Recently, I began having health problems and saw my doctor ... who referred me to three specialists. One of those specialists was a sleep medicine specialist who wanted me to do an "apnealink" sleep apnea screening. This is not a full-blown "sleep study." Rather, I'd take a small machine home with me to monitor my sleep habits and, for one night, sleep with it hooked up to me.
To do this, I checked myself into a motel. Reason? Sometimes, my cat, Velcro, will jump up on a dresser near my bed and JUMP on me while I sleep. And other times, she'll come up to me while I'm asleep and claw an exposed elbow (grin). Of course, both things wake me right up. So, because I wanted a "clean" test, I decided to do it at a motel.
Sleep apnea, for those who don't know, is a condition where people stop breathing for short periods of time while they sleep. This is actually considered normal ... but only as long as the number of cessations is 5 or less per hour. My screening score? 93 times per hour.
My primary physician said it was nearly "off the scale" ... and a clerk in the sleep medicine specialist's office said it was the worst score she'd ever seen. Untreated, sleep apnea could cause a sufferer to go to sleep and (ulp) simply stop breathing altogether and not wake up. Bottom line? I'm going to need either a CPAP or BiPAP machine to assist in breathing while I sleep (and this is for the rest of my life). And next week, I'll have the full sleep study and be "fitted" for one.
But ... back to my cat, Velcro. A thought occurred to me ... and the sleep medicine doctor thinks I might be onto something. It could be that the jumping and clawing activities of my cat are "on purpose" ... that she knows I've stopped breathing and is doing it to "revive" me. In short, it could be that my cat is a hero ... and has saved my life on a number of occasions. And if true, I have reason to appreciate her even more than I had before.
P.S. (humor) Perhaps my cat has given a whole new meaning to the term:
C.P.R.
Is it "Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation" or "Cat Pulmonary Resuscitation?" Hehehe.
Regards,
J. Alec West
To do this, I checked myself into a motel. Reason? Sometimes, my cat, Velcro, will jump up on a dresser near my bed and JUMP on me while I sleep. And other times, she'll come up to me while I'm asleep and claw an exposed elbow (grin). Of course, both things wake me right up. So, because I wanted a "clean" test, I decided to do it at a motel.
Sleep apnea, for those who don't know, is a condition where people stop breathing for short periods of time while they sleep. This is actually considered normal ... but only as long as the number of cessations is 5 or less per hour. My screening score? 93 times per hour.
My primary physician said it was nearly "off the scale" ... and a clerk in the sleep medicine specialist's office said it was the worst score she'd ever seen. Untreated, sleep apnea could cause a sufferer to go to sleep and (ulp) simply stop breathing altogether and not wake up. Bottom line? I'm going to need either a CPAP or BiPAP machine to assist in breathing while I sleep (and this is for the rest of my life). And next week, I'll have the full sleep study and be "fitted" for one.
But ... back to my cat, Velcro. A thought occurred to me ... and the sleep medicine doctor thinks I might be onto something. It could be that the jumping and clawing activities of my cat are "on purpose" ... that she knows I've stopped breathing and is doing it to "revive" me. In short, it could be that my cat is a hero ... and has saved my life on a number of occasions. And if true, I have reason to appreciate her even more than I had before.
P.S. (humor) Perhaps my cat has given a whole new meaning to the term:
C.P.R.
Is it "Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation" or "Cat Pulmonary Resuscitation?" Hehehe.
Regards,
J. Alec West