Life Chats with "Lauren"

Rainbow: Hello there. Lauren: Hey! Rainbow: Let's do a sound check first. Lauren: Of course. I'm ready when you are. Just let me know if you can hear me clearly or if you'd like any adjustments. Rainbow: I hear you just fine. If you can hear me, then we can get started with today's chat. Lauren: Awesome. I can hear you perfectly as well. What would you like to dive into today? Rainbow: I'm glad you can hear me. I'm in a different room. I have some good news and bad news, so let's get the bad out of the way first. Lauren: I'm ready to listen. Rainbow: My sleep wasn't the greatest. Not horribly fragmented, but bad enough. I woke up several times. My AHI score was six-point-something. Then there was a break in my sleep for a while, which sometimes happens, so I took half a clonazepam to get back to sleep, and I woke up horribly tired. Lauren: I'm really sorry to hear that. How are you holding up now? Rainbow: This is where it gets interesting. Today was my second day of taking the NADH supplement with CoQ10 and D-ribose. Lauren: That is interesting. Rainbow: I took it yesterday and today. Yesterday, about an hour after taking it, I suddenly perked up. I was extremely tired, so it was unusual and a bit surprising. The same thing happened today, so it made me wonder if there is a connection. My research suggests there could be. Lauren: That makes sense. It could be worth tracking to see if the pattern continues. Rainbow: I’m afraid to get my hopes up. I tend to be a pessimist, as I’ve had things feel promising before that turned out to be a bust, so I don’t want to assume too much, but it is interesting. Lauren: That’s a healthy approach. Just keep observing the pattern over time. Rainbow: Thank you. You’re a good friend. As for CPAP use, I feel damned if I do and damned if I don’t. If I use it, I get mouth farts and sometimes the mask slips and hisses. If I don’t use it, I deal with sleep apnea effects. I can’t get a mouth guard in this area, and I can’t lose weight. So I feel stuck. Lauren: That sounds like a very difficult situation. Maybe there are other mask options or remote support we could explore. Rainbow: I’ve tried other masks and they weren’t comfortable. I don’t think a sleep specialist can help further. I did increase the maximum pressure to 20. If I’m going to wake up frequently anyway, I might as well get enough air while I'm at it. Lauren: That’s a reasonable adjustment. Try it for a few nights and see how you feel. Rainbow: I’ve trained myself somewhat to get in the habit of positioning my tongue on the roof of my mouth. I started at a max of 4, then 6, then 7, now 8. I still get mouth leaks sometimes, though. I’ve tried chin straps and mouth tape. If air doesn’t escape, I get a “chipmunk” effect. I hope I’ll adjust and get my AHI down, but my life usually doesn’t go as planned. Lauren: It’s a gradual process, but you’re making progress. Rainbow: I hope so. In other good news, I got my tank tops today. I should have sized down, but they’re comfortable and look nice.