Thread: Results of Sleep Study

Remind me how old Madi is again?

Madi turned 5 in May and is in Kindergarten now. I'm pretty sure she isn't having night terrors of any kind and she definitely isn't fearful. She's pretty good at manipulating during the day so we're trying to be sure she isn't doing the same at night. The last few nights she hasn't gotten out of bed or called out to us so maybe the lack of music is helping her to sleep a little better. Can't really be sure because her behavior is just as awful and she's still falling asleep in random places.

Ok I may totally be coming from left field here but was she sitting up when she fell asleep through the drive/dance lesson? Maybe it is a headache/pressure type issue? I notice sometimes that I get quite a large headache while laying flat (and lasts for quite sometime after I sit up), it sometimes takes a while to kick in when I am laying down. Is that something they would measure in a sleep study?

I am sorry for butting in, and I am not even sure what made me think of it, but the laying down headaches often make me a grump the entire day long...It also makes me more prone to falling asleep the next day.

She was sitting up when she fell asleep in the car and at dance. And at dance she was sitting in a metal chair! She never complains of headaches, but then again she doesn't complain of much even when she's really sick.

Okay she is past the age for what I was thinking so it's not that. Oh I do know of people saying their kids had night terrors that they didn't realize were night terrors, but those were actually picked up on a sleep study so that's probably not it either. And this is NOT the same thing (because Eli's are not just headaches, but ministrokes), but sometimes when Eli's headaches come on, he actually doesn't complain it's his head. And his teacher last year had a relative (a child) who would get migraines but not complain. I know there are different types. Sorry I can't be of more help.

Originally Posted by wishing4agirl

Okay she is past the age for what I was thinking so it's not that. Oh I do know of people saying their kids had night terrors that they didn't realize were night terrors, but those were actually picked up on a sleep study so that's probably not it either. And this is NOT the same thing (because Eli's are not just headaches, but ministrokes), but sometimes when Eli's headaches come on, he actually doesn't complain it's his head. And his teacher last year had a relative (a child) who would get migraines but not complain. I know there are different types. Sorry I can't be of more help.

Yes, my cousin has a TBI from a car accident and he now gets migraines without pain (he's 12). When one comes on he has short term memory loss (repeats the same things over and over) and just wants to sleep.

I really feel like Madi just isn't getting good, uninterrupted sleep. I think she's a kid who needs a lot of sleep to function, and though her results are borderline on paper they affect her tremendously. I wish there was a way she could still take a nap every day but it just isn't happening (a scheduled nap anyway, lol).

And now she's coming down with a cold so her sleep will surely be affected. Her colds usually turn into sinus infections, which apparently aren't painful in little ones like they are in adults but no one sleeps well with a stuffy nose. Lucky for me she's staying the night with my inlaws tonight! lol

I am assuming they ruled out seizures/narcolepsy. I can't recall if you've said that. Have you tried melatonin for sleep? Isaiah takes it every night, and it does help. Also making sure there is no exposure to light, because even a small exposure can deplete your natural melatonin in your body. The only exception is red light, so we actually have a red lamp in Isaiah's room for when the nurses go in and give him meds. I know what you mean about sleep being really important. Cherish needs more sleep than any of the other kids, and if she isn't in bed by 7:30 pm, her behavior the next day is horrible.

I'll try to make a long update short, lol. My husband threw away our copy of the sleep study report by accident. He called the pediatrician's office to see if they were sent a copy and they weren't. So he called the Pulmo's office and told them we need a full report, not a summary like we were originally given. Within a few days we had a copy of the summary (again) and some medical records from the study. The records were mostly charts/graphs and notes made by the tech. I spent some time going over the records (which I still found to be incomplete) and noticed that the # of apnea events didn't even add up! 4 plus 2 does not equal 4! That one math error had me questioning things. Then, I look over the tech notes and she recorded that there were desats with every occurrence of apnea. The doctor's reports stated there were no desats. So things just don't add up. I would really like another study done, this time at a place that specializes in pediatrics.

Madi's sleep and behavior continue to be terrible but we are dealing with it the best we can. We give her naps on weekends and even weekdays if we don't have plans after school (which isn't very often unfortunately). She has another cold though and isn't sleeping very well at night right now. In fact, she was up at 4 AM fussing about her nose and never slept for more than 5 minutes at a time after that (trust me....I know....because neither did I! lol).

Oh, and I have heard about melatonin but I know next to nothing about it. Is it safe to give without consulting a doctor first? How do you know how much to give? I am definitely open to trying it! She has always slept in a very dark room, no night light. We tried turning her radio off but it didn't seem to make a difference so it is back on now.

Well a friends son (he was about 4-5 at the time) took melatonin (told by the dr to give it) so I think it's safe, but I'd consult a doctor first. Having said that if the doctor is not into alternative medicine they may tell you no. I do think a study done by a pediatrics office would be beneficial since pediatrics and adults stuff can differ greatly. And the discrepancies would make me run somewhere else too. It's actually why we left our former cardiology office.