One Woman's Guide to What Happens During a Sleep Study

I was worried when I went to visit my doctor, with symptoms of constant fatigue, no energy during the day, loud snoring at night, along with some other symptoms. I didn't know what to expect after that. With a couple questions, she thought I may have sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a condition in which you stop breathing during the night and do not get quality deep sleep, although you may feel as if you are sleeping all night. As a result, you feel tired all day long. When my doctor ordered a sleep study for me, I was completely confused and didn't know what would happen during the study. My thoughts were that I would go into an office, have a bunch of wires hooked up to me, and sleep on a hospital-type bed while somebody watched me all night. Well, I was relieved to find out that I was wrong, it's not as bad as I thought. Here's what I went through, and what you can expect during your study.

First, my doctor ordered a sleep study through The Washington Hospital Sleep Center, with 3 locations in the Pittsburgh PA area. My study would be done in the Waterdam Commons facility, in McMurray PA. The next step was to set up 2 appointments, one to see a nurse prior to the study, and the other for the actual study. I was lucky enough to get both appointments on the same day, which was very convenient. Once the appointment for your study is made, the sleep center will send you a packet of information, with everything you need to know about your study - where it will take place, what you need to bring with you that night, etc. There will also be a diary page, where you will keep track of your sleep for the next few days. This will provide the sleep tech and specialist with information about how you sleep at home during the night, and if you take naps during the day. You'll need to mark what times of the day you feel awake, and when you feel the most tired. Be honest with this, it's important for a correct diagnosis.

The sleep center will give you call prior to your study to pre-register you. This is the time to ask questions about the study. Ask about anything you are worried about, such as what kind of bed you'll be sleeping in, if there will be a TV to watch, and if you'll be able to get up during the night to use the bathroom. Some sleep centers may be different than others.

The nurse appointment was a simple visit. He or she will ask you to fill out some papers, including the basic information such as your name, address, your PCP (primary care physician) and the name of a contact person in case of an emergency. The contact person you choose should be someone who lives outside of your household, such as an aunt or close friend, although they had no problem with me using my boyfriend as the contact. Next, they will take your health insurance information and make a copy of your insurance card to have on file. Now it's time to do a small exam. A nurse practitioner will take your blood pressure, and ask you a few simple questions about your sleep patterns. She'll also check your throat to see if your tonsils are enlarged. Some of the questions she'll ask will be about your usual bedtime, how sleepy you feel during the day, if you fall asleep while driving, and if you snore at night. She will inform you that you should not take a nap on the day of your study, drink caffeine, or take sleep pills, because it's important that you sleep normally at your study. At the end of this visit, you'll be signing some papers as well, for your insurance and consent for the study.

Now it's the night of your study. Show up on time, and bring with you everything you'd need for your bedtime routine, such as pajamas, toothbrush and medicine. I brought a blanket from home, just because it's hard for me to sleep away from home, and I figured something from home would help me sleep better. I know it sounds stupid, but it actually did help me! When you arrive, the sleep tech will begin to connect you with some electrodes. She will begin by applying a gel that removes the oil from the surface of the skin, to help your electrodes from falling off. Be sure your hair is clean, because you will have electrodes attached to your head, and the cleaner your hair is, the easier they will stick. The gel hardens overnight, and is really messy in the morning. The whole process of connecting the electrodes takes about a half hour or so. During that time, you can watch TV or read a book or magazine. Electrodes will be placed on your head, chin, behind your ears, below your shoulders, and on your legs. They will be secured with medical tape. I also had a cord that went into my nose and monitored my snoring and breathing through my nose and mouth. She will place a cord on your finger, to monitor your pulse throughout the night. The electrodes are a pain, and you may find it a bit awkward when you are trying to sleep, but they really shouldn't affect your ability to roll around in bed. I had no problem with the wires, and after about 20 minutes I forgot they were there and I fell asleep. If at any time one of the electrodes falls off, the sleep tech will come in and reattach it. My tech told me she'd only come in and reattach it if she knew I was awake, she didn't want to wake me up. I never had a problem, all of my electrodes stayed on. I did wake up a few times during the night, once to use the bathroom. The tech came in, disconnected the wires from the main machine, and I took all of the wires with me to the bathroom. This was a pain, and hard to walk with, but I got through it.

Once your electrodes are hooked up, you're ready to get into bed. The tech will wrap straps around your stomach and chest to monitor your breathing, and to see if you stop breathing during the night. After all of that, you're ready to sleep. In my sleep center, there is an intercom in the room so that the tech can listen for snoring, and I can talk to her at any time during the night if I needed anything. There was also a camera in the room to monitor tossing and turning. I had a hard time falling asleep there, and I felt like I would never sleep. I did eventually fall asleep, thankfully.

Once your sleep study is over, the sleep tech will come into the room and wake you up. They will usually wake you up around 5 or 6 am. Then, all of the electrodes will be removed and cleaned for the next use. The sleep tech will wipe the areas where the electrodes were with a damp rag, to remove most of the gel. They may tell you what they noticed during the study, and how long the results will take to come back. Then, you're on your way!

A few things I was concerned about, and you may be wondering too, were common questions for the sleep tech. Remember, don't be afraid to ask questions. I wondered if the room would be private, or if she would be sitting in the same room watching me sleep all night. The answer to this is no, I was in my own room and she sat in her own room too. We communicated through the intercom system, and she evaluated my sleep in the next room. This was nice to know, because I really think I wouldn't have been able to sleep with a person watching over me! I also wondered what kind of bed I'd be sleeping in, since my thoughts were I'd be sleeping in a hospital like bed. Not true. The bed was for the most part comfortable, with nice sheets and comforter. My bed was a double size bed, and not the small little bed I had imagined.

These are some other questions you may have, that I can answer just from my experience. You won't be allowed to bring somebody with you to sleep with, such as your spouse or even a pet. You're there by yourself, and it's only for one night so it's not really a big deal. However, I do believe parents are allowed to stay with children who are having a study done. If you are worried because you think you won't be able to sleep there, that's understandable too. My tech told me she would need about 4-5 hours for the study, and after that if I couldn't sleep anymore, I was free to go home. Luckily, I did sleep a full night, waking up just a few times. Those 4-5 hours don't have to be consecutive hours, just 4-5 hours total sleep. Another question you may be wondering is if the doors are locked at night. The doors in my center had a special lock, requiring a special key to open it. I felt very safe in my sleep facility, knowing that nobody would be able to come in that shouldn't be coming in.

Overall, I wasn't looking forward to having this study done, but now that it's over with, I'm happy I went through with it. Now I just need to wait for the results of the test to see where I go from here. Good luck to anybody who will be having a study done, it's not as bad as you think!