Sunday, March 22, 2009

Acid reflux and apnea

Interesting...very interesting...

Apparently, acid reflux, or "nocturnal gastroesophageal reflux disease," is highly correlated with sleep apnea, and a randomized placebo-controlled trial done in August of last year showed that treatment of patients with an anti-reflux drug greatly improved their daytime sleepiness. HMMMMM!!!! Guess it's time I called the doctor and scheduled an appointment to talk about my symptoms of acid reflux.

I don't have much faith in the NHS, though. I had a microspirometer test a couple weeks ago (meaning I slept in my own bed with a tiny machine attached to my hand that read oxygen levels), and the doctor sent me a letter to schedule a follow-up appointment...in mid-June. JUNE! I first sought care for my sleep disorders in OCTOBER. Grrrrr...

Anyway, this information is getting my hopes up that I can actually get effective treatment for my sleepiness. This is bad. Hopes are better kept very low, so that disappointment is not as great when hopes are shattered. But very interesting information nonetheless...

In other news, I decided not to go to Stockholm after I visit Ingo in Germany. Carina will be in Switzerland ("home" to her, even though she's British), and I'm going to visit her instead! Alex will be there, too, so it should be WONDERFUL!!! I love these girls. And I might get to speak French, maybe.

3 comments:

  1. I'm so jealous of your world-travelling abilities!

    Very interesting about the apnea/acid reflux thing. Totally get it checked out!

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  2. You're visiting Ingo?! Fun!

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  3. Maybe you should visit a chemist (pharmacist) and get some drugs. They'll give you recommendations because chemists love to pretend to be doctors. And you won't have to wait months. It's a win-win.

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