This has been a rather noteworthy week for me. I've focused a lot of blog time to my sleep apnea issues, but it really has had a significant impact on me. Yesterday was the first day following a very good night of sleep, probably one of my best in years. Last night was even better. The more significant impact was on my awake time, though. It's nothing short of amazing.
I received the CPAP machine on Wednesday. The first night was good, but there were still a few hitches, like knocking my mask askew at one point, and my overall comfort, which varied depending on my position while sleeping. I awoke feeling very refreshed, and I had a skip in my step for much of the morning. After years of poor sleep, there was a significant feeling of restfulness. Frankly, I didn't feel like crap. My work day started out fairly well, but I started to get tired again as the day went along. I had to sit in a rather long, boring meeting between 9 and 11, and the cup of coffee I drank was having no effect. I was very tired about halfway through, and it carried over into the lunch hour. By the afternoon, I felt like I needed a nap.
I came home and ended up snoozing off and on for a few hours. Later, while attempting to type up yesterday blog post, I actually fell asleep while typing. My daughter woke me up, but I soon fell asleep again. If you're wondering, the answer is yes, the post is very short due to how tired I was. My daughter and I went up for bed by 9:30, which is earlier than I'd gone to sleep in a long time, and I fell asleep quickly. Night #2 was even better. I awoke one time, just to roll over, around 1 a.m., then I slept until my alarm went off. I usually hit the snooze button multiple times, but after hitting it twice, I just got up. I was fairly alert and got ready for work quickly.
It must have been apparent to everyone I talked to, but I was wide awake and a bit chatty. Several said something to me about an obvious difference in my demeanor. As the day went along, I did not get that same feeling of drowsiness I had the day before after being at work for a few hours. I had a meeting with my boss after lunch, and she told me immediately that she could see a difference in me. Even my one-liners were getting chuckles. It was really incredible.
I came home and continued to feel alert. I did not need a nap, and I felt good. It is now 9 p.m., the same time that I began falling asleep while typing last night, and I do not feel any grogginess. This is really amazing to me. You have to understand that I've likely been suffering from this for almost two decades. My sleep has been bad, really bad, for a long time. To be able to get a good night's rest and follow it with a full day of feeling good is significant to me. I just can't emphasize it enough.
Tomorrow will present another test. I don't plan on staying awake too late, but I'll likely go to bed close to my normal time tonight. For most of the past year, I've been sleeping until at least 10 a.m. on average on the weekends. I really want to see if I can wake up at a normal time (like, say, 7:30 or 8) without an alarm clock. To me, 10 hours of sleep should be more than enough.
If you're the praying sort, I'd appreciate your prayers as I go through this transition. There is so much positive going on with this, and I'm really happy with the progress so far.
Have a great evening, everyone!
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