If you're peeing at night get checked for sleep apnea

[bmcgonig]

This is really interesting. I'm female and do get up to pee 3-4 times a night most nights. Just last week when BF was here overnight he noted that in the early morning hours when he had his hand across my chest, he'd feel my heart beat normally, then stop briefly, then I'd snore. Although I don't have diabetes and I'm not overweight, I do have an enlarged heart and mitral valve prolapse which means I get winded on exertion. I need to find a sleep specialist. I'm on Medicare but could certainly afford the cost of an initial consultation to see if I need a sleep study.

Tell your doc your concerns and he will send you to a sleep specialist who will immediately schedule a sleep study or two! At least that was my experience. Medicare covers everything.

 

[athena53]

Tell your doc your concerns and he will send you to a sleep specialist who will immediately schedule a sleep study or two! At least that was my experience. Medicare covers everything.

Thanks- I have travel planned from mid-September to mid-October and a packed schedule between now and then so I plan to do some experimenting on my own to see if any of the obvious things work. It will also give me data to show a doctor. I probably will consult one, though.

 

[aja8888]

Tell your doc your concerns and he will send you to a sleep specialist who will immediately schedule a sleep study or two! At least that was my experience. Medicare covers everything.

And 99 out of 100 times, they will tell you that you need a cpap machine...sign here....

 

[athena53]

And 99 out of 100 times, they will tell you that you need a cpap machine...sign here....

I'll try like mad to avoid that. They result in dry mouth, which causes all kinds of dental issues, and I have several implants and WAY too many fillings. I get cleanings 4X/year because of the implants and because of plaque build-up, so I don't want to introduce any new complications. Besides that, I travel a lot and don't want to be dragging a CPAP machine around in my bags when I fly. I could talk to my dentist first, of course, but am hoping that other changes and maybe one of the plastic mouth guards may work.

 

[harley]

And I am a nurse, so I talk about everything. Sometimes my DH has to stop me and say "hey, can you talk about this later, I'm eating."

I was a Biology major in college, enjoyed all the dissecting and study skins and all the other gross stuff. But after I married DW and she started working in a Pathology lab, I'd have to stop some of her dinner conversations too.

As far as the OP, I'm not convinced. I know sleep apnea is a real thing, but it also seems to be the diagnosis du jour. All symptoms for everything are probably related to sleep apnea? I doubt it, but time (and hopefully better science) will tell.

 

[ls99]

And 99 out of 100 times, they will tell you that you need a cpap machine...sign here....

I had that unfortunate encounter about 15 years ago.
It was utter BS.
Me thinks the doc was getting kickbacks from the apnea study people.

Nowadays if I have fluids to drink after 7PM or so, I might wake up to go.

 

[PatrickA5]

As far as the OP, I'm not convinced. I know sleep apnea is a real thing, but it also seems to be the diagnosis du jour. All symptoms for everything are probably related to sleep apnea? I doubt it, but time (and hopefully better science) will tell.

Ha! I went to a neurologist once with a long list of symptoms. He took one look at my 19 inch neck and said "sleep apnea". I asked how sleep apnea was causing my left lower leg to go numb? I think he was more interested in entertaining his cute intern than actually trying to figure out what was wrong with me. Didn't even order tests. Never went back. Found out a few years later that most of my issues were from neck (spinal cord issues).

 

[athena53]

As far as the OP, I'm not convinced. I know sleep apnea is a real thing, but it also seems to be the diagnosis du jour. All symptoms for everything are probably related to sleep apnea? I doubt it, but time (and hopefully better science) will tell.

In my case. I know that poor sleep means that the shortness of breath I experience on mild exertion occurs more often if I haven't gotten a good night's sleep. I've got a good cardiologist monitoring the mitral valve prolapse that's causing it, of course. From everything I see and read on medical topics, though, good sleep is necessary for a lot of bodily repair that goes on through the night and lack of sleep puts you at much higher risk for a lot of conditions including Alzheimer's. I figure a few steps to improve my sleep quality can't hurt, might help.

I moved dinner back by an hour last night and didn't consume any solids between then and bedtime and last night's snore score was 19, down form 24.

 

[bmcgonig]

If one has serious sleep apnea the a CPAP machine is a lifesaver, literally. From my sleep studies if I sleep on my back, I have very serious sleep apnea, I.e., 60 or 70 events per hour. If I sleep on my side, about 6 or 7. Which is considered mild to moderate but is probably average.

I just never sleep on my back.

 

[aja8888]

In my case. I know that poor sleep means that the shortness of breath I experience on mild exertion occurs more often if I haven't gotten a good night's sleep. I've got a good cardiologist monitoring the mitral valve prolapse that's causing it, of course. From everything I see and read on medical topics, though, good sleep is necessary for a lot of bodily repair that goes on through the night and lack of sleep puts you at much higher risk for a lot of conditions including Alzheimer's. I figure a few steps to improve my sleep quality can't hurt, might help.

I moved dinner back by an hour last night and didn't consume any solids between then and bedtime and last night's snore score was 19, down form 24.

My wife had a leaking mitral valve and got it replaced. Not a fun operation. The replacement basically did no noticeable good. Her heart was the healthiest part of her body. Unfortunately, her lungs were gone.

I use my Fibit to monitor my sleep and have for three years now. Oxygen saturation is always normal and also no identified sleep/waking problems. My average sleep length is 6.28 hours per night over that time. I take no naps.

The three of my morning coffee friends who have Cpap machines are ALL very overweight and not in good physical condition (low cardio - essentially lazy). These are smart men in their mid 70's with poor eating habits and little or no real exercise. They are "cruising for a bruising" so I say. One had a small stroke last year at 76 but came out OK except his memory is not so great anymore.

 

[SJhawkins]

One of my life regrets, not going for sleep study sooner, my spouse was on my butt for 20 years to go in.

3 or so years into my CPAP use and what a huge difference for me, it's crazy how much better I feel. More energy, wake up rested and rarely get up to use the rest room anymore!

As a side note you can get an at home sleep test from Amazon, same one I got from my sleep doctor actually. Some say you can't get a prescription, some say can with another fee, etc, I have no idea.

BTW, I'm not crazy big and exercise 4-5days a week, your typical 50s dad body

 

[athena53]

My wife had a leaking mitral valve and got it replaced. Not a fun operation. The replacement basically did no noticeable good. Her heart was the healthiest part of her body. Unfortunately, her lungs were gone.

I've heard stories like that. My late MIL (OK, this was 1982 and she had damage from rheumatic fever as a child) but she died 6 months after her surgery. My cardiologist is a laid-back, "If it ain't broke don't fix it" guy who is VERY supportive of my workouts and me generally healthy lifestyle.

Some interesting data points form SnoreLab: Tuesday night my score was only 5 (maybe the portable A/C unit in DS and DDIL's home drowned it out?) and the last 2 nights at the Hilton O'Hare have been in the 90s but we have a room with the runway view. Maybe those planes taking off registered as Epic snore levels! Heading back to Des Moines today. So, a few data points but too many things changing!

 

[Teacher Terry]

I lost all my teeth from cpap as they rotted from the inside out. My dentist bought the practice from her dad and asks on a form if you use a machine because if you do you can coat your teeth with a Biotene gel that protects them.

I had severe apnea stopping breathing 78 times a hour. 3 years ago I lost 50lbs and was hoping my apnea was gone. I have a small mouth and airway and a 25 bmi so did another sleep study. Now I only have between 4-6 a night which is normal but still need the machine because my oxygen level drops to low.

 

[braumeister]

My dentist bought the practice from her dad

Pretty cool to hear of another one. My dentist also bought the practice from her dad. Father was a fantastic dentist and his daughter is shaping up to be the same. We've been going there for decades and still love the place.

 

[Time2]

, had to laugh and almost lost my coffee. I think yours is the first post I've read that mentions farts! Ah, well, a natural body function. And I am a nurse, so I talk about everything. Sometimes my DH has to stop me and say "hey, can you talk about this later, I'm eating."
And yes, it is refreshing that folks here are free to discuss so many different topics. I really enjoy this forum!

Thanks for the info on the Snorelab app. I plan to download and check.

I downloaded the app and then realized I listen to Youtube videos, old time radio and/or a radio station all night long. I don't think they and Snorelab are compatible.
I've used a pillow speaker for 40 years, not sure I can sleep without it!

 

[badatmath]

I was looking at a book on hypertension and it mentioned some of the meds cause leg edema which then causes you to pee at night as the fluid gets released back into the blood stream when you are at rest. Thought of this thread so adding.

 

[athena53]

An update: I'm grateful to the OP for posting this video. I took the step of cutting out any solid foods after 7 PM (I will NOT give up my nightly 2 oz. of whisky around 9 PM). Snore score was down to 15, my sleep quality (in terms of REM and Deep sleep) is far better and now I get up once or twice at night instead of 4+ times. It appears I don't need to consult a sleep doc since that change has made a significant difference.

I LOVE cheap prevention!