We All Need Sleep: My Experience at Sinai’s Sleep Center

We all need sleep. Sometimes, though, it is hard to come by. Depending on your situation, it could be stress.  Or it could be medically related, like a condition called sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is a common disorder in which a person has frequent pauses in their breathing while they sleep.  Depending on its severity, it can disrupt nighttime sleep and lead to daytime drowsiness.  In extreme forms, it can lead to heart failure and stroke.

No matter what the problem, not getting enough sleep is never a good thing.  I actually know this from experience.

I have mild sleep apnea. For years, I never knew I had it, until somebody told me I stopped breathing in my sleep. This was a literal wake up call for me.  I knew snoring was normal, but not breathing?  That was kind of scary.

I am glad to tell you I’m not so scared any more (well, of sleep apnea, anyway, clowns still scare me a little).

I had a sleep study at the Sinai Sleep Center.  This was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.  I spent the night in a very comfortable bed,…attached to what seemed like a 1,000 wires.  These wires were monitoring my sleep throughout the night to determine if I had any sleep problems.  Although it was a little strange lying in bed with wires stuck to my head, I eventually got to sleep.

The test revealed I had sleep apnea.  Dr. Brian Bohner, my sleep doctor, prescribed me a C-PAP machine.  This device makes sure I have a continuous flow of air throughout the night.

For me, sleeping at night has become a lot better. And it has helped others as well.

Check out this story that just ran on Fox 45 about the Sinai Sleep Center.

http://www.foxbaltimore.com/newsroom/features/cover_story/videos/vid_651.shtml

To make an appointment with the Sinai Sleep Center, call 410.601.WELL

-Noel Lloyd

To schedule an appointment with one of our highly trained physicians and find out why LifeBridge Health is Baltimore's premiere health care organization, call 410-601-WELL.

About Noel Lloyd

Noel Lloyd is a communications coordinator with LifeBridge Health. A native of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, he enjoys playing soccer, going to concerts and traveling.

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