Karen C.

Age Range: 60-75+

Got Inspire in June 2022

Hi, My name is Karen and I live in Chepachet, RI. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in 2021 and started using CPAP and hated every minute of it. CPAP is effective, but only if you use it. I could barely tolerate it for an hour or two, never mind an entire night. I got Inspire in June of 2022 and life after Inspire has been wonderful. I typically sleep 7-8 hours a night now and I'm full of energy!

Interests: I love being outdoors, biking, skiing, golfing, swimming, daily walks. My husband and I love to travel and what a relief not to have to worry about taking a CPAP machine and finding distilled water for it. (some places we've been it's hard to even get drinking water)

Why I chose Inspire therapy to treat my sleep apnea: As a retired nurse I knew the importance of treating sleep apnea but could not tolerate CPAP for more than an hour or two a night. I had choking, dry eyes, dry mouth, facial indentations and slept much worse than before CPAP. I was afraid that by not being able to use CPAP on a consistent basis I was risking my health and shortening my life expectancy so began to look at alternative treatments. Oral appliances were not an option according to my Dr. but he thought Inspire might be a good option. The big problem was that there wasn't any physicians in my state performing the procedure. I had to go to Massachusetts and fortunately the Dr.'s office there worked with RI Medicare to get approval.

In a few short words, I would describe Inspire therapy as: Amazing!! Best decision that I could have made for MY health. I would not think about going without Inspire whereas I had to force myself to use CPAP.

Why am I a patient ambassador? So many times folks tell me they have sleep apnea but do not use their CPAP machine. They may be thinking snoring isn't any big deal but if it is due to sleep apnea it is a huge deal .I want to let them know that there are other options out there. Sleep apnea is a serious condition that effects many areas of your health, it shouldn't be ignored.