Way Off Topic: Sleep Apnea and Obesity

Fatigue and Sleepiness are some of the key characteristics of Sleep Apnea. Some people will fall asleep in the middle of a conversation. There are other issues that are more ominous, too.

In my experience, diet alone does little for weight loss. You need an exercise program that will increase your metabolic rate. Typically, this requires weight training under the guidance of a good personal trainer. I would speak to your doctor and get his or her input.

I would avoid weight loss drugs.
 
I also have OSA and use CPAP therapy for 20ish years.
I've shrunk to about 71.5" tall and am up to about 250 lbs.
Those statistics = Obese.
Not a pretty word, but . . .
It seems I've always (even at 16 YOA) snored, but was a sound sleeper so it didn't bother 'me'.
As an adult, I frequently would have dreams depicting life threatening circumstances (think a knife fight in a phone booth).
It seems my brain was creating those dreams (and the resultant shot of adrenalin) as a reaction to my failure to breathe.
Since CPAP therapy, I'm very pleased to say that those dreams are an unpleasant memory rather than a regular occurrence.
I sleep soundly and restfully.

I use a full face mask. To the uninitiated, I suggest they think of it as a fighter pilot headgear. LOL

I had one panic episode (early on) due to some random failure (maybe the hose came off the mask?).
That episode did not deter me from considering the CPAP equipment as a friend and using it still is in my best interest.

Whatever you need to do to make the CPAP therapy work for you is required, IMHO.
No way for me to know why you are "always tired", but getting enough restful sleep must be a requirement.

You are a UPS delivery route drive, right? So, getting regular exercise is not an issue for you.

I guess the best advice I can offer is to get professional help reducing your caloric intake.
I'd like to follow a thread describing your process of loosing 100 pounds.
Maybe I could drop 50 too.
 
I have already started a diet which is indeed very healthy. I am starting at 1980 Cal/day, and I will adjust that in order to optimize the rate of weight loss (1-2 lbs./week max).

I can stay on a healthy eating plan *only if* I NEVER cheat. That is how I keep from drinking alcohol or THC: I never drink even a single drop or use *any* THC.

Another issue is stress due to my wife & being so different from each other. We both think that the other person is somewhere between difficult & impossible. I need to back away from any argument that I see developing. We have been together 27 years, and I don’t remember any constructive development arising from a spat.
 
We are mostly on the road and here is our process.

Carry "truck snacks", the low cal snack bars at the club stores.

Avoid stopping for regular lunch, just grab a bar.

Stop early, no later than 11, get a couple jack In the box tacos or a couple mcdoubles.

NOTHING ELSE until you get home.

The early snack keeps you going, the snack bars help the stomach not think the throat is cut.

We lost 20 pounds on the 4 taco a day diet.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk
 
Don't be afraid of Keto. Check out Dr Eric Berg on YT. Do what he says I just lost 28 lbs. in 7 weeks and I was never hungry except for the 1st 2 days. Eat meat, cheese, fish and eggs. Try to stay under 20 carbs per day. Also lost 90% of my belly fat which is where cholesterol comes from. I've been telling my wife " I just can't take a nap in the afternoon anymore because I sleep so good at night. Also try to eat less meals (intermittent fasting). I was eating supper at 4:30 and then going through till lunch at 12 noon, and I was not hungry ever.
Aaron
 
Cut out sugars (carbs). For most of us, that is (unfortunately) beer, bread, pastas, wine, alcohol, jelly, jams, candy, etc.

Walk after your meals if possible. This boosts metabolism.

RE: CPAP - I like extropic's description of the fighter pilot mask. That's very accurate. I'm not claustrophobic, but when I tested one out, I just found it to be very uncomfortable. I went the air pillow (nose only) route and am glad I did. It is mostly unobtrusive and not claustrophobic at all.

For those wondering if CPAP makes a difference. The answer is an unequivocal "hell yeah"!

You won't notice much within the first few weeks as you get used to sleeping with the mask on. Within two weeks, you will feel like a new person with lots of energy. If you suffer headaches from oxygen depravation like I did, those stop - period.

Losing weight will help, I've lost about 20lbs and kept it off over the past 3 years when I stopped drinking alone. I was able to turn down the volume on my CPAP as I was getting too much (aerophagia)

One other thing, if you have AFIB, this also seems to be associated with sleep apnea. AFIB can get worse or activate when you lie down. However, if you sleep on your left side, (I've read that AFIB disproportionately affects the left upper ventricle) it seems to alleviate the symptoms.
 
AGCB97 said:
Don't be afraid of Keto. Check out Dr Eric Berg on YT. Do what he says I just lost 28 lbs. in 7 weeks and I was never hungry except for the 1st 2 days. Eat meat, cheese, fish and eggs. Try to stay under 20 carbs per day. Also lost 90% of my belly fat which is where cholesterol comes from. I've been telling my wife " I just can't take a nap in the afternoon anymore because I sleep so good at night. Also try to eat less meals (intermittent fasting). I was eating supper at 4:30 and then going through till lunch at 12 noon, and I was not hungry ever.
Aaron
Click to expand...
That is about right with my experience as well. I didn't lose as much weight though.
 
go to weight watchers, they will teach you how to eat if it is anything like the old program. My ex did it, and learned to properly eat.
Get rid of breads, white rice, (carbs). Eat High protein, plenty of legumes, learn to make your own foods from scratch. My son and his wife do, and while she is overweight, my son is fit. She is having problems losing the baby weight.

snack on nuts, (not raisins too high in sugar). I like beats, found out how high they are in sugar (no wonder I like them). many of the fruits are high in sugar, so investigate before you dive in.

Good luck. The problem with losing weight is you can't go cold turkey like you can with smoking, drinking, or drugs, you need to eat to live. So that's why I think weight watchers is a good program. Not like many of the other programs around that promise something that is not long term.
 
I congratulate you on your journey. Losing the excess weight is the best thing you can do for your overall health. I was recently diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. I really didn't want to go the CPAP route. My doctor set me up with the TAP system.
tapintosleep.com

TAP Products - Airway Management

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It is working for me.
Good luck
 
Stay away from meds to solve your problem. I am not over weight so take this with a grain of salt. To me it’s simple you must exert more calories than you consume period. Now that could mean starve yourself and do little exercise or eat 3-4 thousand calories and work it off. And I mean no disrespect just a observation in life.
 
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