sleep apnea

I've had Sleap Apnea for 10 years and it's no problem at all. The trick is to get diagnosed and treated. Once you get used to your CPAP machine, you can sleep as well as anyone. Heck, I sleep way better with it than I did without it. My face is so used to having the mask on that it feels funny without it.

As for driving a commercial vehicle with Sleap Apnea - it's fine as long as you can prove you are being treated and you use your CPAP machine regularly. Most trucking companies I talked to said exactly that. I almost hired on with Schneider and all they required was a 10 day report showing your sleep hours with the CPAP machine. You can get that easily by using a CPAP machine that has recording capability. Mine did not so I called the Medical Supply comapny near me and they rented me one for $50. After the 10 days, I took it back and they printed out the report.

 

I was not giving any advice and telling anyone they should research their own selves: no one knows themselve any better. If you want to pay visits to a chain of doctor specialists that have no incentive to see you get well, then fine. Your best hope will be the final doctor asks you how you feel and will tell you what you knew all along. Of course he will ask you to see him every month or so, so he can tell yourself to do what you were going to do anyway.

'Sleep Apnea' is not a condition of individuals, it is a condition of people being fed corn syrup (sugar) in every processed food they eat (the diabetes society for doctors to make a killing off of), and foods with milk biproducts (or cow hormones/steroids). That's why Europeons are infinitely better condition on the average than Americans, and their doctor prescribe herbs, chiropractor, or anything which will HELP the person get better. US doctors give pills, do nothing, and prescribe regular visits, while you may get sick in the waiting room.

No, I do know something. I have worked in engineering dealing with every man-machine interface condition in almost every manufacturing industry. In my life, I've curled 200 lbs and ran marathons, and never seen a doctor except to pee in a cup (although I respect RN's deeply). If you need someone to milk your finances and feed you rat-poison drugs, then fine, you deserve what you get. But don't lead other sheep over the edge of the cliff with apparantly very little knowledge except to believe what Industry ($$$) is telling you to 'think'.

Embrace technology. It just takes a few hours searching per any condition you might imagine. Then go and see your doctor and you may know more than they do about what you are paying them to cure. Knowledge changes fast these days, but doctors in US have never been too keen on progressive health advice. I'm sure there are exceptions, but that is only an assumption.

--------------------------------------------------------

And my Mother had that painful nasal/mouth-roof surgery done which grew back as soon as the surgery healed (about 6 months), so although not a statistical sample on the surgery (or at least 3 samples) it is a 100% of a single sample and a real person: not wind blown from a web-ghost. Like Prostate surgery, surgery does not stop the condition like Saw Palmetto does (an herb, medicines finally incorporated since nothing else works), and the condition will reappear (or grow back) because the ROOT CAUSE of the condition was not addressed.

 

same thing happen to me at swift,lucky Iam vet no cost .did not go back to swift.going to try some other company not going to tell about sleepapea what do all think ?

 

im thinking on going to werner did they really give a hard time on this or did you volentarily tell them you had sleep apnea,i have it aand am wondering if i just shouldnt say anything ,when i got diagnosed i think i got screwd i went to the doc for a bad cold
timberwolf

 

Well not telling them will work.. but the last time i checked you could not even get a medical card unless you have a medical resperator.. I could be wrong. But if you do have one A COMPANY CAN NOT REFUSE TO HIRE YOU FOR THAT REASON. It falls under the right to work act. As long as you have the resperator. One good thing is they have to by law alow you or someone else to run an inverter.At least thats one good thing.

 

The reason i know that is because the last time i had to get my md card, the nurse asked if i had it, I told her i might because i have a hard time geting to sleep at night, she quikly explained the diferance. She told me if i had it then she could not give me my card. And then she told me about the resperator and the right to work act..

 

Minor correction... its not the right to work act.. it is the American with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Sleep apnea is a disability as defined under the ADA. No employer can discriminate or refuse to hire on the basis of a prospective employee having a disability. They also need to make any resonable accomodations (like installing an invertor to power your CPAP).

Now.. in trucking you do need to have a current DOT medical card. This means you need to provide documentation that you are under "current and effective treatment" for sleep apnea.. and the definition of "current and effective treatment" can vary between doctors based on your individual medical case.

There are some companies that try not to hire drivers with sleep apnea because the feel they are a higher risk.... but that is actually illegal..

There are other companies that have good programs for getting drivers tested for sleep apnea and handle all the DOT regs and compliance letter for your annual DOT physical with no problems...

DO NOT LIE or "forget" to put down on your DOT medical form that you have sleep apnea. That can get you into a REAL heap of trouble.

If you get "hassles" about multiple tests etc post questions in the forums. There are doctors and companies that specialize in treating drivers with sleep apnea. They know how to get you back on the road with a minimum of hassles.

Do your research.... good Luck....

 

You are correct, mostly lol. If you have obstructed sleep apnea then yes if you lose weight it will improve your apnea even cure it if enough weight is lost.

 

Lot of people who are overweight have it. Sometimes when you loose weight, it really does help. I know two drivers who have it and they have the machines. Their companies work with them on it. Both have said that they are so much more rested after using the machine during sleep time. Not near as tired as they were. Don't know this as a fact but snoring could be a sign.

 

You could almost equate it to SIDS in a way. Like when babies forget to breathe. And die. Gosh, I dont think they "deserve" what they get... Our adult brain is more developed and when we stop breathing it makes us start breathing again. Am I right?