No offense - I'm assuming there are cases of sleep apnea in younger individuals that aren't related to obesity, so feel free to tell me to eff off - but you should probably focus on losing weight. Wearing a mask to bed every night is no way to live, and there are so many other health problems associated with excessive weight. Focus on your health!
eff off, you're wrong. If he has sleep apnea it is unlikely that losing weight will help, only if he has a mild form.
I knew I had sleep apnea when I was a freshman in college. I was 6'2" 160 lbs. Unfortunately I am from a home town with not many medical options and the Lafene Health Center didn't offer much help. It wasn't until I moved to Wichita 7 years later and saw real doctors that I was able to get a sleep study. I was not only snoring heavily but doing all of that crazy crap like falling asleep at stop lights. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, so sleep apnea is not a condition for just obese people. Flo Hyman was one of the best volleyball players in American history and she died of a heart attack on the floor while playing. She had marfan syndrome which caused sleep apnea. Reggie White also died from complications caused by sleep apnea.
ShellShock, even if you are obese or can stand to lose a few pounds, that doesn't have a rough ridin' thing to do with what you need to do now. These rough ridin' morons popping their mouths off on here aren't doctors, eff them. The sleep study was a rough ridin' nightmare for me. I went to the sleep center and they hooked all of these wires and sensors all over my face and body. They tried to make me go to bed at 10:00PM, just go straight to sleep. No music, books, tv, nothing; they just wanted you to sleep with all of this crap hooked up to you while they were watching you. Well the entire night, 10-6AM I slept for 45 rough ridin' minutes. I had to go back a second time and I convinced them to let me read and when I got tired I would put the book down, turn the lights off and go to sleep. They allowed me to read and I slept. I averaged 42 events per hour which, is awful.
I was given the choice to have surgery or to go on the cpap and I elected for the cpap, not a fan of elective surgeries. I started with a full face mask, you are allowed to breath normally while awake when wearing the full face. I noticed a difference the first night. I stopped using the full face mask because it wasn't comfortable and it looked stupid. I went to one that just covered my nose but that was crazy hard to use, so I went back to the full face permanently. You never ever ever get used to the mask, I have had mine for a decade now. I still mess with it on a nightly basis. I switched to a new brand last winter and I was thinking over the weekend that I want to switch back to what I used before. Despite never getting used to the mask, using the cpap has absolutely changed my life. You have no idea how much negative impact sleep apnea has on your life until it gets fixed. There are times when I don't use my mask because I fall asleep before I put it on and I pay for it. I don't know if this is because I am older but when I forget my apneas are much more severe, I wake up gasping for air and it takes me a few more seconds before I can get a breath, its like drowning out of water.
ShellShock, run don't walk to the nearest sleep center and get it done man, your life depends on it. Oh also, if you do have sleep apnea and have to get a cpap DO NOT get your supplies from APRIA healthcare. They charged my insurance $750 for a mask that costs $100 on the internet. My insurance came after me for the money. Also do not buy a cpap used or any of the equipment used, it needs to be calibrated to what your sleep needs are, if you travel to high altitudes you will also need to take it in to be recalibrated.
