Dylan Reviews James’ Transformation from tiredness, naps, surgery not working, and CPAP reliance to more energy and fewer apnea events.
00:00
Dylan Petkus, MD
Hey everyone, it is me, Dylan Petkus here and I have a very special guest, James, who we’ve been working with him for just a little bit. Well, feels like a little bit in some ways because time really flies. But you know, I think months is a better depiction of that time span. And as we know, it’s very. Sleep apnea is very demotivating, not only because you’re tired all the time, but also it’s like, here are your options. And if you don’t want six surgeries and a tube that you had to basically marry and wrestle alligator all night, it can be defeating. So that’s why I like to share the stories of people who have made it through, defied all the odds, and are now on the other side of this and doing much better.
00:48
Dylan Petkus, MD
So thank you, James, for joining us here today.
00:52
James
My pleasure, of course.
00:53
Dylan Petkus, MD
Of course. Let’s go ahead. When you first started to notice sleep issues, when did you start to notice that something was off? Like you’re sneaking suspicion of, “I think I have an issue with my health.”
01:07
James
Well, I went on a trip with a bunch of friends and a bunch of guys, and so we all slept in a room, and they complained about my snoring. And so that’s when I first realized it was a problem. And then when I got married, my wife said, you got to do something about this. And so I checked into it, and actually one of the first things I had done was they removed the, what is the glottis or whatever’s at the back of your throat. And so the surgeon did that and you know, he said, that’ll help, but you really need to lose some weight, blah, blah. And so. And I wasn’t good about losing weight, but then they put me on the, you know, the CPAP. And I’ve probably been on a CPAP for probably about 12, 13 years.
02:19
James
And then I happen to see, you know, your. An advertisement for you guys. And it, I mean, I’m 76 now and you know, it said, well, it could take, you know, my age could take, you know, one to five years off my lifespan. And I’m going, you know, I just want the rest of my time to be, you know, well spent and, you know, healthy. And so, you know, I started looking into your program and the most important part was that you had like, the coaching and, you know, you had like weekly, you know, action steps and all that. And in a lot of programs, you know, they tell you where you’re at and you need to do something, here’s the goal. But they don’t help you through the process. And yours was very process oriented. So I was real interested in that. So.
03:34
Dylan Petkus, MD
Awesome. So you had the snoring and then like, what else? Because very often it’s not just snoring, whether it was fatigue during the day, difficulty concentrating. What were some of those other, like, other things that maybe you pinned it on? What were those other red flags you saw?
03:52
James
Well, probably the biggest thing was my lack of energy. Like, I retired back in 2013 at the end of 2013. And you know, once I retired, you know, I started to notice that, you know, I started taking naps in the daytime, which I’d never done. And you know, just felt fair amount of fatigue where I didn’t want to do anything. And you know, those were, that was significant. So, you know, that was the thing that I noticed most. And then I had to, yeah, I had to take sleeping pills to help me sleep and you know, that kind of thing. So I’d say those were the big things.
04:51
Dylan Petkus, MD
What were some of those things that like, used to be easy but either you were too tired for or became like a huge chore for you?
05:00
James
Well, yeah, over time, probably the biggest thing I noticed when I retired, I, you know, I bought some rental properties to keep myself busy and you know, I worked on them myself. And you know, I just noticed, you know, I didn’t have the drive to be doing everything I needed to do. And you know, and then a lot of my kids live out of town and so, you know, a lot of times I want to go see him, but I wouldn’t have the energy to drive a couple hours. And you know, I was disappointed by that. And you know, I had grandkids and, you know, still very young and I wanted to see them at their fun age and, you know, spoil them, you know, and all that.
06:04
Dylan Petkus, MD
What were those worries you were having around your health, like in, I mean, basically your quality of life?
06:12
James
Yeah, well, I, I had always, you know, I had wanted to be active when I retired and, you know, I had plans. You know, I enjoyed doing ministry and that kind of thing. And, and then for a lot of that stuff, I just, you know, I didn’t have the energy that I needed to do the things I want. And I knew something was wrong. I didn’t know quite, you know, I didn’t associate at all with the sleep apnea and the CPAP, but I just, I kind of assumed it was just getting older. But, you know, it’s not really that.
06:55
Dylan Petkus, MD
What were some of those main things the doctor was telling you that was like, oh, okay, this is like a bigger deal than I thought it was, or like, “oh, this is a problem.” What were some of those initial things you heard there?
07:10
James
Well, the only thing they, you know, they talked about was trying to help me open up my airway and, you know, and losing weight. They didn’t have any. There was. They didn’t have any other solutions. And, you know, it was. They would do that and, you know, give you a CPAP and, you know, be on your way. And so it was, you know, it was like the CPAP was supposed to.
07:47
Dylan Petkus, MD
Solve everything, and you did the CPAP for a while and you were using it. So, like, how tired were you still, despite surgery plus PAP therapy?
08:00
James
Well, I. I was still. Tell you what, the last about three years, I got really tired, and it was like, you know, I was taking a couple naps in the afternoon and, you know, just wanting to sit around, and I’d never been like that. And, you know, so I knew I had to do something, but I didn’t know what.
08:35
Dylan Petkus, MD
Do you remember Facebook, Instagram, YouTube?
08:38
James
Yeah, I think it was Facebook.
08:40
Dylan Petkus, MD
What were some of those other thoughts of where you’re like, all right, I think there’s something here. Like, what. What turned that interest into action and, like, actually pursuing this approach?
08:54
James
Well, I think you had a little book you could get, and I forget if I bought it or it was free or whatever, but when I read through it and, you know, saw that you had quite a multifaceted approach and, you know, you monitored your clients as they went through the process, you know, and they got. We got feedback on a weekly basis, and we had opportunities to talk with you, Dr. Molly or Lisa, you know, almost daily. It was like, you know, I was just impressed.
09:44
James
And, you know, the other thing was that, you know, from what I read in your advertisement, it was like, you know, at my age, it was going to cost me, you know, years off my life to continue with, you know, now it’s the APAP, but, you know, so I said, okay, this is time to do it.
10:09
Dylan Petkus, MD
What were some of those initial signs? Whether it was improvements or, like, just. Just even having a plan, like, what were some of those signs? Like, all right, I’m on the right path. We’re getting out of this. What were some of those signs for you?
10:27
James
I like doing the breathing exercises because I knew I had to do. You know, you explained that very well, and so that was important. And I Kept up with that. And then I saw my relaxed pause go from like, 15 seconds. It was gradual, and, you know, it was gradually going up, so I knew things were, you know, getting better. And then along with that, the posture corrections, changes, adjustments, like, I’d always, you know, I was an accountant, worked in front of a computer all my life, and, you know, I had terrible posture and, you know, hunched over, looking at the screen, and.
11:20
James
And so, you know, for me to straighten up and put my shoulders back, I noticed that, you know, when I was walking, instead of looking down at the sidewalk like I normally did, I would be looking straight ahead and I’m going, you know, and it. It eventually became where, you know, I felt. It felt normal and. And I like that, you know, so I knew things were going well there. And, you know, the other big thing initially was the logging my diet and, you know, so I could see, you know, that I was keeping my calories down and, you know, carbs were where they should be, etc. But I noticed the two things that happened along the way was, you know, my. My A1C got better, and, you know, my weight went down. Not a lot, but a little bit.
12:40
James
You know, it was gradual, and, you know, I’m thankful for that.
12:45
Dylan Petkus, MD
Like, what were those other markers? What were those for you?
12:49
James
Okay. Well, I could. I could look on my. On my APAP and see what the apnea events were, and, you know, we’re for the night, and I could see that it was going down. And then, you know, talking to Lisa and looking at your model, you know, I would just reduce the maximum air pressure. You know, so I knew things were getting better, and that was probably the biggest thing. And then I actually, I didn’t realize it, but with my apap, I can get, you know, one week, one month, two months, three months, six month readings. No, maybe not six months, but up to three months averages. And, you know, those were. Those were coming down. And, you know, I, you know, when they started, you know, on a weekly basis being under two, I was, you know, I was shocked and excited.
14:18
James
Oh, the other thing that happened was my blood pressure went down. I mean, I’m still taking meds, but the biggest thing was I. When. When I. When I would read my blood pressure at home, you know, I’d get A good reading, 120 over 80. But when I’d go to the doctor, it would always be higher, you know, and so they were telling me, oh, a lot of people do that. But somewhere along this in the program, when I went to my GP and Hannah, you know, they took my blood pressure at the beginning of, you know, the exam, and it was like, 120 over 80. And I was thinking, God, you know, never been like that when I went to the doctor before. So, you know, those kind of things, you know, and then more daytime energy and. And that kind of thing.
15:20
James
And I don’t know if you want me to talk about this now, but one of the big things for me was sleeping on my left side. I’ve always been a back sleeper. And one of the final things to get me down to under two was sleeping on my left side. And so once I started doing that, I could, you know, I would be under 2 consistently. And. But it also, you know, with Lisa’s help, it also helped me realize that I still needed to work on my tongue exercises, you know, so that I could sleep on my back and, you know, have similar AHI numbers.
16:16
Dylan Petkus, MD
The AHI numbers, it’s a marker of sleep apnea severity for everyone at home. So 5 to 15, mild, 15, 30, moderate, 30 plus severe. Yeah, I did not provide perfect intervals, but that’s not the point. The point is it’s a pretty objective measurement, and lower is better. Do you remember, like, what your. Your pressure setting was and then where it is now and your results in AHI? Like, what were you at? Like, were you at, like, 14?
16:46
James
No, I was. My max pressure was 20.
16:50
Dylan Petkus, MD
Okay, that’s like.
16:51
James
And then. Yeah. But now, you know, it’s worked it all the way down to five, and the minimum on the machine is four. So, you know, in my average air pressure when I, you know, using the machine is like 4.5 now. And, you know, in my, you know, my. The apnea events, AHI is, you know, on a nightly basis. You know, it runs from 0.5 to, you know, 0.2. And I. I’m just. I’m amazed.
17:32
Dylan Petkus, MD
And then in terms of actually feeling refreshed and all that in, like, the days and the mornings and all, like, how’s. How’s that now?
17:42
James
It’s awesome. Yeah. One of the biggest things that.
17:49
Dylan Petkus, MD
I.
17:49
James
Have to do is, like, get out within 10 minutes of the sun coming up and. Because Cincinnati, it’s cold and, you know, it’s winter, so. Yeah, Lisa understands that, being a Michigan girl, so that’s a big thing. And then I don’t. Yeah. Last three weeks, four weeks, you know, I. I rarely nap in the afternoon anymore, so. But it’s hardly ever, so, you know, it’s. It’s exciting.
18:31
Dylan Petkus, MD
Nice, awesome. So very Close to being machine-free. Because you said, you’re a 4.5 pressure setting.
18:39
James
Yeah.
18:40
Dylan Petkus, MD
So four is the zero of Pap therapy. So, James now to James, back then when your buddies were like, you’re snoring, and you’re in the doctor’s office first starting out with this, what would James now say to James then about, you know, your sleep, your health and all that?
19:01
James
I wish I had, you know, found a program like yours a long time ago and started looking at alternatives to the CPAP because it’s, you know, it’s a lot of hassle and, you know, it’s, you know, the solution you offer works. I just, I wish I had found it years ago instead of now. I’m grateful that it’s now. I’m thankful and. But if I could have done it, you know, 20 years ago, you know, things, you know, who knows how things would have gone, but better for sure.
19:51
Dylan Petkus, MD
So thanks for joining me here, James, and to everyone out there, just want to, you know, give you more of that motivation, hope in your journey. Right? Because especially if someone’s dependent on a CPAP, scared of getting off of it. That’s why I wanted to have James here, because as a very good example of you can make tremendous progress while still using it and ultimately have that goal of getting off of it. Because I don’t think I’ve asked a lot of people, do you have a goal of getting off your CPAP? And like 99 times out of 100, they say yes. So if that’s you, that’s what the journey looks like and being able to get off this. So, thanks for joining us here, James, and we’ll go ahead and sign off. So bye, everyone, and thanks for watching.