Lacy Rose

You have a few of my diagnosies. I struggled quite a bit with sleep; falling asleep, staying asleep and having nightmares. I was seeing my GP for my meds - we had tried several different meds that weren't working. I was the one to ask my GP for a sleep study.

When we sleep, our muscles are suppose to go into a paralytic state to protect us. That you are actually moving around aggressively is a problem. There is a diagnosis called restless leg syndrome. I wonder if you have a form of it.

I think a sleep study is a great idea. It's a pretty simple test. You spend the night in a comfortable, hotel like room. Sensors are placed on your arms and legs to monitor muscle movement. More sensors are placed on your head to monitor your brain activity, and when and how long you are in each sleep stage. They monitor your heart rate, breathing and oxygen saturation. And finally, there is a camera in the room to watch you as you sleep. If they see you are in danger they wake you and do whatever needs to be done.

You get your results in a few days and a plan to resolve any issues your study shows.

My results showed I had sleep apnea. I stopped breathing several times an hour, sometimes for as long as a minute and I was only getting to 2 of the 5 stages of sleep. I was put on a CPAP that has helped quite a bit. I still struggle with sleep, but it's more due to what I'm working on in therapy. I do take sleep meds to help. I sleep much better.