Sleeping better??

 After several nights last week when I was unable to wear the sleep mask , I am ready to admit that it helps me sleep better.

I sleep more soundly, I do not wake up as much, and I feel better when I do wake up.

The jury is still out, though, on whether the improved sleep is worth the hassle, especially for someone who has Friedreich's ataxia.

One night last week I was unable to wear the mask because it was too tight on my face. We have had to put tape around the straps so I don't accidentally pull the velcro loose. Thus, I am unable to loosen the straps on purpose.

The other night I couldn't wear it because the air blowing in was too warm. I cannot adjust the air temperature on my own.

There is a device that is implanted in one's throat that opens the air passage that is closed off in sleep apnea.-

I asked my sleep doctor several years ago if I could use this device. He left me a long voicemail telling me why it would not work for me. As I recall, the main reason was that my sleep apnea was neurologic and would not respond to the device. This made sense to me so I didn't push it.

I asked him again in the last year, and his answer was completely different. He said, this time anyway, that I did not reach the threshold for using the device, but if I wanted to spend the night in the sleep lab again, they could see if I now reached the threshold. The sleep lab is located in the hospital where I spent too much time last summer, so I did not want to go there of my own volition. I still don't.

I am also not convinced that my sleep doctor would not take a closer look and say, "oh yeah you're not eligible. You have neurologic apnea."

I still have to stay awake until I am really sleepy to wear it successfully. I'm not sure that doesn't defeat the whole purpose of sleeping better.