Sweet Dreams

“Well, that certainly wasn’t what I was expecting” isn’t the statement you want to hear from your daughter’s doctor.

We were going over Audrey’s latest sleep study, and the results were the exact opposite of what we were expecting to see.

Audrey is a terrible sleeper. At first, I thought she got this from me. If insomnia were an Olympic sport, I’m at worst a Silver Medalist. There’s probably an overly stressed-out Corporate CEO in Toyko living on a steady diet of whiskey and cigarettes who could edge me out for the Gold Medal, but other than that, few people can rival my ability to function without sleep.

Unfortunately for Audrey, she can’t deal with a lack of sleep like her daddy. I just pour coffee down my throat like it’s Gatorade after a long run. Not the best solution for a five-year-old, but the thought has crossed my mind. It’s heartbreaking to see her in the morning after a sleepless night. There has been more than one occasion when I walked over to the breakfast table and saw her sweet face resting on her tray because she fell asleep eating breakfast.

It turns out that Insomnia can be a condition of CHARGE Syndrome, so it’s probably another hurdle we have to jump over. The lack of sleep could be part of the reason she isn’t growing as quickly as we would like. On her doctor’s advice, we’ve tried Melatonin and other supplements, but nothing has been able to prevent her from waking up around 1:30 and staying awake until 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning. The sleep doctor recently recommended CBD oil, and she seemed to be sleeping better, but last night she woke up around 1:30 and went back to sleep around 5:00. So, we haven’t solved this problem yet.

Audrey had a sleep study last December, and the results showed mild sleep apnea. So, the doctors recommended taking out her tonsils and adenoids. It turns out that Audrey didn’t have adenoids. Maybe she’s so tired of being in surgery that she started taking matters into her own hands and removed them herself. After the tonsillectomy, she had another sleep study. After having her tonsils removed, her apnea went from mild to severe, and the apnea causes her oxygen levels to drop during the night. That’s when the doctor uttered his response. He added, “I would expect to see the results go in the opposite direction after having her tonsils removed.”

Welcome to Audreyland.

I asked the doctor if we could put the tonsils back in. It turns out that despite our plastic surgery, implant-loving society, tonsil implants aren’t a thing.

The sleep doctor said that due to her low oxygen levels caused by the apnea, we might have to consider a CPAP. I’m hoping we find another solution because little children shouldn’t have to sleep with a mask over their faces. He also recommended that we see a pulmonologist because it could be an issue with her lungs. I thought we had completed Audrey’s roster of medical specialists during the physician draft of 2017 when we assembled her medical roster, but now we have to sign a pulmonologist off the the waiver wire.

We are going to figure this out. Until then, sweet dreams, Little Angel.