at ease now I'm one of the lucky ones who when you put your mind to it you can do it without going off target so I will aim to keep the mask on as you all recommend may need to cut my hands off as i seem to take it off during the night and wake up in the moring with it thrown across the room lol

From the advice you have given at least I will be reducing the risk of my impending heart attack
thx again