I checked into the Sleep Center at Steven’s Hospital after I got off work around 7:30. I was already so exhausted from sleep deprivation that the couch in their lobby started to look inviting! I handed in the usual medical office forms I was given to fill out along with a brief sleep routine diary I was instructed to keep over the previous week.
I met Chelsea, my tech for the night, who was as sweet as can be and being about the same age with quite a bit in common she made the ordeal feel more like a slumber party than a sleep study!
The biggest surprise was how comfortable the room was made up to be. It was very similar to a hotel room with a TV, DVD player, and a private bathroom with a shower. I also had access to a kitchen just down the hall with juice and snacks. All this time I was expecting some kind of cell with bunk beds and a big Plexiglas window. I imagined being one of several subjects being studied by a panel of scientists like an experiment. Just further proving that my imagination can run amuck and that I’ve probably watched WAY too much television!
I met Chelsea, my tech for the night, who was as sweet as can be and being about the same age with quite a bit in common she made the ordeal feel more like a slumber party than a sleep study!
The biggest surprise was how comfortable the room was made up to be. It was very similar to a hotel room with a TV, DVD player, and a private bathroom with a shower. I also had access to a kitchen just down the hall with juice and snacks. All this time I was expecting some kind of cell with bunk beds and a big Plexiglas window. I imagined being one of several subjects being studied by a panel of scientists like an experiment. Just further proving that my imagination can run amuck and that I’ve probably watched WAY too much television!
After I got settled, changed into jammies, and found an Olympic hockey game on TV, Chelsea came in to hook me up to all the monitors. My jaw hit the floor when she told me cheerfully that the whole process would take about 30 minutes. I hit the Mute button on the TV and Chelsea proceeded to glue approximately 30 sensors to my arms, legs, chest, face, and head while we gabbed, joked, and giggled like a couple of teenagers. I’ve never been very photogenic so I was reluctant to have Chelsea take a photo of me and in the end I looked downright frightful so I deleted the picture.
At last it was bedtime. For the first part of the night I was instructed to sleep on my back as much as possible for more accurate readings. If I showed signs of apnea during the first few hours Chelsea would come in and put me on a CPAP machine and conduct the rest of the study with that on. I don’t think I slept well for the first part of the night but I managed to produce enough data to move on to the CPAP portion of the study. I found the nasal pillow type mask the most comfortable to sleep with and was surprised when Chelsea came in and quietly told me that it was 6am already! I had slept through most of the night!
The surprises weren’t quite over though. As Chelsea unhooked all the monitors she told me that the adhesive used had to be MELTED OFF by standing under the hot shower for about five minutes. It really took about 30 minutes of scrubbing and rinsing before I was glue free and beautifully exfoliated!
As I checked out and thanked Chelsea for listening to me snore all night long she told me that it would be a week or two before my sleep study report is generated and reviewed by Dr. McCoy. I’m still waiting for a call to set up an appointment to go over everything but in the meantime I did get set up with a CPAP machine just today and I am very much looking forward to getting some actual sleep for the first time in who knows how long!
All of this gives me a renewed excitement for my surgery that is now less than 1 month away! I am finally allowing myself to imagine what it will be like, and my heart is pounding with the anticipation of feeling what I haven’t experienced since I was a teenager… refreshed, energized, and healthy!
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