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DiscussionCould a good night's rest be a purchase away? Your experience
Sleep Health | Last Active: Jun 15, 2023 | Replies (15)Comment receiving replies
Replies to "I totally agree! I have Type one Narcolepsy, opiates are the only medication that keeps my..."
Dear Sleepstate,
Wow!
Good luck to you. Everybody is different. To hear of your problems is comforting in a crazy way that there are other people in pain also.
Those white jackets don’t listen to us
An example:
Two years ago after major surgery, I was in the ICU waking up. They had intubated me, and locked down my left wrist and right wrist to the bed, in order to prevent me from taking out any tubes or IVs or intubation tubes.
I couldn’t breathe! I’m on my
I have severe, severe sleep apnea. I have been using a CPAP machine religiously for 30 years, before it was trendy.
Obviously, I could not talk. I signal to the nurse to give me a pad of paper and a ball point to write on.
I wrote “I can’t breathe!”
She replied that the tube was providing 21% oxygen. My second note said I was not getting any oxygen or any air going to my lungs because my esophagus had collapsed because of my severe sleep apnea.
There was a guy in the hall that I signal to, with my right index finger to come towards me.
I pointed towards my CPAP machine which was over there on the shelf.
After writing more notes, they finally released my arms and I pulled out the intubation hose and replaced it with my CPAP pillows.
I really thought I was going to die, because I could not breathe. the nurses, and everyone were very smart, however, they did not read my charts, which showed that I had severe sleep apnea.
I told the nurse “21% oxygen? How about close to zero? Because none of it was getting through my windpipe.”
Dear “white lab coats” out there, please listen to your patients. Sometimes, sometimes, we know more about ourselves than you know about ourselves.
Please listen to us.
Please listen to us.