Posted by westernjoe on January 03, 2009 at 14:17:19:In Reply to: Post Surgery - Cant Sleep posted by UPPP patient on January 02, 2009 at 05:15:12:
"3 hours of bad sleep a night" brings back terrible memories for me. Most of us know what you are going through and it's no picnic.
You might still have post op swelling and drainage. For some people this can last months. A couple of things to try (with Drs approval), Afrin to open things up, Mucinex to thin the mucus.
Also, try sleeping sitting up- but on your side. That way gravity is not trying to pull your soft palate and tongue against the back of your throat. It takes several pillows to make it work. Put one up against the underside of your jaw and hug it to keep your jaw from falling all the way open since that will usually close off the airway in many people too. At this time, every little bit helps.
As you might have already read, UP3 does not have a great track record for fixing apnea in one shot, and in some cases makes it worse. Most of us have been through multiple surgeries to get our apnea taken care of. That's another subject I realize.
One final thing, you need a retitration on your CPAP pressure after surgery. An autopap might come in handy during this time as things are liable to change quickly.
Ask your Doc about all of those things. And please let us know how it goes.
RA in TX