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Posted on 08/20/2026 7:09:50 AM PDT by fwdude
I wanted to get some advise from FReepers who have walked this road. I have my first ever sleep study scheduled this weekend. Reading the prep literature makes me wonder how I'm going to sleep when I'm hooked up to all kinds of gadgets.
I know I'll eventually sleep, but being away from home I'm not sure it will be a fair representation of the type of sleep I get at home.
What do I need to be prepared for and to bring?
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Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
I’m scheduled for late next month. I advise you to take your own pillows.
According to the tech I spoke to, the new equipment is much lighter. Also, it doesn’t really matter how bad your sleep is, they’re monitoring oxygen use. If it drops below 89% for a large percentage of the time, they’ll wake you and train you to use a CPAP. Regardless of how rested you are, they’re looking for physical or neural interrupts to your breathing. They will either be there, regardless, or not.
Don’t plan anything for the following day because you won’t sleep long at all.
You will have scant actual sleeping time during this test. Ask them for something and they will knock you out. Never mind the 112 electrodes we just glued to your head.
THERE ARE CAMERAS IN THE ROOM! There are cameras in the room. 4 or 5 of them. Probly thermal and audio and the whole bit so I would put off any masturbatory activity till you get home.
Been on a CPAP for the past two years.
Started with the sleep study, found out that I wasn’t breathing about 20 times per hour. Now I am down to about twice an hour.
Has it made a difference? Yes.
Has it been worth it? Probably.
If it wasn’t covered under Medicare, I probably would not have paid for it out of pocket.
OTOH, I get at least 7 or 8 hours of full sleep most night, with a high of 11 hours when I am not feeling good.
OTOOH, I post to FR much less than I used to.
Mine was at home. They gave me a portable monitor / computer and I had to hook up all the sensors and sleep on my back instead of my side. I was uncomfortable to say the least.
If you have to go to their place I suggest a bottle of Jack............
Speak for yourself I had the best night of sleep in my life... The woke me up shortly after I fell asleep and put the CPAP on me because my apnea was so bad, and I had the best night of sleep I’d had in years
Believe me. You WILL sleep. You will be in a room that is more like a hotel than a hospital. They may simi-wake you to apply a cpap, and you will then have a wonderful sleeping experience. You will grow to despise the mask, but before that you will appreciate a good night’s sleep. No snoring, no waking up gasping for breath, just sound sleep. I wore the mask for years. We had a love/hate relationship. I lost some weight, and now can get by with an oral appliance that moves my jaw forward, thereby keeping my tongue out of my airway. Do not fear the sleep test. You’ll have about twenty wires connected, and getting up through the night could be a challenge, but the sleeping pill will see to that.
I also ran a white noise box to obscure the Darth Vader-like breathing sound. Highly recommended. Still run it now.
If you have sleep apnea, you have sleep apnea.
Every day.
All day.
All night.
Don’t worry about the sleep test.
The very slightest amount of sleep will detect the problem.
Good luck.
P.S. I was up to 40 episodes per hour. It was bad.
I’m sure someone here will give you some good advice.
When you say you “stopped breathing,” what does that mean? for 2 seconds, 5 seconds, 30 seconds?
I hope they’ll measure these episodes.
I would think a sleep aid would disrupt what they are trying to record in normal sleep. Anyway, I plan to take some magnesium supplements to encourage sleep an hour or so before starting.
Does anyone know what eating requirements are? Empty stomach? (sometimes I don’t get dinner until 8:30 pm.)
They deal will all kinds of people to get sleep studies done. What you present will not be something they have never encountered before. They will get the information they need.
I have been on a CPAP machine for 23 years. I am convinced that sleep apnea contributed heavily to my first heart attack at 46 years old. Would I rather sleep without a CPAP? Absolutely. But the quality of my sleep is so much better that I feel much more rested when I wake. I still feel like it is the single best health choice I have made in my life. . . be positive and receptive. You will be fine.
My youngest son was able to pick up a machine, and conduct the test at home. I don’t know if that’s an option for you.
Yes, the most important parameter is whether you desaturate (oxygen level drops) during sleep. In obstructive sleep apnea this happens because your airway is being compromised during sleep - variety of reasons, including from an anatomical issues, or sometimes from obstruction from excessive mucus (I.e. with bad allergies).
I hear that from a LOT of people, and you just confirm it. Thank you.
I wonder what people from a century ago did about obstructive sleep apnea. I know they were not necessarily thinner. I think of President Taft and others.
My wife took a sleep test several years ago. They allowed her to take it at home with only a small device connected via Bluetooth.
The first referral was for one of the at-home tests, but strangely, my insurance wouldn't cover it. It was going to cost me about $285.
This upcoming in-clinic appointment only requires the co-pay. The doctor told me they can monitor a whole lot more in these clinic studies, like brain activity.
Had a sleep study decades ago. Barely slept at all, but apparently enough to show I did not have sleep apnea. Diagnosis -— insomnia. No surprise to me. Funny thing is, I don’t have any problem sleeping during the day. Anyway, I now take a magnesium capsule every night. Knocks me out in minutes. Magnesium gluconate or glycinate works best.
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