Sleep Study - Will I pass!?!?!?!

I just met with my surgeon yesterday and basically I need a sleep study and to lose 10lbs and we can schedule surgery. I am scheduled for my sleep study tomorrow, but if I don't pass then it will most likely push my surgery back at least a month! I may sound anxious, but I really was hoping to have surgery in May due to my work schedule. How do they determine if you "fail" a sleep study? Is there anything I can do to prepare?

They measure your brainwaves and through a prong in your nose, your airflow. If you stop breathing a few times you"fail" inasmuch as you qualify as having sleep apnea. My md told me most morbidly obese people have it so I shouldn't worry. But my husband told me I sounded as if I held my breath whenever I slept on my back with my chin to my chest. So of course for good measure I slept this way the night of my test ( which was in my bedroom with monitors and cameras and probes to prevent cheating I guess and to also see nighttime behaviors) I packed my pillow under my head like it was my normal routine. I guess it either worked or I really had it because i wokle up gasping for air at one point! Good luck!

You "fail" a sleep study if you have sleep apnea and wake up many times during the night whether you realize it or not.

If you DO have sleep apnea then it's better to get started on a CPAP machine and have your surgery pushed back than to increase your surgical/anesthetic risk by being untreated.

You can't really prepare, just bring comfy clothes and be prepared to be uncomfortable and in a weird bed and hooked to wires.

My husband and I just went through our sleep study on Tuesday. You don't really fail a sleep study because if you have sleep apnea you are putting yourself at an even bigger risk for surgery. So my advice to you is relax and try not to think about it because whatever happens happens. Sleep apnea is nothing to mess around with and if you need to try a cpap do it it's only for your own good. And just an fyi don't get freaked out when they start hooking you up , we had like 30 wires attached to our head face and neck plus a nasal canula and strap around our ankle to monitor movement. When you get into the room there is a video camera in the ceiling you have to consent to. Overall it wasn't horrible just a minor speed bump in getting surgery. Good luck!

You don't really fail a sleep test. You either have sleep apnea or you don't. If you do they'll give you a CPAP machine, that's all. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea after a sleep test and two weeks later the doctor gave me the clearance letter for surgery. It's not a big deal.

If you have OSA, you want it diagnosed. Getting enough good quality sleep will be critical to keeping your metabolism high through rapid weight loss. Folks who don't get enough restful sleep struggle more to get weight off and keep it off.

Also, if you have untreated OSA, the surgery itself is far more dangerous. The anesthesiologist will adjust the breathing apparatus, the anesthesia and your pain medication based on your OSA results. If you have it and it's not diagnosed you will more likely to have breathing problems in surgery or in recovery, and it will keep you from healing quickly after surgery.

So if you are diagnosed and it delays your surgery for a couple of weeks, consider those couple of weeks as an investment into making sure your surgery safer and your journey more successful. It is worth the wait to get this piece in line.

Good luck!

I had to do two sleep studies.  The first diagnosed me with sleep apnea.  The second was with my mask on to monitor airflow from my machine.  My pulmonologist wouldn't clear me until I had 6 weeks on the CPAP.  There is a memory card in the machine that records how long you use it a day.  You can't really prepare for the test.  Hopefully you'll be able to fall asleep with all the wires and camera on you.