the sleep study was easy. basically, all i had to do was sit there, and try really hard not to laugh while the technician prepped me. i don’t know–the procedure just seemed so silly.
the tech connected me to all of these wires, and used that sticky but not really sticky stuff that keeps gift cards in place in their envelopes. and regular transparent tape. lots of that, which sucked because it made my neck itch after a while–the front of my neck, too, not the back. wires were placed all over my face, on my chest, and on my legs.
what i didn’t expect was having 2 straps wrapped around my torso. i don’t know what they were for, but it certainly wasn’t to hold everything in place. in the picture above, i was sitting on a chair on the left side of the bed. however, the equipment was on the right side, so i had to walk all the way around with all of these wires dangling from me. i noticed that the straps didn’t have any obvious purpose.
i know, i know. the pictures suck. for some reason the auto-flash thing isn’t working, and maybe we just need a camera with a faster shutter speed. speaking of cameras, there was one mounted near the ceiling across the room. curiously, it was pointed towards Brian’s side of the bed, which was the side that didn’t have all of the equipment on the night stand. while mine had some sort of electronic box to which the wires were connected, Brian’s had a reading lamp and intercom on top (to be used to contact the technician if you have to go to the bathroom and be unhooked). it didn’t matter, though, because the wires were connected to computer monitors located wherever the techs do whatever it is they do. i guess they didn’t really need to see me in order to see me. know what i mean?
as you can imagine, those wires taped to my face were uncomfortable. i was so glad i had my trusty trazodone, because i have no idea how anyone could sleep with all that shit. the only bad part was that it was a 6-hour study. we were unceremoniously awoken at 5:00am, so i didn’t get to sleep off the trazodone. it was a good thing Brian was with me because there was no way i would have been able to drive home. they gave each of us packages of peanut butter and crackers and a juice box, then sent us on our way.
Hee hee! It’s the Bionic Woman (i.e. all the wires). Looking forward to finding out the results…
Barb-Do you only take the Trazodone to sleep?? I was prescribed it, but haven’t tried it yet.
I am glad you were able to get to sleep. I always wondered if I had to take a sleep test if I would be able to actually sleep.
I hope the results come out good. Cute pics hehe.
i take trazodone at night too. not working lately. : (
i hated the sleep apnea test. oh, and seriously, that first picture is cute. i’m not being sarcastic, you really are cute!
Oh I could so never do that. I have the worst insomnia WITHOUT tape stuck to my face, lol. I take Lunesta, but it doesn’t always work.
Hope your study turns out okay. My stepfather has sleep apnea…he has the “scary machine” as my mom calls it, lol.
Heee! Glad to hear the sleep study went okay.
Like the other readers said, I dunno that I could sleep even with drugs. I had such a hard time when I had my surgery sleeping in the hospital with all that crap stuck to me. They kept trying to get me to go to sleep at like 6pm. Uhm, duh. I’m a nightowl and I don’t sleep at night, dumbos.
Keep us informed of the results!
My lord woman! You look like you’re being prepped for space launch!
Ok this has made up my mind NOT to do this.
No way I would get any sleep.
Thanks for posting about it Barb.
You have been tagged for the Mania Meme:
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You mean that sticky goo that feels a little like snot?
I could probably sleep with all the stuff attached, because when I’m tired, I am TIRED.
Keep us updated on the results!
There is no way I would have been able to sleep like that. They would have done a study on me staying awake all night.
If I didn’t know that this was a test, I’d be very worried for you.
So can you get acurate results when you take sleeping medication?
Queen, i do, but i don’t like it. i started taking it again when i was put on Ritalin a little while back, so i could stay awake. it worked a little too well, so the trazodone balances it out.
maggs, sorry to hear the trazodone isn’t working. maybe your p-doc can increase the dosage? as for the pics, i really was trying so hard not to laugh!
dan, if only.
Vicki, i guess it depends on how bad any of your symptoms are. i have absolutely no energy, so hopefully this will provide some answers.
monte, i hadn’t thought of it that way, but yeah, it did feel like snot!
bLitch, yep. they don’t test how deeply you sleep, but things like your snoring and breathing and how many times that wakes you up while you sleep. in people who have sleep apnea, the breathing gets cuts off. the body automatically wakes you (briefly, so you don’t even know it) in order to get you breathing again. this is why it can actually be fatal.
My sister had to do a sleep study and ended up having that Hannibal Lecter sleep mask. Sexy thang, that.
Hope the study shows good stuff and good dreams only :0)
5 a.m.? Shit. That sucks.
Oh… So you’re under some kind of therapy? I hope your condition will be fixed soon… BTW, you still look cute on those pics… Keep on smiling…
I hope it all comes out as good news
Im sure it will
I had that done years back. I felt like an alien by the time they got the wires all connected, lol. I hope everything comes out OK. God Bless.
Now that just looks comfy!! NOT! I love that you let all of us see pictures – I don’t know that I would have been so brave! Did they catch you snoring??
Those straps do have a purpose, and an important one. They measure the rise and fall of your chest and abdomen to get a feel for how much oxygen you are or aren’t taking in.
I’m surprised the tech didn’t explain this when he was prepping you.
looks like in a sci-fi movie about cyborgs and all. hehehehe
I’ve often wondered how people would sleep with all those wire and contacts etc, and even if they did, could they not disrupt the readings (or do they take that into account).
Anyway, I hope the results are good, and help to get back to a normal sleep pattern.
omgosh you are SO cute!!!! Cute as a button, you are! That does sound very uncomfortable, i cant wait until you get the results back & write about them.
I love the picture with Brian & the cat, both are good looking. heheh
hockey, i like to think of it more as a Vader mask than Lecter.
Driver, he didn’t explain a thing, but he mumbled a lot. thanks for letting me know what they were for.
everyone else, thanks for all the good wishes and not making fun of me.
I just did a sleep study about a month or so ago. I ended up with the Hannibal Lecter mask too. It was hard to get used to sleeping with it, but I do feel better than I did before.
I have a picture on my site of me in the mask, in case you were wondering just how attractive they are…lol.
Good luck to you and hopefully you will get good news.
i saw that picture of you, and it did kind of scare me a bit.
but it’s the end result that counts, right? as long as you’re actually sleeping. i’ll get the results today.