After a decade of terrible sleep, Jason Holmes had enough. It wasn’t the heavy reliance on caffeine that prompted him to see a doctor, or even the fact he occasionally fell asleep in the stands at NFL games. It was nearly nodding off while driving to work.
“I don’t even want to think about what would have happened if I fell asleep at the wheel,” Holmes, now 49, told Health of the 2014 incident. “That was it. I told my wife I needed help.”
Holme’s primary care physician referred him to a sleep specialist. Eventually, he received an obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) diagnosis.
What do you wish you had known about sleep quality sooner?
Jason Holmes: I definitely didn’t realize what I was dealing with for years; I wish I knew that obstructive sleep apnea was a thing. I was just waking up extremely tired. Every workday, I’d ask myself: What do I do to stay awake? I’d start the day with coffee and have an energy drink before lunch, a 5-Hour Energy shot after lunch, and drink soda throughout the day. I wasn’t a big snorer, but my wife would hear me stop breathing and almost choke in my sleep. She encouraged me to go to the doctor about it.
Part of your diagnosis involved participating in a sleep study—what is that like?
Holmes: It’s like being in a bedroom; I remember the setup was really homey and comfy. There’s a bed, a TV, and a nightstand. The providers fit you for a mask and a hose, then place electrodes on your head, chest, legs—all over you. I hadn’t yet used a CPAP machine at that point, so it was my first time trying to sleep while wearing a mask and hose.
Once you’re hooked up to all the wires and cords, it’s time to go to sleep. Sleep specialists will record you on video and monitor how much you toss and turn. They were able to determine that over the course of one night, I had 52 “events”—moments where I stopped breathing—per hour.
What do you wish you had known about using a CPAP machine?
Holmes: It’s really weird. You really feel like you’re suiting up to go to space when you go to bed. But the quality of sleep is like no other. The device is quiet; I can hear a small whisper sound near the air exhaust spout but it’s not noisy.
My advice to anyone struggling to adjust to CPAP? You just have to get through that first week.
It sounds like the CPAP was a game-changer for you. What other treatments or approaches helped your sleep apnea?
Holmes: Weight loss. I was still reliant on a really high setting on my CPAP machine until I lost weight, especially the weight in my neck. I was able to lose the first 40 pounds largely by fasting, improving my diet, and cutting out things like soda.
I’ve had two heart attacks: One at age 31 and another at 39. Within the last two years, I got approved to take a GLP-1 drug, Zepbound, to reduce the risk of another heart attack. That’s helped me lose more weight. It’s also helped me go down to a much lower setting on my CPAP.
I want to mention that red meat and pork haven’t been part of my diet since I was 19. Even with that important dietary change early on in my life, I still developed heart disease and obstructive sleep apnea. There’s likely a genetic component. My father has heart issues, and while he’s not diagnosed, I think he probably has OSA.
