mkoven Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 I've had a sleep study, which I recommend, and been dxed with apnea. Cpap really helps the quality of my sleep. I still have trouble staying asleep the second half of the night. My new doc put me on klonopin which helps some. he pointed out in my sleep study, that even once the apnea is treated, I kept getting bumped out of deep sleep (stage 3) into stages 2 and 1, which leaves me tired. he thinks a lot of us have arousals from adrenaline surges, even if they're not quite enough to fully awaken me. I'm not sleeping great these days- 5-6 hours a night. But with cpap, it at least "counts" as better sleep so I don't feel so wrecked. I'd get a sleep study to see what's going on. Maybe try it with the ambien, to see if they pick up on anything? Maybe the ambien worsens any apnea you may have, and that aggravates your symptoms? I had no clue I had apnea, but un treated, it really messes me up with worse ans symptoms, awful migraines with weird neuro symptoms. and my apnea counts as mild! I'm still working on the nocturnal chest pain, which is my sleep-related monster at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iheartcats Posted November 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 I've had a sleep study, which I recommend, and been dxed with apnea. Cpap really helps the quality of my sleep. I still have trouble staying asleep the second half of the night. My new doc put me on klonopin which helps some. he pointed out in my sleep study, that even once the apnea is treated, I kept getting bumped out of deep sleep (stage 3) into stages 2 and 1, which leaves me tired. he thinks a lot of us have arousals from adrenaline surges, even if they're not quite enough to fully awaken me. I'm not sleeping great these days- 5-6 hours a night. But with cpap, it at least "counts" as better sleep so I don't feel so wrecked. I'd get a sleep study to see what's going on. Maybe try it with the ambien, to see if they pick up on anything? Maybe the ambien worsens any apnea you may have, and that aggravates your symptoms? I had no clue I had apnea, but un treated, it really messes me up with worse ans symptoms, awful migraines with weird neuro symptoms. and my apnea counts as mild! I'm still working on the nocturnal chest pain, which is my sleep-related monster at the moment.I will have to discuss the sleep study with my doctor next visit. I didn't consider Apnea (when I Google'd it, it said most sufferers snore...may I kindly ask if you snore)? I ask my spouse, he says I don't, but with POTS and other issues people have on the board, I wouldn't be surprise if we could be the abnormal Apnea patients!I didn't think about the Ambien worsening something else, thus causing worse symptoms. I've had to take Benadryl for hives, and I don't recall that making me worse (if it's a CNS depressant, too)...How often do you take Klonpin? Just at night? I've heard Xanax can help 'anxiety sleepers' but again, that probably messes with the CNS too.At this point, I can't fully tie Ambien to 'worse symptoms' - but I'd like to know because I do need sleep. So will have to discuss all this with the Doctor.In the meantime, I'm not sure what I'm going to do over the holidays when I can't sleep well ... I might test a mild Advil PM since I've taken Benadryl with success in the past to get through the hump. I am fairly certain I won't be able to get in for a sleep study before January because of my schedule and it's usually a few weeks wait from what I hear.Thanks much everyone! I hate when a 'good' medicine stops working! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkoven Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 apparently I'm a light snorer, but my spuse never noticed me stop breathing. but there are apnea sufferers who don't snore. untreated apnea wreaks havoc on the ans, as you are basically suffocating repeatedly throughout the night. and many meds will relax breathing muscles further, making things worse. my problem is that because of eds, my throat tissues are floppy. i also have a narrow throat.klonopin would be a problem if i didn't already have cpap, as it also relaxes muscles. i've been told to just take it at bedtime. I take a small dose -.375.www.apneasupport.org is a great resource.now when i fall asleep without cpap, i notice the difference. i wake up a lot more, often with a grunt/gasp. i never knew why i was waking up so much. I also now rarely have nightmares. I used to have lots of dreams of being strangled! I also can get by on a lot less sleep, as it's better quality. Five hours on cpap feels better than nine hours without. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iheartcats Posted November 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 I didn't realize how much Apnea could affect the ANS. I've made an appointment to discuss this with my PCP...may need pre-approval for insurance but I'd like to know because anything that would make my POTS more tolerable/livable is worth it.Thanks for all your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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