Lisa G.

Age Range 45-60

Got Inspire on October 28th, 2019

My name is Lisa and I live in northern Arizona; not the part of Arizona with Saguaro Cacti, but the part that's at 7,000 ft elevation and got 14 feet of snow in 2023! I was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea in 2018. My husband had been telling me that I snored for at least five years, but I just ignored it. Finally, in 2018 he told me that I stopped breathing often during the night, gasped loudly, and went back to sleep. By then I was so exhausted I had to get an ADA accommodation at work to come in late. So I reluctantly saw a sleep doctor and the sleep study showed my apnea was severe. I did CPAP for about a year. While I hated it, I wore it faithfully every night but the best it could do was get my AHI (events per hour) down to the moderate range. My pressure was as high as it was safe for me, and I still felt awful. Then I heard about Inspire and the rest is history! Once I was dialed in, I felt so much better! No more brain fog (my husband called it: zombie mode) in the mornings, no more exhaustion, increased energy. I felt like myself again. I didn't realize how badly I had been feeling until I experienced normal sleep! The difference is amazing!

Interests: I enjoy Tai Chi, cooking, reading, travel, watercolor painting, Mah Jongg, and baseball (watching it and playing the fantasy version). I volunteer for an organization where I read for the blind and dyslexic. My most favorite thing is spending time with my adult kids!

Why I chose Inspire therapy to treat my sleep apnea: Once it was clear that CPAP did not work on me, my options were limited. I have mild TMJ and did not want to use an oral device plus they aren't effective for severe apnea. An ENT had done a scope of my airway and said he didn't see excess tissue so UPPP surgery wouldn't have helped. I did not want to have the surgery that would break my jaws. I proceeded down the path to get Inspire and had my drug induced sleep endoscopy (DISE), a prerequisite for Inspire. When I woke up, my surgeon said the main issue was my tongue and that my choices were Inspire or having surgery to shave down my tongue. The tongue surgery sounded barbaric, so I opted for Inspire! And I'm sure glad I did.

In a few short words, I would describe Inspire therapy as: Inspire therapy is wonderful and life-changing! It takes patience after receiving the implant to get titrated to the most effective level for each individual. But it is so well worth it. All I do is use my remote before going to sleep to turn on the device. It has a delay to allow me time to fall asleep, and then I can sleep like a normal person!

Why am I a patient ambassador? When I looked into getting Inspire, I called the company and asked to talk to some patients who had Inspire already. I did not know anyone who had it and I was worried. Inspire gave me contact info for some patient ambassadors and it was extremely helpful. They gave me honest and detailed descriptions of what to expect and it put my mind at ease. How could I not want to do that for others?? I believe in paying it forward. :)