Sleep Study

Glen has worried us a bit lately with his sleeping. Always a good sleeper, he still sleeps quite a bit. And, he is a prolific snorer. We can hear him huffing and snorting through two closed doors, with the TV on.

We decided to pursue a sleep study, because we were concerned with the quality of sleep he is getting. Chances are good that we'll be scheduling a tonsilectomy sometime in the near future, but wanted the information to make a good decision before going that route.

So, I came home from a business trip early, in time to take Glen to St. Vincent's for his sleep study.

He was a little scared to go... he said he was scared that he was going to get a shot, and that the doctor was going to "cut open my body." I assured him that he would just have a bunch of wires hooked up to him, then he would just sleep. No shots, no cutting, no blood, no pain.

Still, he was pretty anxious. Our sleep technician was great - she let us into the room early, and we had a chance to settle in before it was time to get hooked up. And, we got to explore the stuff she was going to hook to him and touch the electrodes (he thought at first he would get electrocuted, then had a lot of fun psyching himself up to touch a new one, and giggling when it didn't shock him).

He was a trooper as he got all hooked up. He was still nervous, but started to relax as it didn't hurt. Then, it was off to bed - here is what he looked like:

Breaks your heart, doesn't it? He was so good. He had a total of 15 wires on his head, then more on his face and neck, and on his chest and legs. Plus the nose cannula with the "elephant trunk" that measured breathing, and bands around his chest and tummy. He thought he was a bit like Wolverine, undergoing medical research.

After he got hooked up, the tech went out of the room, and asked him to do several things to test the wires. He closed his eyes, and moved them side to side and up and down. He made chewing motions, flexed his feet, took deep breaths, etc. All the while, he had a big grin on his face, and whispered to me "Mom, this is just like Simon Says!" Very cute. Then it was time for bed - literally I turned the lights out, and went into our bathroom to brush my teeth. When I came back in the room, he was snoring.

He slept great all night - just like normal, which was good to get the data. He only woke once, when the tech came in to adjust his nose piece, and whispered "Can you please take that off now." Very sweet.

I'm so proud of my big, brave boy, and am anxious to hear what the doctor has to say about his sleep.

And Glen is pretty proud too... it was the letter E this week at school, so he took some spare "electrodes" for his show and tell, along with his "hossiple" bracelet, picture of himself, and some extra gloves. Pretty cool.