On Thursday morning, I drove to Greensburg Sleep Center to take part in a sleep study that I was scheduled for. The study would get me tested for sleep apnea. Most of the studies are done overnight and I originally scheduled it for 8:30pm. Thinking it would be easier to do it during the day, we were able to agree on rescheduling it for the morning. This was due to my late hours at Giant Eagle. The lady who ran my study was very professional and had a good bedside manner.
I changed into my pajamas and got ready for bed. Afterwards, my nurse who was in charge of the study hooked me up with wires and put a belt around me. This took a few minutes to get all put together. However, this also puts things into perspective for me on how I get ready to settle down at home. It was required that I wear sleepwear that was two piece plus it helped if I brought my own pillows. Two was plenty as three would alter the study.
She explained everything to me including how to page her if I needed anything. I would have to do it if I needed to use the bathroom since I was hooked up with all the wires. For this study, I had to sleep on my back. This also put things into perspective as I’ve always slept on my side or my stomach.
I did some exercises in bed before I would go to sleep. The nurse had me look in every direction using my head, blink five times, and breathe via my nose and mouth. I concluded by taking a deep breath and holding it. I only paged a couple of times so the intercom definitely worked. The test was a success and the results were in.
I definitely had sleep apnea.
I’m smelling a speech topic for my next project, “Prepare to Speak Professionally”. Can I get 15 minutes out of this topic? I’m pretty confident.
As for my follow-up sleep study, it will be on May 7. Everything will stay the same from the first study with one exception. Instead of the nose plugs, I’ll be trying on CPAP masks. I was fortunate to have an early morning sleep study and a friendly nurse to guide me through it. The room I slept in was nice as well. No windows, which kept the brightness out. In two weeks, I’ll be right back there.
Because of the study, Mr. Clougherty wasn’t sure if I’d be up for dinner Thursday night. We kept the offer on the table and I’m glad I didn’t cancel it. He was flexible to meet next Thursday but I stuck with the original plan. Instead of meeting close to the mall, we met at Chili’s. The main subject was my sleep study (and Sara’s baby shower). That was fine with me. Politics and the high school construction are so played out by this point.
Mr. Clougherty will be retiring at the end of the school year. His teaching days may be over, but he’s still going to coach.
As I left the Sleep Center, I got into my car and checked the clock on my dash. It read 2:15; thus, the study was a success. How I sleep will definitely be changing as well.
Dinner with Kevin was worthwhile and I’m glad I decided to go. But first, the “oh crap” moment. He left his wallet at the pool and thought he’d be out of luck. Being helpful, I showed Mr. Clougherty how to pay with his phone. That saved us some time and saved him a drive back to the school.
We hadn’t met at Chili’s for dinner for quite some time. It had been a couple of years for me, at least. We got good seating, and our server was patient with us as we took our time ordering. I couldn’t decide whether or not I wanted a fajita or pasta. I actually ordered something healthy, and that was the Ancho Salmon. I’m glad I did as it was very good. The pesto and cilantro really gave the salmon some flavor. I even dipped my broccoli in the sauce. Kevin got the Santa Fe Burger, and he enjoyed it as well. Fives across the board for food, service, and atmosphere.
You could definitely tell that everyone was excited for the NFL draft Thursday night.
Stylish 🍒 