Photo by elizabeth lies on Unsplash

Sleep. The thing that we all crave and desperately want, but often it eludes us. When we are anxious, when we are stressed, when our minds tumble down the infinite waves of to-do lists, sleep often evades us. Sometimes, though, there are deeper reason as to why sleep patterns are off, and we wake up feeling tired and groggy.

Sure, our kids and pets wake us up, late night and early morning activities, and occasionally an over-active bladder as well. Yet, hormones and brain wave regulation play a LARGE role in our sleep patterns too. Along with how much we doomscroll at 1 AM, too!

Over a year ago, I was having difficulty sleeping. Falling asleep at 2AM, waking up for work, repeat cycle. No real reasons why, as my labs showed normal results in many things like sugars. My PC doctor suggested I meet with a pulmonary doctor to discuss a sleep study. Sleep apnea and narcolepsy run in my family, so she just wanted to try to head it off before it could be harmful to my health. 

It took over a YEAR (a whole different discussion could be had on healthcare and referrals) to get in to see the pulmonary doc. After going over my difficulties, we decided to start with an at- home sleep study. 

After a couple of months, I had to pick up this device that will record my snoring and breathing patterns during the night to determine how many times I stop breathing. 

That is what impacts sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a disorder in which breathing stops and restarts during the night. This is definitely harmful, dangerous, and could lead to death. Sleep apnea is caused by many things: body anatomy (how our mouth, nose, and lungs are all connected), lifestyle choices, obesity, hormones, and even neck size. 

Back to the study: The device comes with a nose chord (much like the kind one finds in a hospital room when oxygen is needed), a pulse monitor that goes on the finger, and a belt to wrap the device around you while sleeping. It monitors your pulse ox, your breathing patterns, and how your breathing is impacted during the night! 

This is recommended because it is difficult to schedule a regular sleep study, and to determine if there are further needs. 

Mine monitored accordingly, and I met with the PA today to go over results. The machine recorded little snoring and little breathing that would indicate I do have sleep apnea. The PA wants me to consider an in-person sleep study, but I've been sleeping pretty regularly lately so we both decided to hold off and see if my symptoms get worse. All I have to do is send a message to get it scheduled.

What would a real sleep study show that the at-home one didn't? They can monitor movement (perhaps restless leg syndrome is waking me up), they can also monitor what types of sleep levels you are in (active, REM, etc), and how your breathing is impacted during the night. 

They might even be able to discover how hormones play a role in your sleep as well. Anyone else waking up in sweat? No? Just me? 

In the meantime, he recommends that I do the stuff we ignore: put away the tech before sleeping, unwind with a pattern, keep a bedtime, drink water and not caffeine, etc. Also, exercise and stretching help a lot with sleep too! 

When I first received the referral, I didn't have my dog, I didn't walk a gazillion steps a day, and I probably wasn't eating all that great either. I've changed my habits over the year, and yea, I still don't often eat well every day, but I have definitely lost weight, so I know that is a contributing factor. 

I still have a long way to go in that area, but for now, at least sleep apnea isn't bothering me! Perhaps it's hormones, or even restless leg as I do toss and turn all night, but I am receiving quality & better sleep lately so we are holding off on the in-person test for now. I'll monitor my sleep now that my two major summer events are over and see what I'm like heading towards the fall! 

So, if you are having problems with sleeping, don't ignore them, even if you think it's stress. There could be something else underlying causing issues that can be more detrimental in the future. 

For me, this doesn't mean the journey is over, it just means its on pause to see if there is really something there, or maybe it was just a stressful period of time.