"Snoring Surgery"

[Pebblszzz]

So yer hunny wants you to stop snoring? You thinking of surgery?

Call me a wimp, but...I wouldn't do it again, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone I cared about.

It's the pain of strep x3, lasts over a week (I'm still on jello and water only), and I'm starting to get a little cranky here!!!

If I had it to do over again (at this point, ask again in 6 months), I wouldn't. No way. No how. Nuh-uh. Nope. Nada. Niente.

Ain't happenin'.

For those who will do it anyway, here are a few other tips:
1. carbonated soda pops - big-daddy no-no (owie)
2. peanut butter - ouch!

(in addition to the tips posted a week or so ago by others in another thread on this topic)

 

[Kitty 34]

{{{{{HUGS}}}} Doesn't sound like you had too much fun with this surgery!! Hopefully you get feeling better quickly and think it was a well worth it!!!

 

[Tony-NJ]

my SO had this surgery in addition to a fixed deviated septum and a draining of the sinus' all at the same time. Still snored until he went on the machine for Sleep Apnea. The surgery was the most painful thing! I hope you feel better real soon! You should - it took about a week and a half to be able to eat real food again!

 

[Meriweather]

{{{hugs}}} Hang on...you'll get better.

As I said in your other thread, DH had the surgery TWICE!! The first time with the nose and sinuses too! Owie!! Pain neverending......most of it throat related.

Still snored.....CPAP machine was a blessing!!

Good luck to you!!

 

[Towncrier]

I guess I'll just keep the earplugs on my nightstand. I wouldn't want to put my DW through any more pain and suffering than what she already goes through being married to me.

Hope you're feeling better real soon.

 

[dandave]

I was wondering last night how your surgery went. (There was a thread about having a tosillectomy.) Sorry to hear you're in so much pain. I hope you feel better soon!

 

[Sheree Bobbins]

DH has a business selling CPAP machines and treating sleep apnea, so I'm for them. Sorry to hear about your pain, I can imagine the pain you are experiencing. It'll soon be better so hang in there. {{{{HUGS}}}}

 

[bumcat]

Can someone please tell me how this machine works?
My husband had nose surgery yrs ago (broken nose, deviated septum) but the snoring is just awful these days.
I recorded him one night since he didn't believe how bad it was. Later I pushed play as he was falling asleep and put it up to his ear, he kept asking, what's that noise, hehe....

 

[minnie56]

And if it was half as painful as it looked.....

And..he still snores...BIG TIME! For awhile it changed the pitch..but it's still there!!

Do not recommend it at all...Hang in there..better days ahead!

 

[Pebblszzz]

I had the "works".

Deviated Septum fixed
Turbinate Resection (thingys in your sinuses, mine are smaller now)
Tonsillectomy
UPPP (the "snoring surgery" - they cut out your uvula and build you a new one, after cutting out the surrounding tissue)

If you don't know what a "uvula" is: it's the little thing (looks like a little boxing bag) hanging down from the roof of your mouth at the back of your throat. I'd forgotten to ask the doc what it's for - anybody know what the purpose of a uvula is?

I'm feeling a bit better today, finally was able to eat my first "meal". If a pkg of ramen noodles covered in cream of mushroom soup can be considered a meal! Hey, when you've been living on jello for a week, it was HEAVENLY!!

Ok, I've been thinking...as long as this cures the snoring, I'd do it again. But under different circumstances - I'd take TWO WHOLE WEEKS off from work, hire a nursemaid to cater to my every whim, and get enough prescribed medication to keep me so sedated for 14 days that I wouldn't remember a thing. I think my problem was that I was awake too much last week.

It really was awful, waiting on hubby to be available to help me bathe, etc. Getting old is gonna be a real challenge for me.

Thanks for all the good wishes, DIS friends!

P.S. About that CPAP machine: I know people who use it and swear by it. FMI, visit www.webmd.com (I saw info on it there).

 

[fklhou]

It is my understanding from my reserach that the surgery for sleep apnea and snoring is not very effective. My doctor has recommended against surgery. One of my lawpartners had the surgery and now has to go back to the cpap machine at a higher pressure setting than before the surgery.

I found a decent website for cpap machines. See www.cpapman.com if you have any questions about the cpap or the treatment of snoring or sleep apnea.

 

[Pebblszzz]

NOW ya tell me! LOL

Oh well, what's done is done.

Hey, I ate taco bell yesterday! Chicken soft tacos with no sauce, still burned, but I alternated bites with my throat numbing solution, 'cause I was DETERMINED!

today I'm paying for it, however. I think today will be applesauce and instant mashed potatoes.

It won't be a total waste, since they fixed my deviated septum, too. I'm already breathing a lot better, giving me more energy throughout the day - that's SOMETHING! And with the tonsils gone, too - no more tonsilitis for me!

(always looking for that silver lining)

 

[Serena]

Cheryl, I'm glad it's over and done with. I hope it helps. It sounds really, really painful.

 

[Pebblszzz]

I'd rather give birth daily to 10-lb. triplets than to do THAT again.

so yeah, it was (still is) painful...

Thanks for the good wishes, Serena!

(collecting pixie dust to gargle with later)

 

[TennVolTony]

 

[dzneprincess]

Originally posted by Pebblszzz
I'd rather give birth daily to 10-lb. triplets than to do THAT again.

so yeah, it was (still is) painful...

Thanks for the good wishes, Serena!

(collecting pixie dust to gargle with later)

Ouch! That bad huh??? LOL Well I think my dad has had this surgery, and I know that he still snores. I am not sure though, I know he is always telling me what a crock that surgery was because he still snores So I take it to mean "that" surgery is the snoring surgery. I am sorry you are hurting! I hope you get back to normal soon, and heres some PD to gargle with

 

[fklhou]

I just talked to my partner who had the surgery done several years ago. He missed three weeks of work due to pain. He also had the roto-rooter procedure done on his sunus. He is now having to go back to the cpap machine.

 

[Pebblszzz]

you're just making my day here, pal.

Thanks for the honesty, though.

I have yet to hear from ANYONE who has had success with this surgery. Wish I had done more homework on it before doing it!

 

[TennVolTony]

Just think of all the money you will save now from NOT having to replace so many WINDOWS!!!

 

[jfulcer]

Originally posted by bumcat
Can someone please tell me how this machine works?
My husband had nose surgery yrs ago (broken nose, deviated septum) but the snoring is just awful these days.
I recorded him one night since he didn't believe how bad it was. Later I pushed play as he was falling asleep and put it up to his ear, he kept asking, what's that noise, hehe....

A CPAP machine is a device that consists of a nose mask, a machine about the size of a breadbox, and a 3/4 hose to connect the mask and the machine.

The reason your DH snores is because the muscles in the back of his throat relaxes when he sleeps. Sometimes this is hereditary, sometimes it's weight gain. The noise of the air trying to pass these relaxed muscles is the 'snoring'. The bad part is you actually stop breathing because of these relaxed mucles. My dad would stop breathing for seconds at a time (technically Sleep Apnea or Hypopnea), then snort when his body woke him up. So goes the cycle all night long. Because of my Sleep Apnea I was waking up 64 times an hour, all night long. I was <i>never</i> getting REM sleep - the sleep your body needs to recharge itself.

The CPAP applies a constant air pressure via the mask through the nasal passage which keeps those relaxed muscles opened. It does take a few days to get used to wearing it, and the CPAP itself is no louder than you would expect from a white noise machine.

Does your DH fall asleep on occasions when he really should be awake? Does he feel like he's going to fall asleep while driving? Is he tired all the time? A sleep study is what doctors use to test for the problem. You go in to the sleep center and get hooked up to a bunch of wires. They monitor your sleep and can tell what is happening. They woke me up midway through the night and gave me the mask. From then on my sleep was smooth and relaxing. It was a painless test, and something I don't ever regret doing - not only for me, but for my family who I was keeping up with my snoring. The best part of it is my insurance paid for everything, including the CPAP machine itself.

My CPAP goes with me on vacations to Disney. If I'm staying in a hotel overnight, the CPAP comes along.

Good luck! And <b>TownCrier</b>, if your DW is snoring, SHE should get checked out also.

Oh, and I didn't have the surgery as the doctor told me that is only helps in less than 50% of the cases and was extremely painful as Pebblszzz found out. He said in the future they may have other surgeries but for now the CPAP is the best. And it has been.