June 04, 2005

• I was diagnosed with sleep apnea about 3 years ago and have worn a CPAP for roughly that time. It has changed my life. Absolutely. The sleep test will feel like torture at first. They attach electrodes with a glue-type substance to your head, chest, and eyes. Then they put you in a room and watch you sleep. Kind of unnerving but easily survivable. They may or may not wake you up depending on the severity and onset of your apnea. I wasn't woken up since my apnea took 90 minutes to manifest but once it did, I had 60-90 moments of wakefulness an hour and stopped breathing more than 100 times an hour. So I ended up having a second sleep test for adjusting and wearing the mask. Once I got the CPAP, it was literally the first night's good sleep I can remember. I felt refreshed and alert. I used to fall asleep just sitting in a comfortable chair. Now I have full day energy and wake refreshed in the morning. As for wearing the CPAP, check this AskMe question which has some good advice (including my own, debatable good, as ..ooOO). Some caveats. Your experience may not be as good but it WILL help. A good fitting is important. You WILL look silly. But I will not sleep a night without my machine since it helps so much. Feel free to email if you have specific questions or want more info. Good luck squidranch.
• Wow! Lots of good stuff in the askme question. Thanks Scott. I've more or less known that I have apnea for some time, I've just avoided it because of a feeling that the mask will make me claustrophobic. That, and not having decent medical insurance until now. The thing is, I've always had trouble breathing through my nose and often as a kid would start to gasp for air while having standard dentistry. I'm more than willing to go with CPAP, but would also like to see if I can get my deviated septum taken care of as well as seeing if I can get my (somewhat swollen) tonsils out.
• It's all worth it. The septum and tonsils will help too. I had the same nose breathing problem, but it just became natural with me once I got the mask. The flow of air made it actually easier to breathe for me than breathing through my nouth. Again YMMV, but for me it was well worth it.
• The CPAP machine has helped me more than two years of being elbowed in the ribs by the Mrs. My only problem is when I've got a head-cold; I end up with a terribly dry throat. I'm overdue to get a recheck; apparently there are new mask types that don't look nearly as silly, maybe I can get one from the doctor. Absolutely go get checked out. Most insurance companies cover it, especially since they've figured out that $1200 for the machine is made up over the long run by improving your general health.
• I have it. Haven't done anything about it. The idea of wearing a mask is a concept killer for me for CPAP. The surgery sounds horendous - to have that many body parts followed by the word -ectomy scares the living crap out of me. So I've just lived with it. The barman at my local, died in his sleep from sleep apnea complications last year - which worries the crap outta me. Not sure what the extenuating factors were, I'm sure there were some. But it is a serious condition. For me, it gets a lot worse when either I don't excerise enough or I drink too much. These are usually combined events, but on a bad night I'm told I have breathing difficulties every few minutes. Squidranch - let us know what you do and how you get on with it please?
• PS - there's several types of "masks" for your CPAP machine. There's a full-face mask that covers your nose entirely. There's a nasal pillow that basically plugs your nostrils (the one I really want.) There's many more at CPAP World (sorry, no shilling intended) and other CPAP related sites. I've got this one which works really well except that I think it's pushing my nose around funny... I can't get it to quite fit right lately.
• A former voice student of mine had really bad sleep apnea at one time, and had an uvulopalatopharyngoplasty done. In this operation, the uvula and part of the soft palate are removed. I don't know if it's an option insurance-wise... it sounds like the type of thing that is only covered in the most dire cases; I'm pretty sure my student had to pay for his himself (he said, "I had it done because the mask just wasn't cute!"). Also, one site suggests that it's only 50%-65% effective in treating sleep apnea. But it may be something to look into, at least.
• My fiance has SA - similar stats to Scott - and uses a CPAP with a nasal pillow mask. He had some issues adjusting to it but now it works reasonably well. A major problem for him has actually been dealing with his doctor/medical equipment supplier/insurance company. It's been a major battle to get any help when it's needed, like adjusting pressure and the like. So my suggestion is to pick a good doctor who will be able to help you with any issues like that.
• So the trick to adjusting the pressure is to just keep upping the level a few points per night until he stops snoring. I had to up mine by 1.0cm/H2O from where the Doctor put it. If the pressure is set too high, he'll wake up tired and with achy chest muscles because of the effort expended to exhale against the CPAP. The tricky thing is that some doctors don't give instructions on setting the pressure... Which of course is crap, since your fiancee paid for (maybe indirectly through the ins. company) and instead require office visits to adjust. But, they're the doctors, and certainly do want to track what's being done with the prescription. If he's using a DeVilbiss machine, shoot me a note (email in profile) and I'll explain how to modify the pressure.
• squidranch, I have the problem and the only thing that really works for me is sleeping on a very firm mattress face down with no pillow. It can play havoc with my back but a quick trip to the chiropractor fixes that.
• Yeah, one more thing. This is the mask I have. The first time my last sleep partner saw it she said I looked like an elephant and then collapsed into giggles. Once we slept through the night without me keeping her awake snoring? It became cute. Quick question for those of you who do use a mask. I have a new girlfriend who hasn't seen me in it and the first sleepover night will end up being later this week. How do/did you introduce into the relationship? The giggles and weird looks are bad enough when we had sex the first time; I am not sure I can handle it for the sleeping together for the night too.
• This sounds like a pain in the arse for everyone who has it. Sorry you lot have to wear those thingies.
• Well, not only did the doc not give him instructions on how to adjust the machine, but it's next to impossible to actually get an appt. to see the doc. So squid, the morale of this story is, if you do get a CPAP, find out how to adjust the machine yourself. Coincidentally, we call his headgear "the squid".
• yeah...I have to agree...the mask is 'not cute.' You will never get laid again. Go for the surgery. They generally throw in the tonsils with the septum job, since they're nearby and all, can become infected and nasty and need to come out anyway, and hell, you're under the gas already. (ps, if you need this done cheap, i've got all kinds of tools...we just need the ether). Plus, I'm curious...I've heard you snore...I would not be surprised if they found a couple of hot wheels cars and a crayon up in there. get that crap outta there!
• >>CPAP machine i could have sworn that said CRAP machine, and found myself pondering how the heck that could possibly help.
• I found this book for a relative who said it was a good resource. Restless Nights: Understanding Snoring and Sleep Apnea
• I have no health insurance and what time I have outside of work is used to chase psoriasis care. So if any of you have a machine I could use for my sleep apnea, I would be so, so grateful.
• For a completely different point of view of sleep apnea... the only experience I ever had was from a co-worker who was completely untreated for sleep apnea. He dropped mid-sentence while he was talking to a colleague, and I was unable to revive him with CPR. Should teach others to pay attention to all the warning signs. It sure sucked to try to save a friend/co-worker who ignored the signs of heart problems and just decided to go to work instead of the emergency room. He also had untreated sleep apnea, which puts you at risk for sudden death. Please get treatment if you are aware of the problem.
• Oh my God. KamikazeGopher, that must have been terrible for you.
• After much searching, I came up with this website goofyfoot. http://www.medmarketplace.com/respiratory-care/bipap-/-cpap/13-89/ This is just about the only place I was able to find that was selling used cpap/bipap machines for are real deal, about 1/5th the price of new machines. The "deals" on eBay are few and far between, but there is one person selling the set up guides that allow you to set your own pressure settings that respitory therapists get paid big $$$ to do. I myself have decided to wait until after my surgery (tonsilectomy, adnoidectomy, soft palate/uvula reduction and correcting of my deviated septum) to purchase a machine. I first want to see what sort of benifit I will get from the surgery. Wish me luck, I'm going under the knife on August 16th during my vacation.
• *hugs squidranch* Come back safe, you.
• Good luck squid.
• Make sure you have lots of jello, ice cream, etc. I imagine the resulting sore throat will be tough. Good luck squiddy.
• Mouth injuries heal fast. Wish ye all success with these operations, squidranch and may you have a swift recovery.
• Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. I'll use this thread to let you know how I'm doing. I am expecting major pain killers, so hopefully I'll be too doped up to feel the pain.
• Hello all. I go in for surgery tomorrow. The doc gave me vicodin #5 for the pain, which I'm pretty sure won't be enough, but will have to wait to see how I react. I also got a script for vitamin k (a blood coagulant), an antibiotic and some cortisone pills for the swelling. My sis just arrived and I'm gonna cook up a nice chicken curry for dinner which will be my last solid food in a while. When I went into the doctor for the pre-op this morning, he finally told me that the pain will be quite intense. Several weeks ago he told me it would be an out patient procedure and made it sound like I could play a couple rounds of golf the very next day. Now he says to be prepared for at least a 7-14 day recovery, and he wants me to spend the night after the surgery at the hospital. Actually, that is what everyone else said whom I spoke to beforehand. I guess he just didn't want to scare me away. This sleep apnea thing has been a real bear and I will be glad to actually sleep for a real 8 hours as opposed to 3 or four hours as I do now. I expect to have more energy too instead of pooping out in the middle of the day. I'll let you know how it went when I get back home.
• Nice. Good luck, man.
• Best of luck to you, squid! And a speedy recovery. Could be helpful to stock up on ice.
• Good luck, Squid! Have a frosty Banana milkshake when you get home.
• Thinking of you.
• Good luck!
• Good Luck, Squid!
• *two thumbs up* You come back safe, squid.
• another monkey wishing you good luck!
• May your recovery days be filled with women heaping pity and ice cream upon you.
• We'll expect a full update on your recovery. And a mailing. With pictures. And candy. And maybe a t-shirt. I kid, I kid!! Hope all goes well and that you finally get all the sleep you deserve.
• Best wishes!
• Waiting with baited breath* and huge anticipation for a report from a renewed, bright-eyed and bushy-tenticled Squids. *I can brush my teeth, but it doesn't do much for the anticipation.
• Thinking of you squid! Let us know if there's anything MoFiLA can do to help!
• Sleeping with someone who uses a CPAP is like sleeping with Darth Vader, when the mask comes askew. However, it is better than listening to them breathe, stop, snort, breathe, repeat, all night. After surgery you are going to look like you lost a fight. If they fix things deep in your nose, expect a really nasty experience of going to the Dr. to have the scar tissue scraped out during the recovery period. Enjoy.
• Thanks for all the wonderful good wishes, my friends. Well, all told, it went better than I expected. Last night was a bitch. My throat was sore and felt like beef jerky. My nose was stuffed with some sort of absorbent wadding which overall made for some major discomfort. But since I couldn't sleep, I keep the nurses busy with regular shots of demerol. The doctor showed up at 8:00am sharp and surprised me by taking out my nasal stuffing a day early and my sister showed up shortly thereafter and brought me home. I took a couple of vicodins before I left the hospital and they are now starting to wear off with the throat acting up again. So, the healing begins and soon I will find out if all this work on my throat will be worth it. If not, at least I corrected my deviated septum and will be able to breath clearly thought my nose, but I will still need to use a BiPAP machine. Hell, it could be worse. I'll post some photos in the next couple of days. Love SR
• Oboy, gruesome photos!! Glad everything went ok.
• Have you got some pretty black eyes? Does it look like you went for a nose job? Enjoy the ice cream, get lots of rest if you can.
• No, no black eyes. Just big crimson booger snots and a hell of a sore throat. I'll see if I can get my sister to post a couple of pix of me pre-op and post-op.
• Aw, jesus christ on a pogostick, last night sucked. I didn't have the benefit of the demerol, just the vicodin and was waking up every couple of hours of so with my mouth dried out (making it very painful to swallow) and occasionally having a pool of "crimson booger snots" at the bottom of my throat that would ever so carefully be removed by gently clearing my throat. I have the desire to eat solid food, just not the capacity. I tried eating some bow tie pasta with a nice meat sauce that I made the other night, but it hurt too much. I'm gonna try a nice cup of coolish coffee and then have some yogurt.
• Ouch, Squid, and Ick! Glad you're out though, and taking nourishment. Let the healing begin!!
• Hang in there, squidly. It's all downhill from here.
• Well, after my first day, I thought that the pain would reduce, but in fact it seems to be increasing, especially in my throat. I called my doctor to see if I could up the dosage of vicodin and he said yes. The only thing is that as I try to concentrate on reading my book, I fall in and out of conciousness. Oh well. Warm and even room temperature things seem to set off the pain, so my friend David has gone out to get me frozen fruit so I can make my own smoothies.
• Frozen fruit friends rule.
• Smoothies and milkshakes. They'll be your best friends.
• Poor squid! You're in our thoughts - get better soon!
• Last night I decided not to wear my herbst appliance to assist my breathing and it helped with the pain. The trouble is that by breathing more through my mouth (which the herbst appliance encourages), my throat becomes more and more dry and thus becomes more and more painful and tender. Even as my nose breathing is not perfect, it has improved due to the septum surgery. On Monday my doctor is going to vacuum out my nasal passages and we will see how much more I can breath through my nose.
• On Monday my doctor is going to vacuum out my nasal passages *shudder*
• Fuck! I know I am supposed to be patient, but the pain level doesn't seem to be receding. And even as the vicodin takes the edge off the sore throat, it is giving me a headache. The old saw of only wanting ice cream/fruit ices is for the most part true. Frozen fruit bars are my friends and aren't nearly as mucus producing as traditional ice cream. Protein shakes (even ones with low acid fruit) have something in them that makes my throat burn and soups or anything else warmer than my body temperature is very uncomfortable. I made soft boiled eggs last night that at room temperature still made my eyes water. Tapioca pudding sounds good right now. The doctor used a laser (instead of traditional scalpel and stitches) which has the added benefit of cauterizing the cut, reducing the need for stitches. Right now there are large grayish brown patches where my tonsils were and it seems that that material is slowly being stripped away and re-absorbed into my body. I’m hoping that I can start to feel semi normal by Monday or Tuesday at the outside. I’ve been zooming through my netflix subscription. Seems that good old Hollywood standards are what I want to watch right now. Indi and foreign films tax my head too much. I’m looking forward to a big juicy steak, baked potato and gin martini. That’ll be in a week or so.
• Are you still taking ibuprofen for the inflammation? Also, I would recommend sucking on ice cubes. It would be a good idea to lessen the amount of sugar you're ingesting, as it compromises the immune system and will slow healing. Hang in there, old bean.
• I was told to not take aspirin, ibuprofen or any other blood thinners. Actually, I have been given large doses of vitamin key to increase my clotting. I would love a nice dose of aspirin as it is one of the few otc pain killers that actually work for me. I just woke from a 3 hour nap that was quite hallucinogenic. Very visual, very cool. The only drag is that I was wearing the herbst device that makes it easy for me to breath though my mouth, so a lot of air passed over "the artist formerly known as my tonsils". Drying makes them hurt even more. My good buddy and business partner David is bringing back our video camera, sound and lighting equipment that he needed for a shoot today and will be bringing me the latest installment of Harry Potter with him as well. I got hooked on them about a week before the surgery and they have helped calm me throughout. BTW, I didn't care for "Goblet of Fire" that much.
• BTW, the spell check freaked out and called "vitamin k" "vitamin key" above.
• Overall, "Order of the Phoenix" is pretty good, though you could probably cut out half the book. The length might be a good thing, though, keep you distracted.
• If your throat is still hurting in a few days (after you're no longer worried about re-opening wounds), try chewing gum. It'll hurt like a mother at first, but then it gets your throat muscles (which have tensed up due to the insult of surgery) to relax. For now, just relax and let people wait on you.
• Yeah, I've found that I've spent the last three days with my jaw clenched so it's aching now more from that than actual extraction. I'd second what meredithea says based on that. Are you getting sick of fruit and ice cream yet? I bet you're reg'lar as clockwork now.
• Yowch.
• would a humidifier set up in the room where you're sleeping help with the dry throat issue? sorry to hear this has been rough for you!
• I’m looking forward to a big juicy steak I bet you are. You must be starved for protein, what with the healing and all. You too, Bashi. Maybe cold yogurt? Nonfat so you can eat more of it.
• I don't think it would help that much, at least not for the short run, patita. Actually, I go in to meet with the doctor tomorrow morning, hopefully to have my stitches removed from my throat. That is where the majority of the pain and discomfort is coming from. Once those are taken out, I have a feeling all the other stuff will fall into place, or so I hope. Then we can see how the actual surgery went, how much it will affect my sleeping, and if I will need a BiPAP machine.
• Good luck with the removal, squid. I'm surprised they didn't use dissolvable stitches to save the hassle of pulling them out. Enjoy that steak if you get it, although I suppose it's far too soon yet.
• I just woke up and here it's 2:25am. Massive pain from the back of my throat. I drank some water and that seemed to lesten the pain. Took a couple of vicodin too. Yesterday was a drag not only for the pain and lack of real, substative food, but for the creeping conciousness that you have stitches in the back of your troat that cause that pain and can do little or nothing to aleviate the pain or the stitches. I suppose the closest thing I can relate it to is a very painful version of clausterphobia. I started to freak out about it and then took a colonopin (kinda like a valium) and that chilled my anixity. Last night I tried eating solid food (mushu pork and wonton soup) but couldn't get very far without causing a pain of 7 or 8 on an 0-10 pain scale. I've got my friend Melanie taking me into the doctor at 9:30am. Keep your fingers and opposible thumbs crossed that they take out the stitches, my monkey friends... Tracy, what sort of pain killers do they have you on for your wisdom teeth extraction?
• Just Panadeine, an OTC codeine/paracetemol painkiller. I liked it mostly because it knocked me out.
• According to my doctor, I am healing up nicely. The stitches will have to dissolve of their own accord. And now he's got me on Darvocet. Seems to be faster acting and not give me the headaches that the vicodin did. I was able to struggle down a bit of warm won ton soup and a bit of noodle for lunch, but not much. So far I think I have lost about 15 lbs from this thing. As I mentioned, the pain has come and gone in waves, not just steadly decreasing as I expected. This morning was horrible and now I seem to be doing ok. According to the doctor, all in all I should be out of the woods on this within 3 to 4 more days. Tomorrow I am going in for my BiPAP machine and fitting. That will be interesting to see what happens once I get that thing working.
• I got boxes of panadeine forte, which is the s00pa d00pa painkiller version. I got it for my spine problems & shit. It's good to see you're not dead, squidranch. Truth to say I was rather worried about this surgery of yours, but then I have a pathalogical fear of hospitals.
• Darvocet's good stuff. I had that after my lung collapsed, and it follows the middle path, you might say: better than OTC stuff, but not as intense as some of the harder prescription painkillers.
• When the pain's intense, I still have to pop a couple of the Darvocet. They are large bright pink pills. On the script lable it says "Generic for Darvocet-N 100". Not as nasty, sick to my stomach, head ache-y feeling as the vicodin, but not as long lasting either. Anyway, I am still recovering. It’s weird, I think I'm over a major hump (in terms of the pain and healing), but then a whole new wave of searing pain and snot and dried boogers can and has opened up for me the next morning. So far, the morning directly after the surgery wasn't so bad since I had lots of demerol shots. The very next day was ok as well, but each succeeding morning has been very painful. I'm still breathing through my mouth which dries out the areas that I had surgery on and makes for a hell of a wake up call. I thought I was on the down hill but when I woke this morning, to just swallow is excruciating. Coffee (warm, not hot) with lots of milk is tasting good. When the doctor checked me over yesterday, he told me I am healing well and my septum looks good. He "couldn't ask for a better recovery". I guess the pain is just the nature of the beast.
• Ok, I caught up from pre-op curry meal (nice choice) all the way to post-op demerol and darvocet. My sinus/septum/throat hurts just reading this. Wishing you a speedy recovery and more yummy cafe au lait!
• What about setting an alarm to wake up halfway through the night and have a big glass of water to wet your throat? Might lessen the dry-throat pain in the morning.
• Not a bad idea Tracicle. Here's what I think is happening. If you were to look at the back of my throat, you'd see two grayish/brownish areas (one on either side of the throat) where my tonsils used to be. Each appears to have been lazered/cauterized from the side of the throat, but has been left there intact to protect the tissue underneath. Each gray/brown area also has a couple of sutures that link a lower lobe and and upper lobe together. What I guess is going to happen is that my body is going to slough off this tissue when it has served it purpose, kinda like a scab. Up until said day occurs (according to the doctor three to four days from now), any and all swallowing is accompanied by gagging reflex and varying degrees of pain. It makes it almost impossible to swallow anything solid. I'm guessing I've lost a good 10 pounds and by the end I'll have dropped 20. Not the easiest or most pleasant weight loss method out there, but I'll take whatever win I can get out of this. I went into the medical supply place to pick up my BiPAP machine. There was something ever so slightly skeevy and fly by night about the place. The guy who set it up for me had a hard time even putting the machine (about the size of an old cassette player/recorder) into its carrying case. I don't think I can wear the mask at least until I have these dead tonsils drop. Too fucking claustrophobic. I've got a big bag of chicharones (fried pig skins) in the kitchen which I will consume once my throat is better as sort of an ultimate test.
• Well, when those dead tonsils drop, that should satisfy your craving for steak. ;)
• There was something ever so slightly skeevy and fly by night about the place. I've been in a couple medical supply places, and they all fit that description. The best name for a med supply place I ever saw was "Habib's *Durable* Medical Equipment." Obviously this was a second shot after Habib's Rusty, Banged Up Medical Equipment went under.
• On the other hand, it must be hard to make potty chairs, walkers, hospital beds, wheelchairs and Depends look enticing. May it's smart to avoid the expense of trying?
• BTW, I'm chancing the hang over and having a scotch tonight. Why not, eh?
• squid, might be wise first to make sure your meds and the booze won't interfere with one another.
• So far, so good 'swacky. Don't worry, I'm not gonna get crazy.
• Darvocet shouldn't be a problem as long as you don't get drunk. It's fairly mild. DO however drink plenty of water before bed, or you'll have even more dryness than before tomorrow morning.
• To clarify my grammatical ambiguity, I mean that tomorrow morning, you will have more dryness than you experienced previously. Furthermore, I wish to clarify tha "drink plenty of water before bed" should be interpreted to mean that before you lie down to sleep for the evening, you should drink water. Not that you should drink the water while physically standing before your bed. You can do that, it won't hurt anything if you do, but neither will it provide any specific benefit than if you drank the water, say, while reading the Bhagavad Gita in a bathtub full of lime jello with pineapple chunks in it. On a related matter, I would like some scotch as well. Islay, if you please, though I will tolerate a twelve-year-old highland.
• Wow... I had da lime jello with da chunks all prepped and NOW you tell me that it ain't gonna do anything different? That's ok. Jesus said he might be stopping by for a hand of crazy eights and I just bet he'd be in the mood for some green jello with pineapple chunks. I know I am.
• Drank the water and it did indeed help. Whole new pathways of pain have opened up. As the old stuff falls away, new areas are exposed. I actually tried wearing the sleep apnea device last night. Fell off my face rather quickly. It's about 3:30am here now and I'm gonna give it another shot.
• I would be interested to see how Guinness would go with you. It's smooth, when cold not as shocking to the throat as other beer, and it's texture is not as astringent as lager; it doesn't seem to be as dehydrating as lager either. It might also put a layer of mucus in your throat that could soothe the dryness. I'm unwilling to recommend such a course of action, but you need something that will get you to sleep, relax and nourish to a certain extent - stout is far more nourishing in content than other ales. It also has a high caloric content which you need right now. But then again yoghurt is gonna do mostly the same thing, apart from not get you squiffy. pah! here I am, dreadful enabler, always recommending people get out of their heads! Reprehensible man.
• Glad you're feeling better, 'dranch. Are ye getting any longer periods of sleep yet?
• The BiPAP machine is just too much too soon right now. The pressure that is set to at "full" from my prescription is really high and it gets there too damn quick. The ramp is only for a half an hour (from low to full pressure) and at the end I feel like a virgin being expected to go from kissing to third base. A half an hour is just too short and I think I need to heal a bit more before I use it. No news in terms of the old tonsils. Still there like a couple of old, dead corpses in a horror film, not knowing well enough to leave. I just made a nice cuppa milkey coffee. Actually, I think I must be getting better. I woke up this morning and thought it would be funny to ask my doctor at the end of my exam for a "happy ending" like one does at a massage parlor. Pretty sick, so I must be getting better.
• LOL
• Poor squids, gets no foreplay from his BiPAP, and no happy ending from his doctor. Where's the love?
• WHERE'S THE LOVE PEOPLE?!?!?!
• Pre-op squid Post-op squid
• The frock does bring out your eyes, but I must say, the giant white Hitler moustache is a mistake.
• Where is the zombie tonsil closeup?
• Gah, you poor guy.
• This is a naive question, I'm sure, but why didn't the surgeon in fact REMOVE the tonsils, instead of leaving them to rot in the back of your throat like the festering scrota of a castrated squirrel?! The mental image is very distressing, and I hope they don't start doing this with amputees.
• Also, hang in there.
• Worse yet cynnbad, what about when they separate siamese twins? It makes sense actually. You heal better when you scab up as opposed to keeping the wound raw. I think this goes by the same logic. They were lazered/cauterized, not just cut with a knife. You remember in the cowboy movies they'd always heat a knife in the fire and cauterize the wound? It's to stop the bleeding and make it germ free. There are probably other benefits as well, but since I'm not a doctor I don't know what they are. I stopped by "Eat-a-Pita" to see if I could stand some lentil soup and humus and pita bread. I couldn't make it through more than five spoons of soup and three spoons full of humus before I gave up. It's weird how the pain seems to subside and then come on gangbusters.
• Oh my dear brother Squidy. He actually comes from a line of deviated septums. Our mother had the surgery and has had 4 to 5 polup surgeries. I have had mu tonsils out at 16, TWO, yes TWO deviated septum surgeries, one botched rhinoplasty with another redo and removal of an infected salvary gland. My new and improved version of a nose is just dandy. Would you believe my nose is still sloffing off desolvable (not in my case) stitches out of the base of my septum. It will be 2 years now since I've had the last surgery and I'm amazed that every 3 days now for the last 4 months I get these little stitches poking out of the inside of my septum. Rather than pick them out with my finger nail I take a pair of tweesers and pull them out. They lift up and below the tissue. I know for sure they are stitches because when you put them nail to nail and smash them it's clear and waxy. It's actually pretty cool and there seems to be no end to them. My last revision I was under the knife for 5 hours with a total cost of 27K. My current version should be insured for a total of 80K, just kidding about insuring my nose but holly hog warts that's alot of money that went out for my nose. Thank God, I've got good insurance and it picked up most of it. I know mouth pain well and I try to reassure my dear brother that time heals. It's just a m@%*er f*#ker getting over the hump. Thanks for being so supportive with my brother fellow monksters. Mikies's big sis, Jana Banana
• great galloping gobs of gruesomnity! What jovial family gatherings you deviate septates must have!
• Good god!!! /beams healing energy at squid I must have some kind of mental power because I had 4 lucid dreams in a row the other nite, so I'm beaming healing energies at you, and if it don't work I'm complaining to the manager.
• The result has to worth the pain. Here's to a good night's sleep. (But, I'm so sorry you've had such a hard time.)
• Can we pool our energies? I'm usually a misanthropic, irritated pig with my vivid dreams, but maybe they're of some use.
• Right after my post, I proudly pulled another little stitch out of my nose while I was talking to my bro on the phone. Poor little brother, the mouth pain SUCKS big time. And I want to know who else has ever gotten an infected salavary gland in the back of their throat? Tis' o'd dark thirty am and I've got a hair up my arse, um nose.
• Somehow I want these images OUT of my mind before I eat breakfast Cheche. In honor of the Squid-kid: MonkeyFilter: WHERE'S THE LOVE PEOPLE?!?!?!
• Bluehorse, you and chechebell would get along famously. Both are horse people who have cleaned beans out of the nether-regions of horses. Actually, chechebell couldn't be happier having old stitches come out her schnozzola as one of her greatest pleasures is to pick, prod and pop various things out of her (and anyone else's within reach) body. She's freaky-deaky that way.
• I've gotten an infected salivary gland in my mouth, but I usually just fix it with Listerine. Listerine is mah friend.
• Squid, is chechebell really your sister? Are you actually related?
• Yep, she's my sis. I live in LA and she lives in Palm Desert.
• I'm officially out of the same fruit of our parents loins as Squid. I came before Squid and another brother came before me. Squid got very large so I'm actually his little bigger sister. I've been gathering squid collectables for my brother over the years. One of the coolest things I bought him was a piece Willy Wonka candy in the shape of a squid. Petrified and a dingy burgundy color. Ya gotta love eBay! I framed it in a shadow box and it's hanging on the wall next to a few other squid memorbilia. When I bought the squid candy there was a warning not to eat it for fear of winding up in the OR. Te he. I love my Squiddy and played his nurse Nora during his surgery ordeal. It's only going to get better. When I had my salavary gland removed the stitches came out within the next two days and I had a hole in the back of my throat the size of a silver dollar. Son of a bitch was that painful. After it finally healed, I had to had injections (that was fun) to break down the scar tissue so I would feel far more normal and not so tight. Open mouth exercises are a drag and a great excuse when you have built up scare tissue in the back of your throat girls. I've been through hell and back again with my nose and throat and it's all fine now. Squid just needs some time to heal and hang low. Squid has a very close knit family so no worries fellow monkeys. I'm getting my feet wet on this blog so be careful about slinging bananas. Okie dokie :~)
• I'm officially out of the same fruit of our parents loins as Squid. I came before Squid and another brother came before me. Squid got very large so I'm actually his little bigger sister. I've been gathering squid collectables for my brother over the years. One of the coolest things I bought him was a piece Willy Wonka candy in the shape of a squid. Petrified and a dingy burgundy color. Ya gotta love eBay! I framed it in a shadow box and it's hanging on the wall next to a few other squid memorbilia. When I bought the squid candy there was a warning not to eat it for fear of winding up in the OR. Te he. I love my Squiddy and played his nurse Nora during his surgery ordeal. It's only going to get better. When I had my salavary gland removed the stitches came out within the next two days and I had a hole in the back of my throat the size of a silver dollar. Son of a bitch was that painful. After it finally healed, I had to had injections (that was fun) to break down the scar tissue so I would feel far more normal and not so tight. Open mouth exercises are a drag and a great excuse when you have built up scare tissue in the back of your throat girls. I've been through hell and back again with my nose and throat and it's all fine now. Squid just needs some time to heal and hang low. Squid has a very close knit family so no worries fellow monkeys. I'm getting my feet wet on this blog so be careful about slinging bananas. Okie dokie :~)
• chechebell, you pick things out of your nose and use words like "loins". You fit right in here! I hope to see you around more often.
• Pleased to meet cha' Koko. As Squid said, I'm freaky-deaky in many ways but all very loveable. Speaking of fitting right in, my real name rhymes with banana, hence the nick names, banana head, banana brain, banana breath, Cabaza de banana, and my bro calls me Cabaz most of the time. I've got banana threads through out my abode and they "peanut butter" my vocabulary. I'm looking into buying a used Mini Cooper S for gas economy this Saturday. And of course the only color I considered was yellow. It's a happy color. Mini's are like puppy dogs, when you walk up to them they look like they are wagging their tails and they are so cute I can't stand it. Sure to bring a smile every where you go. Girls just want to have fun. La la, la la, laaaaaa.....
• I prefer the Indricothere, which is my vehicle of choice. They also wag their tails when you talk to them, however they are somewhat larger than the mini. No worries about fuel, though.
• Chechebell, there are tonnes of them for sale up here. LA is the land of the mini (and sadly enough, the HUMMER). If you're serious, you and Scott should get a Recycler, come up here this Saturday and vist all the ones for sale by owner.
• An update on the health. It appears that the artist formerly known as my tonsils will not just drop off but be re-absorbed into my body. There is some blood flow in and out of them as evidenced by some pink capilaries near their surface. I'm guessing the doc fried them with either a laser or microwaves and will now let the scar tissue receed into my body. From the literature I read on SA, scar tissue is firmer than regular throat tissue so there might be a method to his madness. My throat is still sore and gets more sore in the morning after it dries out while I sleep. I was able to eat some chicken and noodles (the most solid food yet) at my favorite thai restaurant yesterday and will attempt eating a chorizo and egg burrito for breakfast this morning. Other odd things that I am noticing is that I can actually breathe through my nose. I know that's not unusual for most folks, but it is a bit disconcerning for someone who can't remember when he could draw a full breath through his nose. It's sort of freaky. Also, it hurts the back of my throat when I burp. Don't know why, but it does. Hope that goes away over time. It actually hurts when I talk, so I have a good excuse not to chat with friends and family when they call. Email is the prefered mode of communication right now.
• Well, you'll be able to snort coke properly for the first time in your life without blowing it all over the friggin table!
• Welcome, chechebell! I'd love to get a Mini myself. They look like you're driving around a little piece of zippy candy.
• Welcome, chechebell! I've been lusting after a Mini myself for years. Here's a place you might start looking, although I can't get the 'car watch' feature to work. Good luck!
• My goal was achieved last night at around 9:00pm. I actually ate pork rinds. They aren't as tough as I thought. Once you chew them up they aren't anywhere near as painful as tortilla chips. I continue to heal, although it still hurts when I swallow and when I speak. The swallowing thing is a pain in the ass, the speaking thing is kinda cool. I get to be as quiet as I want to be around people and can call them back when I WANT to. I can't stretch my mouth enough to yawn, although I would love to get a good yawn in. Last night I got up at 2:00am and thought that I'd read my email. I stumbled into my office and began reading and actually fell asleep as I was doing so. My head came crashing down upon the corner of my desk with my upper lip taking the most of the blow. I now have the tip of my nose bruised but it doesn't appear to have had any impact on my septum surgery. At least I hope so. Next time I go in to the doctor I'll know. Never happened to me before, but then again, I've never been in quite the same situation (pain killers, interupted sleep, ect.) before.
• Squid! Take care of yourself. We'll have to send over an aquarium keeper otherwise.
• So, went into see the doc today, about a week early. I had this stitch that was in the back of my throat and hanging down into the area where I swallow. It wasn't so bad most of the time, but when I got up in the morning and cleared my phlem it made me gag. Not pleasant. Anyway, doc snipped that. I am now stitch free! He told me I am healing super-duper swell (I paraphrase) and told me to come back in 6 weeks. Now I have to get used to my BiPAP device. I ordered via eBay (gotta love eBay) the Practitioner guide to my BiPAP machine which lets me fuck around with the settings without paying the respitory therapist. I'm gonna try to go to sleep with it again tonight. Wish me luck.
• Luck!
• GO, Squid! er... *whispers* Go to sleep, Squid.
• Lullaby, and good night!
• luck!
• *waits 'til 3AM* GOOD LUCK SQUID!!!!!
• Argh! Couldn't get to sleep wearing the damn face mask thing from the BiPAP machine. It's like have a (benign) face hugger from Alien on your mug. Rather claustrophobic. And once the air pressure kicks in full (after slowly ramping up over 30 minutes) you feel like you are being force fed air, which you are... Anyway, I'm hoping I can get used to it the same way that I did the Herbst Device before it. However, I also want to see how I am sleeping on my own. Since I am asleep, I don't really know if I am snoring, or worse yet, having episodes of apnea like I did before where my breathing would be blocked for 30 seconds or more by my soft palate. If the surgery was 100% successful, then I won't need the BiPAP machine at all. My sister is coming up for a visit soon and I'll see if she can check in on me as I snooze. I guess I could set up my video camera to tape me as I sleep.
• I'm sure the whole thing is weird, Squiddy. Perhaps if you put the mask on and just did a "little lay-down" for 45 minutes in the afternoon/evening just to relax and get used to it, you would be less inclined to feel such a sense of pressure. You don't have to go to sleep, just wear the mask and veg out a bit, listen to music, daydream, whatever, and if you accidently doze off... Bonus!
• The other night I was able to actually get to sleep with the machine on my face before the ramping got up to full force. It had the same effect as when I I wore one during my sleep test, i.e. I was able to go so deeply to sleep it was almost disturbing. Apparently this is how normal people sleep. It's hard to describe, but my dreams while wearing the machine are much, much more vivid and upon waking I am so deeply in sleep mode that it takes me several minutes to awaken. I'm really not used to such deep REM. When I sleep with this thing, I really SLEEP. I'm pretty much healed from the surgery. The only lingering issues are that the back of my throat where they cut is still somewhat tight and slightly painful and swallowing is a considerably different sensation than when I had more of a soft palate, but I am getting used to that. A huge difference is that even without the machine or my herbst device (a dental appliance that pushes the jaw forward and away from the soft palate) I can go to sleep and not awaken myself from snoring and the attendant apnea episodes. Very cool. I strongly encourage any of the monkey's out there who might have a similar issue with sleep apnea to get this surgery, get a CPAP/BiPAP machine or get some other sort of treatment. People are dying from this seemingly trivial condition. Besides that, you'll feel a hell of a lot more rested, less stressed, more alert with less emotional distress. I kid you not, it has changed my life.
• I'm so glad it's working for you, squidranch!
• Congratulations, squid. Now morning coffee will mean that much more.
• And remember the coffee jingle: The best part of waking up, is waking up ... alive!
• Yay!!
• *claps* Here's to better times ahead, squid :)
• Welcome to the world of oxygen! Glad it's working for you, squid.
• Happy deep sleeping to you! Monkeyfilter: my dreams while wearing the machine are much, much more vivid
• Thanks guys.
• I demand an update! How are things going with your apparatus? Are you dreaming dirty dreams about sexyrobot? Can you make crude artist renderings of them? And most of all, HOW DO YOU FEEL? Also, good to have you back.
• Wow, been a while. Thanks for the welcome MCT. Well, I went to my ENT (ear, nose and throat) doctor who did the surgery. Apparently I have healed very well. After a week or two more, he is going to have me do a second sleep study. BTW, those things are REALLY expensive. It cost me (or my health insurance) $2500 bucks to see how many times I was waking during the night. Anyway, I am sleeping better as evidenced by my less grumpy attitude and not needing a couple or Red Bulls during the middle of the day. The 2nd sleep test will quantify my increased REM, but I can tell you by personal experience that my life has changed. There have also been some negatives to the surgery. One thing is that the soft pallate that once protected the bottom part of my nasal passages is gone. What that means is that each morning I awake with a huge loogie in the back of my throat. Not your normal loogie, but one that could be used as super glue. Sticky and a drag to clear from the throat. I also find that I am slightly more sensitive to my gag reflex. Anyway, you asked.... That's all for now. I'll re-post when I do the second sleep study. Oh, and sexy robot... I challenge any of you to meet him and not have dreams (sexy or otherwise) about him. He is, in a word, the muse of LA monkeys.
• I'm guessing that since you haven't been around lately you must be bursting at the seems with energy working on your latest projects. In the end, did it all work out the way you expected it to? Better/worse?
• Nevermind! I just read your comment.
• Good deal. Been thinking about you lately -- my brother-in-law was diagnosed with apnea recently. They found out he was waking up once every minute, which boggles my mind. His doctor hasn't recommended surgery yet (he's not convinced the benefits will be worth what he'll have to go through, in this particular case), but he's now sleeping with the same contraption as you. Likewise, it's made a huge difference for him, not least in his marriage, as his wife can get a good night's sleep now as well.