a new life...

So last night I slept at the sleep clinic with the CPAP machine, and it was amazing!

First of all, falling asleep wasn't all that bad. The application of the "mask" was not that uncomfortable. At first, getting used to having a continuous stream of air being pushed into your nose was slightly uncomfortable, but it's amazing how fast your body adjusts! I actually had a pretty easy time falling asleep, and the air pressure helped me to focus on my breathing and slow down my thought process. I think a lot of times when I have a hard time sleeping, I let my brain race about so many different things. With the CPAP therapy, I was able to clear my mind and just focus on breathing, and my breaths were deep.

Well, I recall having to adjust a few times in the middle of the night, but the technician overseeing my therapy said that I slept well. At first, I started with a pressure level of 5. Over the course of the night, I started to snore occasionally, and the technician finally leveled me off at 9. I guess at a level 9 I had a pretty steady, consistant breathing pattern. The doctor said that I should expect to feel better immediately, and in fact, today was amazing!

I have to admit, I had a harder time waking up and getting out of bed, which is typical because I had experienced a deeper sleep than usual, and it took longer to awake. However, once I was up, I was alert like no other! My senses were like on overdrive, and I could actually feel myself think and process better. My first thought was, "Well this can explain a lot...what might I have been able to achieve had I known that this is what life is supposed to be like!?" I told the technician last night that had I been more educated about this, I might have done this study 10 years ago! I seriously want to become an advocate for helping people identify their sleep disorders. Your quality of life does not have to be the way it is, with proper treatment for sleep disorders, we can all appreciate life as it is intended!

From 6:15 until now, I had no urgings to want to nap today. On most regular days like today, I could easily fall asleep for 30 minutes or so by 2pm. Today, there was no way that I was going to fall asleep. I was too alert and too awake to be able to nap.

The technician (who is now my buddy), said that my oxygen levels were at 95-98% last night...up 22 percentage points higher than last week! My brain was able to actually REST for a whole night...without having to be on guard to wake my body up because of obstructed airways. It was by far the best sleep of my life as I know it, and it was done in a strange bed, with wires connected to my body, with a mask on my face for the first time, and with someone watching me sleep all night long. I can't wait to experience the quality of life this experience will bring to me once I get use the CPAP on a regular basis!

Well, I thought I'd just share that small tidbit of information from my experience last night...look for my normal blog next week Sunday or Monday!

A shout out to my first two official "followers" of my blog...Jake and Conrad! Thanks!