Hey!! I have been lurking since my Dr. said I needed a sleep study. So last night was the night and it didn't go as planned.I had trouble getting to sleep and then woke up several times during the night so they said they couldn't do a split study,and of course they wouldn't tell me anything except to see my dr for the results. He did however say that if I come for another study it would all be with a c-pap mask. I hope they were able to get positive results as I need help I am about to loose my sanity!!!  I NEED GOOD SLEEP!!  I just get a little concerned with how long this process is taking.

Call the sleep center back during the day and ask for your results.  Without knowing the protocol, I would think if they said the next study would be with CPAP, that you may have it.

If the clinic is any good, the implication of what you were told is that they got enough sleep recorded to make an assessment. It may take a week or more for your sleep doctor to evaluate your sleep study results and to report the results to your doctor. It often is a good idea (as Insomniyak has suggested) to follow up with either your doctor or the sleep lab and sleep doctor about your results and then to check back with them every few days until the results are received.

Once you receive the results, ask for a copy of the full sleep study report (often, if you get anything you get a brief summary lasting a page or 2 rather than the full study, which will typically run 5 pages or so and will contain a lot of information not discussed in the summary.

Be prepared for the possibility of of further delays in scheduling the follow-up study (if it is decided that you need one), then waiting for the results of the second study and then waiting for the prescription, the DME and the machine. Sometimes this process can go very quickly but for others of us the process can take months.

Do hang in there and let us know if we can help with your results if they are confusing to you.

Best wishes,
Bill

thanks for the replies!! a little more info. The sleep center said for me to call the dr today and set an appointment to go over the results with him,and they would be available to him at 8:00 this a.m.

Hi katiesdad,

Don't be discouraged over your first sleep study.  It's actually far less common for folks to get the split night study.  And actually, that could be a blessing, because split night studies have a certain criteria and one of them is high severity.  Most people with sleep apnea need the two studies.  And it's actually preferable to have a full night for the second (titration) study, for the tech to have enough time to get the right pressure and try other masks if needed.  The labs know that most people during the first study will sleep horribly.  They already have sleep problems.  Then adding a different bed and being all wired up .... it's even harder to sleep like that.  But even with a horrible sleep, you'd be surprised just how much you did sleep even though you might think you didn't sleep at all.  Plus they only need a few hours of actual sleep time to get results.  But as the others have said, get copies of your sleep study reports; that way you know what your doctor knows.

As Bill said, hang in there.  Yes, this process can be frustrating, especially when you think there's treatment for what you might have.  It all will happen.  Let us know how things go.



Linda

I can totally identify with what Linda said.  I felt as if I didn't sleep at all and they wouldn't tell me.  Only reason I knew I slept 4 hours was I looked at my cell phone.  Yeah, I feel much better having a second night and going in early at that.  I can't wait, now knowing there is a solution to this insanity created by lack of sleep.

I go in for the titration study in 2 weeks.  In the meantime, I have been calling some DMEs and found 2 that seem good.  Hope it is not the hell that some people experience with DMEs.

Good luck and keep us posted.
Noah

I'm new to all of this and waiting for the next step.  What is DME?

Good luck in your next step.

seajay515 wrote:

I'm new to all of this and waiting for the next step.  What is DME?

Good luck in your next step.

DME - Durable Medical Equipment

Basically, these are the people who are going to give you your xPAP if diagnosed with SA.

I am also fairly new to the process. I encourage you to continue reading these boards. They contain tons of great information for each step of the process. Don't hesitate to post a question on something you are not familiar with. From reading these boards I felt I was more than prepared and knew what to expect from my sleep study. I am now in the process of meeting with the DME to get my CPAP. Once again, the board helped me determine what features I needed and which ones are nice to haves. Good luck with the process.

Seajay.
What you wanna do is call your insurance co or go on their website and find out who the area Durable Medical Equipment  providors are in your area.   Once you find out what type of xPAP, the model you want, etc., call some DMEs to see what they have, how quickly their turn around is on setting you up with one once they have a prescription in hand, and what their return policy is on masks should you need to try a few of them.  See what your first impression are over the phone.  I have found some in my area that don't even know if they carry the models I was checking or don't know how long it would take for them to get it.  I even had one tell me about the mask policy, "After your first night, you should already know what mask is comfortable"  Being that I am perpetually tired and cranky these days as I am 2 weeks from my 2nd study, I wanted to tell them to get bent.  Needless, they scored low on my competancy test so they are out.

Lotsa good feed back on this site about different xPAPs.

Do you know if you will be on a CPAP or a BiPAP??

It looks like I will be on a Bipap with oxygen.  I may need to see a Neurologist or Pulmonary specialist.  I'm trying to learn all I can about Complex A.  These boards have really helped a lot.

Just to clarify what Insomniyak was saying: your insurance probably is NOT contracted w/all the local DME suppliers so your call is to find out which local DME CPAP suppliers they ARE contracted with. Hopefully, you will have the option of more than one. It is beneficial if they have a lenient mask exchange policy because what can seem like a good mask for you the first night or two can turn out to be NOT the mask for you a week to 10 days later.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity & Micro masks, ResScan 3.4, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

And...the DME does not give us the equipment...I know that was just the wording but...they are a store/vendor/supplier, like a drug store but, a store/warehouse for medical equipment not drugs.  We (or our insurance that we pay for) purchases the equipment from them...so, they are not doing us favors by supplying us...has to be a good relationship all around.

Make sure you ask when you speak with them if they have a Respirtory Therapist on staff (RT)..I have learned that some do not in my area.


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BiPAP Auto M 13/8 Mirage Nasal Swift. 20 years+ undx'd. RLS/PLMD, Hypersomnia & more.