Tuesday, April 05, 2005

My (Former) Sleep Habits - Part II

Here is the chart from my second night of sleep study, the following week:


(click to enlarge)


Note I slept about an hour less than I did the first time: 10:28pm - 6:12am (about 7-3/4 hours). I'm not sure why she woke me up when she did, though I think I was just coming off a sleep cycle and rousing slightly, so it would have been easier to wake me then than an hour later.

So, compare the two studies and you can see a radical change:

The first line charting sleep stages is a lot different, but I happened to not sleep as well that night - mainly due to general tiredness, plus that I was wearing a CPAP machine on my face and not familiar with the sensation. I had a few dream periods apparently, but not as lengthy and not as intense. Similarly the second line of sleep position shows I was on my back most of the night, except for a brief period when I laid on my side. This was also due to the CPAP, as I was afraid moving around much would knock it off.

The third line is where the improvements really start showing up. The frequency of hypopneas episodes (or shallow breathing) was vastly decreased, and the apnea episodes (no breathing) were practically non-existant.

The fourth line shows the oxygen saturation level stayed in the 90-95% range the entire night, which is a quantum level difference than the previous night.

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So, that's why I wear the monstrosity at night now. It's gotten remarkably easier to wear after several trial-and-error sessions of getting it to fit just right. I have good nights and not-so-good nights. Sometimes my nose gets extremely irritated and sore, and some mornings I wake up with dry mouth and sore throat. I haven't really noticed any marked improvement in my day-time "feel", but the doc said that mostly the patients who experienced a lot of drowsiness during the day (which I really didn't) would feel the most obvious outward signs that it's working.

But the test doesn't lie, and obviously more oxygen in your system and less interrupted sleep can only be better for you so I'll be patient.

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