Sleep Apnea Treatment

Question by Fred: Is sleep apnea a result of obesity, or is obesity a cause of sleep apnea.?
My doctor thinks I may have sleep apnea and wants me to be evaluated through a sleep test. Well, my insurance won’t pick that cost up, and it’s an expensive evaluation. Looking at the machines available, it seems a much more cost effective route to pick up a machine, and if there are no perceived benefits, then just put it away. There are several machines that are much more affordable, compared to the cost of the test.

That issue aside . . . I am in fact overweight. And my neck is thick (always has been, even when I was slender and in great physical shape). So taking into consideration the neck thickness issue. I think my most important hurdle is to get my weight down and manage it, along with a healthy diet, and an exercise regimen.

I realize sleep apnea has a detrimental effect on one’s health, and is said to lead to obesity. But from my understanding most people with sleep apnea are in fact overweight. So is weight a larger contributor to sleep apnea . . or is sleep apnea a larger contributor to being overweight?

I just feel that correcting my unhealthy life choices would be much more beneficial, reduce my chances for heart attack, and other related problems, and the lack of excess weight should relieve a lot of burden on my body including help my sleep.

I realize that it isn’t necessarily one or the other . . that a better lifestyle is what one should always shoot for. I just feel the sleep test is an unnecessary cost as I can buy the machine cheaple in comparison to the cost of the test, and also, if i were to consider taking the test . . wouldn’t it make far better sense to get my weight down to a healthy level before shelling out the $ $ for a test that will be swayed by my weight in the first place.

Any flaws in my thoughts on this subject?

Best answer:

Answer by Kath
Which came first – the chicken or the egg? This is a hard question to answer, as many people with sleep apnea are overweight, but people with undiagnosed sleep apnea feel the need to eat more due to sleep deprivation and lack of energy.
I have many many customers with sleep apnea who are not overweight, and I myself have sleep apnea and am not overweight. Most sleep apnea is caused by a small jaw. It is my opinion that obese people may be the first to be diagnosed due to being unhealthy, and possibly having other health issues.
Unfortunately, it’s not usually possible to cure sleep apnea through weight loss, as even if the weight is shed, the fat will remain in the neck.
Sleep apnea is a serious ‘condition’ so do your best to get that sleep test. Good Luck!

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Question by Blithm: Has anyone out there taken Tegretol and suffered from sleep paralysis as a result??
I suffered with horrible sleep paralysis while taking Tegretol (Carbemazapine) and now that I don’t take Tegretol I suffer with a special kind of sleep apnea (central apnea) that is usually brought on by brain trauma or drugs/medication. I am trying to determine if they are all connected….the Tegretol, Sleep paralysis and central apnea. Any serious reply would be greatly appreciated.

Best answer:

Answer by happylilbumblebee
Dear “tubby”
I was on tegretol at one point but soon after I started to develop these strange spasms and odd muscle spasms during the night. Shortly thereafter I started to get seizures. They are not epilepsy or gran mal. They are now being called “stress seizures”. But to me it is way too coincidental that this started when I was on Tegretol. I dont have difinitive answers, I really wish I did. I hate to see someone else suffering. I woudl recommend you do a search for adverse effects to Tegretol. This is a good start here and I really do hope you get some answers. I am sorry I couldn’t offer you more help or better hard proof. I’m sorry that you are going through this. I sincerely hope that you feel better soon and get the best treatment possible for your apnea. One thing to keep in mind is a sleep study.

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I am suffering from a sleeping disorder after leaving the military. If there is no record of this in my medical record, can I still make a Disability claim with the VA? I am currently having severe sleeping problems after leaving the military with 9 years of service!