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Prince · 03-14-2008, 09:47 AM

For about a year now I've been feeling tired and uninterested in things. I started college (I'm 30) last fall and I've been feeling like my grades just are nowhere near what I am capable of. I try to study and I have to keep re-reading paragraphs because I'm just not absorbing what I read. My libido is practically non-existent. I wake up tired and all I look forward to is going home and taking a nap.

I began seeing a counselor here at the university a couple of months ago because I wasn't sure what the hell was wrong with me. I thought I might be depressed or something. I don't feel sad, just totally worn out. Depleted. She asked how I sleep, I said I go to bed early enough, but I don't get a good sleep b/c I wake up 10-20 times a night for no reason. My wife says I hold my breath in my sleep, and have been doing so for the 7 years she's known me. The counselor said it's considered a health problem. It even has a name...sleep apnea.

She sent me to the uni nurse who directed me to the campus doc who said I need to go outside the school and get a sleep study done. How much is it, I asked, he said around 3 or 4 grand. He said sleep apnea is one of the most undiagnosed but common health problems. At a price like that, I am not surprised. I don't understand where that expense comes from. Even the janitor of a sleep clinic must have his own private jet on 24-hour standby.

We don't have insurance. My wife, a Christian Scientist, doesn't believe in it, and is convinced that even if we had it, they wouldn't pay for the study anyway. We cannot afford the study ourselves. It would basically wipe out our bank account. I go to school full-time, while she works. We had the opposite arrangement when she was in college. She has made it clear that she doesn't consider my apparent sleep apnea a medical emergency, and that none of her money is going to be wasted on something that a little weight loss will cure. I can't get under the indigent care service blanket in our city because my wife's annual income exceeds whatever income limit they have set. They don't consider existing expenses, just the net income.

I don't feel well. I had to get on propranolol due to high blood pressure last summer. It lowers my pulse but does very little for the BP. It just stays there at around 155/110. I always wondered why that was, I guess this apnea thing would explain it. I have occasional mild chest pains in random places, and pinching localized headaches that come and go. I figured I was just depressed and they were psychosomatic symptoms. Now I am not so sure.

I told the campus doc I can't afford a 4G sleep study. He told me to start taking aspirin to prevent blood clots.

I feel like this whole thing is a slow death sentence. I know that as long as you want something bad enough, you can find a way to make it happen. So getting this taken care of should be no sweat. But I feel incapacitated by this shit.

I don't know whether I should drop out from uni and get a job, but then I worry about being able to do my work properly. I'm a CNA by trade, and I can't be at some LTC or hospital walking around like I'm a zombie. At the same time, I can't go on like this.

If anyone has any apnea-related stories to share, or how they handled it with low income, I would appreciate it.

03-14-2008, 09:47 AM	#1 (permalink)
Prince /nɑndəsˈkrɪpt/ Location: LV-426	Apnea, the slow death sentence? For about a year now I've been feeling tired and uninterested in things. I started college (I'm 30) last fall and I've been feeling like my grades just are nowhere near what I am capable of. I try to study and I have to keep re-reading paragraphs because I'm just not absorbing what I read. My libido is practically non-existent. I wake up tired and all I look forward to is going home and taking a nap. I began seeing a counselor here at the university a couple of months ago because I wasn't sure what the hell was wrong with me. I thought I might be depressed or something. I don't feel sad, just totally worn out. Depleted. She asked how I sleep, I said I go to bed early enough, but I don't get a good sleep b/c I wake up 10-20 times a night for no reason. My wife says I hold my breath in my sleep, and have been doing so for the 7 years she's known me. The counselor said it's considered a health problem. It even has a name...sleep apnea. She sent me to the uni nurse who directed me to the campus doc who said I need to go outside the school and get a sleep study done. How much is it, I asked, he said around 3 or 4 grand. He said sleep apnea is one of the most undiagnosed but common health problems. At a price like that, I am not surprised. I don't understand where that expense comes from. Even the janitor of a sleep clinic must have his own private jet on 24-hour standby. We don't have insurance. My wife, a Christian Scientist, doesn't believe in it, and is convinced that even if we had it, they wouldn't pay for the study anyway. We cannot afford the study ourselves. It would basically wipe out our bank account. I go to school full-time, while she works. We had the opposite arrangement when she was in college. She has made it clear that she doesn't consider my apparent sleep apnea a medical emergency, and that none of her money is going to be wasted on something that a little weight loss will cure. I can't get under the indigent care service blanket in our city because my wife's annual income exceeds whatever income limit they have set. They don't consider existing expenses, just the net income. I don't feel well. I had to get on propranolol due to high blood pressure last summer. It lowers my pulse but does very little for the BP. It just stays there at around 155/110. I always wondered why that was, I guess this apnea thing would explain it. I have occasional mild chest pains in random places, and pinching localized headaches that come and go. I figured I was just depressed and they were psychosomatic symptoms. Now I am not so sure. I told the campus doc I can't afford a 4G sleep study. He told me to start taking aspirin to prevent blood clots. I feel like this whole thing is a slow death sentence. I know that as long as you want something bad enough, you can find a way to make it happen. So getting this taken care of should be no sweat. But I feel incapacitated by this shit. I don't know whether I should drop out from uni and get a job, but then I worry about being able to do my work properly. I'm a CNA by trade, and I can't be at some LTC or hospital walking around like I'm a zombie. At the same time, I can't go on like this. If anyone has any apnea-related stories to share, or how they handled it with low income, I would appreciate it. __________________ Who is John Galt?