Sleep Apnea

[t6texan]

Hello was recently diagnosed  with sleep apnea. Does  Any of you other spa users have it? I was wondering how safe is it to use the spa , and what issues I should watch out for, other than no more hot tubing by myself.

[wmccall]

I was diagnosed with SEVERE sleep apnea several years ago.  Do you find yourself falling asleep when driving?  If not, the hot tub isn't much different.  I rarely use the tub alone, but don't hesitate when the need arises. Now narcolepsy would be a different story.

[Vinny]

I would say that if you find yourself falling asleep easily a lot then there will be a concern. I too have been diagnosed with severe sleep apnea and I function great most of the time.

I am a stomach sleeper and all of the tests have you laying on your back or side so I have to question the validity of the tests. My friend who runs the sleep lab where I had my test wonders how I function at all with the amount of incidents that I had - but being hooked up to wires and not being able to sleep on my stomach may have been the problem of why it was so bad.

There are also ways to deal with sleep apnea with the most effective being using a CPAP/BiPAP machine. Basically this blows air into your nose and/or mouth while you sleep and keeps the air passage open. People who get used to this clain they feel 1000% better.

[t6texan]

No ! only had one experience so far that I felt I could very easily fall asleep while driving home.

[t6texan]

Yes Vinny I do know about the Cpap machines but unfortunatly I havent goten mine yet.  

[Vinny]

Yes Vinny I do know about the Cpap machines but unfortunatly I havent goten mine yet.  

Unfortunately, I never got used to my machine. It would develop a leak right by my eye blowing into my eye. I tried different masks and finally gave up.

Good luck with the machine!

[fdegree]

I guess I fit right in.  I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few years ago.  On average, an episode every 5 minutes...really sucks!!!

The CPAP didn't work for me either, also tried a few different masks.  Learning to deal with it for now.  But, I think I will revisit the medical community soon to see if there are any other options.

Anyway, regarding the hot tub...no worries for me.  I don't seem to even begin to get sleepy in the tub.  I guess I'm too busy star gazing...or something like that  

[kokanee001]

I, too, suffer from sleep apnea. I use a CPAP machine every night. Also have an oxygen machine joined into it. Helps me rest a lot better. The masks have changed a lot every year, and the latest one isn't even a mask; just a pad that rests against the nostrils and blows air in. It would be nice not to be hooked up to anything, but advances have come a long way.

I don't find using my hot tub any different than driving. And I certainly don't worry about using my hot tub alone any more than I worry about driving alone.

[t6texan]

Well im going outside to use my spa This will be the first time ive used it in quite a while .  The air temp is cool but not to cold so it should be nice.

[wmccall]

Yes Vinny I do know about the Cpap machines but unfortunatly I havent goten mine yet.  

I've had mine 3 years and never got use to the #$%$ thing.  I finally decided on a surgical option.  And Vinny, I've been through 4 of those sleep tests and I would rather have a root canal than ever do another one.

[t6texan]

My sleep test was no fun either. First getting all those wires and probs  put on you, makes it really hard to relax mutch less turn over in the bed.  Not to mention the place where I had my test the landscape maintance crew decided they needed to run their gas powered leaf blowers around the grounds of the sleep study clinic at 10:00 pm for two hours straight.

[Spatech_tuo]

My sisted had this bad and slept with the mask/machine nightly. She was also noticeably overweight, got bypass surgery, lost 150 lbs and the problem was totally solved.

[Bonibelle]

My husband has a CPAP and I forced him to use it ..It is horrible sleeping with someone who snores very very loudly and then just stops breathing.  So we were both sleep deprived. When I finally moved out of the room, he conceeded to a sleep test and realized that he had a problem. The CPAP made a big difference (for both of us). The real solution though was, like Spatech said, weight loss. Since my husband has lost weight, he doesn't need the machine any longer.

I don't think having sleep apnea would raise any extra concern in the tub.

[wmccall]

My sisted had this bad and slept with the mask/machine nightly. She was also noticeably overweight, got bypass surgery, lost 150 lbs and the problem was totally solved.

That is where I am at.  I've lost 33 pounds so far and only have 50 to go.  ( I did the lap band, not the full bypass.)

[Bonibelle]

Bill, if you have done surgery, you probably have exhausted every diet out there..but I have to say the South Beach Diet is the easiest way to not only lose weight, but reduce your chance of diabetes. My husband and I did it last year this time and each lost over 30 lbs. It took months, but it was very easy. Dieting with your partner sure makes losing weight easier and if you learn why the diet works, you can keep the weight from coming back. I know for me, the coffee creamers packed on the pounds. I didn't realize how much I was using of that stuff (fat free flavored creamers). The biggest benefit of dropping that weight for me was relief from the arthritis in my knee. So combined with the hot tub, weight loss is also the ticket for managing arthritis.