I have severe sleep apnea.

[lonerurouni187]

Just wanted to throw in my two cents as well, and pray for your health. What you described in the second wall of text(head in a thick fog, lack of motivation, disconnection with reality..)feels similar to what Ive been going through these past few years. I know for sure most of that now has to do with the way the economy is affecting my family and me, and isnt nearly as severe as what you have and can probably be solved with some good excersise and good friends, but nevertheless I can kinda get a feel of what your going through. It is comforting to know you at least know have it diagnosed as ClesStahn said, and I hope you get better. 

[stahnkenny]

cless, pm sent your way
let me know if it helps and if it got to you ok
i care about your well being
kindest regards
kenny

[Sirius9]

Hang in there!  My dad had a problem with sleep apnea for years, but being the kind of guy that doesn't like to go to the doctor he was in denial about it.  Mom finally put her foot down when she started to have to wake him up at night because he'd quit breathing for 30 seconds or more!  After he got the CPAP machine things improved dramatically.  No more falling asleep in the middle of a conversation, no more shortness of breath after climbing the stairs, and he was a lot less grouchy too.  He still naps a lot during the day, but that's not surprising given that he's older and obese (although he even lost a bit of weight after being on it for a year).  It's a wonder what a good night's sleep will do for the body's general health, I'm sure you'll feel much better in time.

[Cless]

I had my CPAP pressure raised over the phone yesterday; CPAP tech called me and told me how to do it. I don't actually know if this is the optimal pressure setting (still have to wait until my appointment to find that out).

I basically quit using my CPAP machine after the titration study since it didn't seem worth using. The pressure was set much lower than the titration study's pressure. Just this past week, I felt like my cognition hit another all-time low. I think I might at least be over that this morning after trying the new setting.

Man, I can't tell you how much I can't wait until the real benefits start becoming apparent.

cless, pm sent your way
let me know if it helps and if it got to you ok
i care about your well being
kindest regards
kenny

Yeah, I got it.

[Cless]

UPDATE

In about the middle of last month, I got in touch with my CPAP technician. We had the pressure raised over the phone; it had been raised to 11 from 8. I've been using it pretty consistently since then, aside from a few nights where I'd barely awake, remove the mask, roll over and fall back asleep.

I wake up some (but not all) mornings feeling..."different" than before. In a good way. Hard to explain...my head just feels a little lighter than usual those times. However, this is mainly only good when awakening. Profound effects are probably still quite aways away, as I still feel pretty much the same as "normal" the rest of the day (i.e. blah and unmotivated). It's not getting worse, at least.

I've started getting fairly used to the equipment. My main problem at this point is still waking up 2-3 times a night. Usually this is caused by a mask air leak that irritates my right eye (seems to be caused by the headgear somehow slipping upwards while sleeping), or because my mouth for some reason, has become extremely dry (even with the humidifier going).

So, I had my titration study follow up appointment today. Didn't actually learn a whole lot new. Mainly just heard that things appear to be going well. Found out that the pressure I had changed to last month, 11, is just fine.

Completely unexpectedly, I also walked out with a prescription for Provigil. I almost find this funny, as my psychiatric nurse from a couple years back suggested Provigil as something try as a last ditch effort for my apparent ADHD (it's not normally prescribed for it, but it has apparently been effective in some cases). Never did try it, but I guess we'll see if it helps any.

On another note, I have often wondered why I only responded to Adderall (amphetamines) and nothing else I tried. If it was just due to it helping parts of my brain wake up in a manner that weak things like caffeine just can't touch (caffeine has either no effect or gives me jitters. No helpful stimulation at all.), maybe Provigil will have some kind of effect, too. There even seem to be some similarities in the chemical structure of Provigil compared to amphetamines (though different enough to put in separate class).

[Deck]

I know nothing of sleep apnea but to me it sounds like you're at least getting somewhere when it comes to your treatment. I hope that you'll get better.

[Cless]

Due to various circumstances, I wasn't able to acquire the Provigil until a few days ago. I'm currently on day 3 with the stuff. I can say I'm definitely getting some effect from it, but it's rather unpredictable; the results have varied every single day so far. Most effects on cognitive function feel pretty subtle, but I can at least feel it's doing something, unlike most drugs I've tried in the past.

[Cless]

Recently my mood began to drop again (which was both very greatly frustrating and confusing considering I've been continuing to comply with my CPAP therapy as best as I can). My mom suspected I could have been coming up with Seasonal Affective Disorder and told me to look into bright light therapy. Considering I've always needed a bright light to help regulate my sleeping patterns anyway, this tipped me over the edge. I overnighted a bright light (Amazon Prime rules) and used it over the weekend and this morning. My mood has definitely elevated since. Very good.