hyperventilation, thesis and birthday blah

[baratron]

I am getting sick of hyperventilating in my sleep. I go to sleep lying on my front, but somehow in the night I keep rolling onto my back, and my mouth drops open. Then I start breathing badly, take in far too much oxygen, and have very strange vivid nightmares, which means I wake up exhausted, confused and distressed. Blah. I can do all the breathing exercises I like when I'm awake, but I don't exactly have a lot of control over how I breathe when I'm asleep. Apparently, the only real way to stop this happening is to tape my mouth up before I go to bed - and I'm sure that would make me panic too much to be able to sleep.

In other news, I am almost certainly going to be running right up against the deadline for my thesis submission, so I am not going to do anything remotely interesting between now and July. I read LJ every day because it's essential for sanity, but I can't afford the time to be social in person. If you're having some sort of party in June, please don't be offended when I don't come. I'm not even going to do anything about celebrating my birthday - might do something in July. I've updated my amazon wishlist, but not the one on my website. I'm not going to link my wishlist here, on the basis that if you don't know my real name or email address, you don't know me well enough to be spending your money on me.

If you just want to wish me happy birthday, hold that off until I'm actually able to celebrate it. (I've had my birthday in exam time for long enough that it's no great hardship). Don't get me anything unless you can afford it, and don't give it to me until 1st July. Thanks.

Comments

[purpletigron.livejournal.com]

Stay sane!

[erik]

I have a birthday present I got for you a year ago, actually...I don't see you often enough.

[erik]

Before the extent of my sleep apnea was known, it was suggested taht I could manage it by not sleeping on my back. Doctors suggested a few things to help that; the most intriging one was sewing a couple of tennins balls into the back of my pyjamas, up near the shoulders where they'd be uncomfortable if I was on my back, but not really noticable other times. Might be worth a shot...

[baratron.livejournal.com]

I've heard about that, but it only works if you wear pyjamas to sleep in, which I only do in the winter. I'm not sure I could easily tape tennis balls to my back... More seriously, I roll around in the bed a hell of a lot when I'm getting comfortable before falling asleep, and this would interfere with that.

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

Ryk did that while he was waiting for his sleep test. He had two or three tennis balls in a stocking pinned to a t-shirt. It didn't seem very comfortable, but it did stop him from sleeping deeply on his back. A short term solution.

[nephrozym.livejournal.com]

this is the point at which you should be given a ventilator to use overnight keep your breathing normal.

[nmg.livejournal.com]

Good luck finishing off your thesis.

[ceno.livejournal.com]

Seconded.

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

I will be in East Sussex in July. I'll be mostly tied up with the work I'm doing, but hope to get one weekend off. I'll write to you again when I know more about it, but it would be great to see you and Richard again.

And if you can't figure out who I am, my partners and kids and I met you at apc6 in Edmonton.