Sleep Apnea Treatment » Doctor

Q&A: Doctor or Nurse Needed! What are some possible explanations for the multiple symptoms on left side of my body?

Alan — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 06:41:02 +0000

Question by HRH: Doctor or Nurse Needed! What are some possible explanations for the multiple symptoms on left side of my body?
I’m 25/F Confirmed Diagnosis;I’m 5′6 350,I have; Arthritus (10mg 6x daily methadone),Sleep Apnea,High B.P. (Enalapril 10mg 2X daily),Restless Leg,Asthma,Lymphodema,Hyperhydrosis,Never ending pain in all joints, muscles,jaw. All of following worst on left side; Constant decreased sense of feeling/numbness every where worst from waist to under butt & inner thighs pelvic area,Stabbing/numbness in left back quadrant of head,Phsyically weak MUCH worse on left side.Had blood tests for cancer,liver,thyroid,adrenal,heart (adenesin test),cbc all good results,tests for blurry vision good as well however in dmv test where I had to answer as to which eye the blinking light was blinking in I had problems when it light blinked in left eye when the lights where nearing the middle towards my nose.) The chronic pain I’ve been told is mostly from my arthritus,however what is the relation of all the left side symptoms? Please offer you’r opponion so I can possibly help point my doc in right direction?
Note I had these same problems even when I was half the size I am now.
To the person that blamed me problems on “over eating”…That really hurt my feelings. You read my weight and assume that I am gorging on food when that is not the case. I have been monitoring my weight and been active in the last 2 years I have lost 100 (this year and the year before 75 with a total of 175lb). I think it is unfortunate that you made these asumptions, and to be quite honest really redicolus as I have never before been told this by any health professional (not even when i was at 525+ lb).
Melvana,Ty for you’r nice responce.I had these problems long before methadose.And before I got perscribed it I never heard of it being given for chronic pain either. However my pain mgmt doc uses it alot.

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Answer by Old guy 124
try this site it may help you.

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Need help badly about a doctor?

Alan — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:36:21 +0000

Question by kenneltech: Need help badly about a doctor?
I have been going to a sleep doctor who is about 35 miles away because I have severe insomnia (all my life), severe sleep apnea, and now some other problem that makes me “nod off” during the day (not narcolepsy). He medically banned me from driving as I drove off the highway once when I nodded off. He also won’t tell me what disorder this is unless I come into his office! I told him I can’t get there because I’m medically not supposed to drive and that I am afraid to drive and asked him why he just didn’t call in the prescription that is supposed to help this, I will take it for a week or so, then I will have no problems driving up! He won’t do it. I do have to tell you that there are only like 3 of these REM Sleep Specialists where I live, and he has a pretty big ego.

Anyway, because I have had to cancel twice (and he knew the reasons, and I am not a difficult patient), he will no longer prescribe my sleep meds. I need those meds as this is going to be a very long journey, I am in Cognitive Behavioral Treatment, am on CPAP, and it is going to take a long time before all this insomnia gets straightened out. Anyway, I told him this was abandonment, and he got really upset and I have no medication.

Isn’t he supposed to prescribe my medications until he finds me a comparable doctor, or until I find one? I am desperate.

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Answer by Cindy
He is not refilling your meds because he wants to see you in his office. If you are taking something like Ambien he cannot refill it without you following up with him. I wouldn’t have made him mad either. I know doctors and trust me even the best don’t like to be threatened. No, he doesn’t have to find you a comparable doctor either. By canceling your appointments and refusing to come in you have in fact abandoned him. Even if your reasons were good ones. He does have to send your notes to another doctor when they are requested. He also must give you a copy of your records if you request them however, usually they require you to come in and sign a release for the records. Also they may charge you a small fee for copying the records. Not all doctors do that but some do. He won’t charge you for sending them to another doctor but you will still need to sign a release. This is a HIPAA regulation.
Do you not have a friend, parent, sibling, etc that can drive you to his office? Surely you know someone that will take some time to drive you to the doctor so you can get your medications. If I had to take a taxi to go see him I would. It may cost you some money but it would be worth it to get the treatment that you need. I will also tell you it is very unusual for a doctor to give sleeping pills to someone with sleep apnea. They can cause many problems if you are not monitored properly. Another reason he is not calling in your medicines.
If you are canceling appointments and refusing to come in to talk to him you may need to find another doctor because he may not feel comfortable treating you any longer.
Find someone to drive you if you are able to get an appointment with him, apologize to him when you get there, and then do what he says.. He really does know best in this situation.

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Q&A: My son is seeing a pulmonologist for sleep apnea next week, and his allergy doctor wants extra meds now..?

Alan — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 06:35:09 +0000

Question by bluasakura: My son is seeing a pulmonologist for sleep apnea next week, and his allergy doctor wants extra meds now..?
I’m not sure of the rationale behind this, but the allergy doctor claims that my son’s pulmonary doctor won’t be able to see anything other than allergy symptoms and won’t go any further into his possible sleep apnea, unless his allergies are neutralized this week with aggressive medicine. So the sleeping problem might be diagnosed as “allergies”, since they’re such the obvious problem (unless these meds have him totally controlled, by a miracle). I am frightened that my son’s allergies, severe this time of year and year round, will never be contained enough to see if there’s something more. Like, when does he NOT have allergies that are severe? My allergist is very good and assures me that the new sample she gave is excellent (Astepro) in conjunction with his nasal steroid and Claritin and he’ll probably be allergy-symptom free by the time the pulmonologist appointment rolls around. (1) What might the pulmonary doctor will say in either situation? and (2) are these meds good enough to hold back his severe allergies? If anyone could provide feedback on this I’d be happy!

Best answer:

Answer by Murphyboy
Allergies and other respiratory issues should be examined by both an allergist and a pulmonologist. I have the same problems – allergies and asthma, as well as COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and I see both specialties. Yes, the treatment for allergies can relieve other pulmonary conditions, however, there are some allergy treatments that cannot help pulmonary issues, and visa versa. In my case, some antihistamines can actually aggravate breathing problems, so the pulmomonogist can recommend another type of treatment. I would strongly suggest that you have your son examined by both specialists.

To answer your other question about are these meds good enough to hold back his severe allergies. These meds are quite good yes, however, there are also stronger meds that can be applied if the allergies are so severe that he cannot breathe or experiences anaphylactic shock. This is a condition that requires immediate ER attention .

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Q&A: What diagnostic tests should I ask my doctor to do to determine cause of my tiredness and sleep difficulties?

Alan — Wed, 04 May 2011 12:36:13 +0000

Question by Michael R: What diagnostic tests should I ask my doctor to do to determine cause of my tiredness and sleep difficulties?
I am 43 year old male, and am feeling overall poorly. I am strong and all that, but I just feel weak and tired, and I have difficulty getting good sleep. I recently was diagnosed with sleep apnea and am using the CPAP machine, but I still wake up tired and cant maintain my sleep through the night. I still drag through the day with tiredness, weakness, and depression. A friend suggested a series of tests his naturepathic doctor took him through including hormone levels check, hair, and spittle test…but he didnt know what the other tests available to determine chemistry and nutritional deficiencys might be. Wondering if anyone could advise me on what tests to have my doctor adminster.

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Answer by justbeingher
Sleeping 02 sats – your blood oxygen level while sleeping. It needs to be mid-to-high 90s or you wake fatigued, have anaerobic metab and are setting yourself up for cancer.

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should i see a doctor for depression?

Alan — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 00:34:54 +0000

Question by L@L@: should i see a doctor for depression?
i think i might have sleep apnea because i have all the symptoms & it’s hereditary. i have already taken a sleep study but don’t get my results for about another week. one of the symptoms of sleep apnea is restlessness but that is also one of the symptoms for depression. along with sleep apnea, a person can also get depression but ive been feeling depressed alot longer then i thought i might have sleep apnea. do you think i should see a doctor now because i might have depression or do you think i should wait because it will get better after i am diagnosed with sleep apnea and get treated for it?

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Answer by Adam
No, I think you should wait until your results come back. If the results come back negative then maybe talk to a doctor about possible depression, don’t just assume.

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Q&A: What type of doctor should you see to be tested for sleep apnea?

Alan — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 06:48:53 +0000

Question by The Spammers: What type of doctor should you see to be tested for sleep apnea?

What’s the name of the specialist?
I don’t need a referral with my insurance.

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Answer by Chauncey Q. Buttercup
You need to start with a General Practitioner or Internist who can refer you to a specialist.

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can any doctor write a prescription for a cpap machine or only sleep specialists?

Alan — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 00:41:00 +0000

Question by Bob: can any doctor write a prescription for a cpap machine or only sleep specialists?
i know i have severe sleep apnea because i had a mono which gave me a bad case of tonsillitis and i was trying to figure out why i couldn’t sleep for the past month, so can i call my regualr doctor as an emergency to get a cpap machine or do i have to wait until i schedule a sleep study?

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Answer by hustle4bread121
JUST PRAY AND GOD WILL HELP U

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Sleep Apnea? My dad has it but won’t go to the doctor.?

Alan — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 00:36:50 +0000

Question by ♥Sydney Erin♥: Sleep Apnea? My dad has it but won’t go to the doctor.?
My dad is very stubborn. I am so sure he has sleep apnea because I looked up the symptoms and he pretty much matches all of them. Loud snoring, long pauses in his breathing (20-30 seconds), extreme sleepiness throughout the day, irritability, fatigue, mood changes, and headaches. Sleep apnea can cause serious problems in one’s life and I am so scared for my father. When ever we go out to a hotel on vacation and have to sleep in the same room, I can hear the pauses in his breathing and it freaks me out because I am afraid he is going to die or something. I asked him why he doesn’t go to the doctor so he can get treatment, but he insisted that everything was okay. My dad hates admitting he is wrong. How can I convince him that he needs to see a doc asap so he won’t have to continue having these problems? Its really taking a toll on me also (the irritability and mood changes). Thanks for taking the time to read this. :]

Best answer:

Answer by Notorious DPT
If he’s overweight he may need a general physical. I reccomend a physical at least every 2-3 years to check cholesterol and other stuff. He should just get an overall checkup.

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I’m 80% sure I have sleep apnea. Can I get a machine and use it without going through a doctor?

Alan — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 18:40:00 +0000

Question by lilly101200: I’m 80% sure I have sleep apnea. Can I get a machine and use it without going through a doctor?

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Answer by JP
No,you need to go thru a Dr. What makes you think you have sleep apnea?

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Q&A: My father needs to see a doctor for Sleep Issues… What tests should he ask for? What should he tell them?

Alan — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 18:50:18 +0000

Question by ♥ Shōjo-ai: My father needs to see a doctor for Sleep Issues… What tests should he ask for? What should he tell them?
OK, my father has been sleep talking, sleep walking, not being able to sleep through the night, all since he was a child. We think he might have depression and were told that part of his sleep walking and talking are due to emotional issues, he has sleep apnea, and he was diagnosed as having “Comprehension Problems” back in the 1960’s, which is now called “ADD”.

He sleeps so bad at night that he is tired all day and will fall asleep if he has to sit still for more then a few min’s… He can’t get through a 12 min episode of Squidbillies, let alone watching a movie or even a normal tv show.

He has just gotten health insurance through his job and I want to set up an appointment with a doctor for a “Sleep Study” but I have no idea what that means and what we should be looking for test-wise or even doctor-wise!

What sort of things should he look for in a doctor?

What kind of tests should they do for him?

What, in general, should he expect??
Cynthia, You got it in the first go… He is ALWAYS thinking… When he can’t stop thinking, he will go into the bathroom and read and start to fall asleep and actually add PAGES of plot onto the book he is reading so when he wakes up, he can’t find where he was because he added so much story line to the book!

OK, that makes a LOT of sense…

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR ANSWERS!

Best answer:

Answer by Cynthia
The doctor thing is more or less your opinion. You want someone who is nice or kind then find one of those. If you dont really care then thats up to you too. You obviously want a doctor who care about their patient enough to listen to you. Also look for someone with good marks. Someone with more schooling than some others.

A sleep study is basically where they hook you up to a machine and you go to sleep. It reads your brain waves to show whats going on. If your dad has problems sleeping it will show up on the test and show why he is having problems. Chances are that they will give him a sleep medication to take, and possibly something for his ADD. It all depends on his apnea. They dont want to conk him out too much to where he doesnt remember to breathe but they will want to make sure he is calm enough to acutally get a good nights sleep.

I would guess the main problem with his sleeping is the ADD itself. You have a million things running through your head at night because your still and trying to go to sleep. Lists of things to do, things you forgot. Half the time you want to get up and do those things causing you to loose even more sleep.

Going to the doctor is a great idea. Sleep study is also a really good idea. Just make sure you let them know about the apnea! That can be a very serious thing to know before taking medications. Although the doctors should get a full history before treating you, sometimes they forget.

Hope I helped you.

C. Adams, RN

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