I’ve always been a strange sleeper. You may ask, “Dave, how do you know, you’re asleep?” Great question… I’ll explain.
For as long as I can remember I would have someone waking me up in the middle of the night because I was bouncing my head and moaning. When I was a kid it was my parents. During college I went through loads of roommates until I moved of campus (where even my housemates could hear me). As I got older it would be a significant other waking me up to see if I was ok. There was obviously something wrong, but I never got checked out. Probably because I was so used to it and I couldn’t recognize how it was actually damaging me. All that has lead me here…
Last year I turned 31 and realized I needed to take better care of myself which includes seeing a healthcare provider for checkups. I found one I was comfortable with and after some blood tests I saw I was actually pretty healthy as far as those tests go, but I had a higher than average blood pressure and I’m overweight. I had changed my diet and even started biking in my living room, but the weight and BP didn’t change much. I also bit the bullet and asked for a sleep study. I was told that sleep apnea could negatively affect blood pressure and make it hard to lose weight because your body is never recharged properly when sleeping. I got the test and the results told me a lot.
I have severe obstructive sleep apnea. Not only does my body never get recharged, my oxygen levels drop. So what am I doing about it? I will be using a CPAP machine to help me get proper regenerative sleep. I’ve had many friends give me great feedback on their experiences. I’m told I won’t believe the difference, probably because what I experience now is “normal” to me, but it shouldn’t be.
If you’re reading this and have trouble sleeping and feel groggy during the day, get checked. If you have a significant other you notice sleeping strange or having trouble, encourage them to get checked. sleep apnea is nothing to fool with, but it’s diagnosed and taken care of easily. I can’t wait to share my experiences after I get my machine… positive all the way!
