deviated septum; sleep apnea & sinus

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I had sinus issues alot throughout my life. I have lots of allergies & thou bad atopic dermatitis(skin eczema) as a kid that I've been pretty much over sense high-school that was due to allergies. I had bad nose-bleeds at times & had to get my nose cauterized 2wice because of it. My GP who did it told me the inside of my nose was a little crooked but I didn't think much about it at the time. I was referred to an allergist at the beginning of the year after having bad sinus problems & I had one followup appointment with him. He referred me after that appointment to get a CATscan on my sinuses & I got paperwork in that my septum was slightly deviated. I hadn't seen the allergist sense because after that on the phone when I called he or his lacky acted like the only other thing that could be done sense the other meds I was on weren't helping alot is getting rid of my girlfriend's cat. I am allergic to cats but the allergy testing that was done in the 1st appointment also showed I was allergic to pollen, dust & other things as well & I had bad sinus problems throughout my life & I never spent much time with cats till I moved in with my girlfriend so neither me nor her though getting rid of her cat would help that much. TI felt like the allergist had a chip on his shoulder & didn't listen to half of what I said so there was no point in me going back. I did a bit of research on treatments & got my GP to prescribe me Singulair & after a while that is helping me more than any other things I tried except for steroid stuff. I latter got her to prescribe Xyzal as well because Singulair wasn't helping fully & that's helping me more but my sinuses are still bad at times. I have some Prednisone on hand for when I feel like they are starting to get really bad; don't worry guys I don't take a high dose & I only take it for afew days. In general thou my sinuses are doing alot better than they used to be. I think moving from Louisiana to Vermont helped them some as well as the med combination.

About a month ago me & my girlfriend were talking about some stuff(I forget what or how this subject came up) & she mentioned how she thought I might have sleep apnea because I snore loudly & occasionally it sounds like I stop snoring for a few seconds & start back up. She's usually sleeping when I go to bed & I usually wake up before her or we wake up around the same time so it's not something she had a chance to notice alot. I did alittle research on it & thought sleep apnea was a definite possibility. I have various sleep issues. I sometimes have a hard time breathing in certain positions but I just thought it was due to my sinuses, I always tossed & turned abit but just thought it was due to sinuses as well(I woke up with nose bleeds occasionally) or it was related to psychological stuff affecting my sleep. I had phases where I had episodes of sleep paralysis & night terrors but that was more when I was dealing with psychological stuff like starting a new med or increasing the dosage of something, more depressed, feeling anxious about sleeping alone, or just feeling very lonely & hated sleeping alone. I posted about that abit on here before & some suggested I could have sleep apnea but I didn't really consider it sense I saw a connection between that & psychological stuff. I have not had those issues sense I moved in with my girlfriend so I was rite then about how sleeping with someone would help me sleep better. When there's not alot going on & we can keep our normal sleep schedules I tend to only need about 5/6 hours of sleep which is why my girlfriend is usually sleeping when I am. I sometimes wake up afew times during my sleep but toss & turn abit & mange to go back to sleep for abit more. I sometimes feel tired when I 1st wake up but don't feel like I can go back to sleep & I quit feeling tired & feel better after being up awhile. I sometimes feel tired when I'm sitting still for a while & fall asleep a tad but that's usually more later at night while watching TV I also sometimes take a nap during the day but that's more often when we got up early for something or we were busy earlier in the day or my girlfriend is resting so I decide to lay next to her. I read that sleep apnea can cause cognitive problems like problems with focus/paying attention, memory & learning but I've been diagnosed with dyslexia & ADD or ADHD depending on the doc & what point of my life that was so I just always thought my cognitive issues were related to that.
We mentioned the possibility of sleep apnea to my GP & she asked some questions & said I had minor sleep apnea. She wasn't really concerned about it thou just suggested I try nasal strips to help with the snoring. I mentioned the deviated septum to her because I read it could be related to sleep apnea. She looked my records up on the computer & said that was probably the cause. but it was minor & didn't think it needed to be corrected. I brought up my history of sinus problems to her & how I thought that could be related to the deviated septum as well & she decided to refer me to an Ears Nose & Throat specialist. My appointment is beginning of next month.

I wondering if you guys have any input on any of this. Do you think it may help to get the nose corrected? & if so how can I convince the specialist to agree sense it's just slightly deviated? What does corrective surgery entail? Have any of you been through something like that & willing to post about it? Also if I don't/cant get it or I do & I still have minor sleep apnea; I'm wondering about the med Diamox/Acetazolamide; I know it's mostly used for central & the mixed/complex types instead of the obstructive which is probably the form I have but I'm wondering if it might could be somewhat beneficial for me; I read it's used for altitude sickness & I have lived in Louisiana all my life till about a year ago & Vermont is a higher altitude. Thanx for any thoughts/advice/input you guys have on any of this

Diamox - no. you'd have to get a lot higher than vermont to get altitude sickness. operation for a mildly deviated septum - no, although if you insist, you'll find an unscrupulous surgeon willing to do it. sleep studies to define the severity of sleep apnea - why not?

a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. you are making tenuous connections.

Well, it is a different idea, but thought to mention I've been sleeping with a grounded sheet for the past month. During that time I've experienced some of the best sleep I've experienced in years. I was reading recently too in an article on a finding that sleeping grounded naturally increased melatonin hormone production.

It's different as mentioned, but in my case can say has helped.

Your mention of being a snorer with allergies too reminded me a bit of my grandfather. He worked for an electrical company all his life and was the loudest snorer. He slept poorly along with everyone else in the house because of the noise. Kind of wonder if a grounded bed would have helped him.

"The Most Powerful Antioxidant On the Planet Is Really a Hormone"

http://www.annlouise.com/blog/2013/09/0 ... a-hormone/

I have had a deviated septum repaired.I have trouble breathing on my back,my tongue sort of flops back there and I can't breathe.No problem on my side,but I do snore I've used the breathe right strips when I have a cold and they do help.The best thing for sinus problems is a neti pot,I had no idea it would help so much.Just boil the water and cool to lukewarm.

What's a grounded sheet & bed? Thanx for the link about melatonin. I heard about it periodically but never paid much attention to that stuff. I wonder if it would help if I took a melatonin supplement Have you tried any or could suggest one?

Did repairing it help anything or make anything worse? I never tried those strips or know much about them but I did hear that they can take some getting used to at 1st. Is neti pot similar to nasal saline? I used that sometimes & it doesn't help much.

I'm going to wait to try anything till after I see what happens with the nose specialist because I rather take things one step at a time so I can gauge what's working & what's not but I am considering ideas in the meantime

"The Most Powerful Antioxidant On the Planet Is Really a Hormone"

http://www.annlouise.com/blog/2013/09/0 ... a-hormone/[/quote]
What's a grounded sheet & bed? Thanx for the link about melatonin. I heard about it periodically but never paid much attention to that stuff. I wonder if it would help if I took a melatonin supplement Have you tried any or could suggest one?

Grounding is as it sounds, placing ones feet or in the case of electronics a metal wire, onto the ground. With a grounded bed sheet, the sheet has been laced with metallic material. For use the sheet is plugged into the ground hole found on power outlets.

From what I've read It is similar to grounding pads that manufacturer of electronic equipment have their employees stand on and wear around their wrists while working.

I bought my grounding pad and sheets from:

http://products.mercola.com/earthing-mat/

&

http://www.earthing.com/Shop_s/1824.htm

I've been taking time release melatonin tablets for a few years. It's been wonderful at improving my sleep. I don't have a favorite brand that I take, but currently I'm taking Source Naturals time release 3mg melatonin. I picked it up at the store.

I does help me to breathe better when I get a cold,I don't seem to stuff up as much.The neti pot is the saline solution,sorry it didn't help you.

I remember reading on another forum years ago that melatonin shouldn't be used regularly because the body starts producing less & & you build up a tolerance & dependance to it. I'm not sure if that's true or not; I'll have to do some research at some point. I buy Source Naturals brand for different vitamins off Amazon & I think those prices are cheaper than what the stores would sell that for.

It's good to hear that the surgery helped. I don't use the saline much; I mostly use it when my nose is dry or my sinuses really stuffed up. Maybe it would help better if I used it more regularly. The problem I have more often is that my nose drips &/or it drips into my throat which doesn't happen as often nowadays. I'm not sure if this is sinus/allergy related or not but I've been having this problem for alittle while where my ears feel stopped up &/or pop when I walk really fast. I thought it was wax buildup & I asked my doc about it last time. She looked in both ears & said everything looked fine & said that it could be allergies causing fluid. We have been in allergy season & there was some work done off & on for a side-street next to me.

I remember reading on another forum years ago that melatonin shouldn't be used regularly because the body starts producing less & & you build up a tolerance & dependance to it. I'm not sure if that's true or not; I'll have to do some research at some point. I buy Source Naturals brand for different vitamins off Amazon & I think those prices are cheaper than what the stores would sell that for.


I've heard that also about melatonin, that taking it regularly might or might not lead to dependency. I have another serious health issue, and when I found melatonin helped me I decided to take a chance and take it each night. I have noticed on the few nights that I have not taken melatonin, I haven't had a big problem falling asleep. So at least for me it doesn't seem to be an issue.

Thinking about it would be interesting to see if I slept well on the grounded sheet for a week or longer with out taking melatonin. Out of curiosity I might give that a shot in the future.

Thought to mention I have a nephew coming to visit tonight and staying for the weekend. He has a number of sinus and allergy problem. I don't know if they are similar to yours, but after reading that sleeping grounded has helped resolve some with air allergy issues I bought him a grounding bed sheet. Hopfully he will use it, and it will help improve his problem. If it does I'll mention something on it.

I tried melatonin and it gave me vivid colorful nightmares.Valerian works pretty good for me as a sleep aid.