Vitals & Voices
Welcome to Vitals and Voices, brought to you by Lexington Regional Health Center — your community, your health, your care. This is your trusted source for health-related content that matters to you.
Each episode, we bring you real conversations with the voices behind the care — from medical experts and wellness champions to community leaders and patients — sharing insights, stories, and tips to help you live your healthiest life.
Whether you're tuning in from Lexington or beyond, we're here to inform, inspire, and connect. Because at LRHC, your health is our priority — and your voice matters.
Vitals & Voices
Why You’re Still Tired: When a Sleep Study Can Help
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In this episode of Vitals & Voices, we sit down with Leonard Wilson, Director of Respiratory Therapy at Lexington Regional Health Center, to break down a surprisingly common but often overlooked health issue—sleep disorders. Leonard explains why sleep is so much more than “rest,” how problems like snoring or daytime fatigue can signal something deeper, and when a sleep study can truly change your health—and your life.
Whether you’ve wondered why you wake up exhausted, know someone who snores, or have been ignoring symptoms for years, this conversation offers a clear, practical guide to understanding sleep apnea, sleep studies, and the next steps that lead to better sleep and better health.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- Why sleep studies matter
- Common misconceptions
- Signs you might need a sleep study
- Understanding the difference between at-home and in-lab sleep studies
- How results work and what comes next
Why This Episode Matters:
Sleep issues don’t just make you tired—they can quietly impact your entire body and increase health risks over time. The good news? Sleep apnea is highly treatable, and many people feel dramatically better within days to weeks of starting the right therapy.
If you’re tired of feeling tired—or you love someone who snores, gasps, or struggles through the day—this episode is a powerful first step toward better sleep and better long‑term health.
Vitals & Voices is a podcast powered by Lexington Regional Health Center, offering meaningful health conversations that matter to you. Each episode features authentic stories and expert insights from the people behind the care — including healthcare professionals, wellness advocates, community leaders, and patients — all aimed at helping you live your healthiest, most informed life.
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Welcome to Vitals and Voices, brought to you by Lexington Regional Health Center. Your community, your health, your care. This is your trusted source for health-related content that matters to you. Each episode, we will bring you real conversations with the voices behind the care, from medical experts and wellness champions to community leaders and patients, sharing insights, stories, and tips to help you live your healthiest life. Whether you're tuning in from Lexington or beyond, we're here to inform, inspire, and connect. Because at LRHC, your health is our priority and your voice matters. Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Vitals and Voices. Today we are talking about sleep studies, why they matter, signs to watch for, and what next steps can look like after results. I am here with Leonard Wilson. He is a director of our respiratory therapy department. Leonard, thanks for being here.
SPEAKER_00Thank you for inviting me.
SPEAKER_01So, Leonard, to start, tell us a little bit about your role and how respiratory therapy connects sleep and breathing at night.
SPEAKER_00Well, respiratory therapy and sleep are connected because breathing becomes more vulnerable at nighttime. So when we're sleeping, we're not breathing as deep, we're breathing more shallow. So RTs are uniquely trained to diagnose, manage, and support airways and ventilation problems that occur during sleep.
SPEAKER_01And why are sleep studies so important? What problems can they uncover that people just might ignore for years?
SPEAKER_00Well, poor sleep isn't just feeling tired. Um, it can affect um cardiovascular or your heart health, your metabolism, um, your weight, hormone regulation, immune function, even your cognitive performance and mood. Um, untreated obstructive sleep apnea can increase increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cognitive decline, and even heart arrhythmias.
SPEAKER_01That's a lot of different things that I mean I didn't know, or that a lot of people might not realize that sleep effects.
SPEAKER_00Yes. So um if you're not sleeping, basically your body cannot heal itself. And um, it if you have conditions, it will usually worsen if you're not able to get that rust you need.
SPEAKER_01Wow. I know they say, like when you're sick, that sleep is some of the best medicine, and that kind of echoes that. So what are some of the biggest misconceptions that you hear? For example, I snore, but it's not that just that big of a deal. I've always snored. I'm just getting older, I'm not sleeping as well.
SPEAKER_00Well, a lot of people, um, they've dealt with this for a long time. So in their head, they rationalize it or normalize it when in fact um your body is trying to tell you that there's something going on. Um, and if you've been fighting sleep apnea for a long time, you're when you're sleeping, you're not recognizing it. So you don't know what's happening, but your body is still waking itself up. Wow.
SPEAKER_01Our our bodies are kind of wild and they're they're trying to tell us things. Right. So, with that, what are some of those signs and symptoms that might warrant, hey, I need to go in, I need to talk to my provider, a sleep study might be for me.
SPEAKER_00So um, there's a lot of signs um during the day. Um, obviously, if you're losing focus, um, easily distracted, um, takes you longer to process information, feel like you're making more mistakes than normal that did not used to happen. If you're nodding, falling asleep at your desk, um, any of those are absolutely signs that maybe you're not sleeping well.
SPEAKER_01Okay. And then what about? I know people are like, I I woke up gasping or I woke up kind of like choking, or my breathing was kind of weird when I woke up. Is that, I mean, that doesn't sound normal.
SPEAKER_00Right. It's not. So basically what's happening um most likely is you're having an apnea spell, which is where your body has stopped breathing. Okay. It can't get any air. So um, those can last typically 10 to 30 seconds, but I've seen them last even a minute or longer with some people where you're just you're not breathing. Your body is basically just holding its breath. Um so if you wake up gasping, that's basically a fight or flight symptom. And your body is forcing you to wake up so it can get a breath, so you do not die.
SPEAKER_01That I mean, that's a big deal.
SPEAKER_00Yes.
SPEAKER_01Like when we're talking about this, it's not just, oh, hey, I want to sleep a little better. This, I mean, something like this could change your life or help you sleep. Oh, absolutely. It changes longer.
SPEAKER_00Sleep apnea is um it's related with so many different other health problems, and it can help out with so many other issues as well, not just sleep.
SPEAKER_01So, talk to us about one note I have in here is just heart rhythm or issues in patients.
SPEAKER_00So, with heart rhythms, um with heart fillings itself, um, basically your oxygen levels drop, your CO2 levels go up, and that can um suppress your vagus nerve and it can trigger it, and it can cause your heart rate to slow down or kind of brady down and slow down real low. It can also cause a uh a block in your heart. Um, often that stuff is reversible if you have sleep apnea and you get treated for it. Um, people who have AFib, it can be exaggerated and have more episodes of that if you have sleep apnea as well.
SPEAKER_01So if someone is kind of recognizing, hey, this is me, I'm tired at work, I'm waking up at night, I'm just not sleeping well. Are there different types of sleep studies? And how do you know which is the right one?
SPEAKER_00There are. Um currently we offer two sleep studies. Um, you have a home sleep test, um, which is a sleep test machine that you come and pick up. Um, we enter in some info in it, and then you take it home and wear it at nighttime at home, and then you bring it back and we download that information. That is really good for anyone who thinks they're snoring. Um doesn't really have any other problems that they know of, but it's uh it's a good test. If you're snoring, you're feeling extra tired. Um, it's a good way to see what's going on with that. Um, the other test is a little more detailed. It's an in-lab sleep study, which you come to the hospital to do, and um you get checked into the hospital. It's kind of like a hotel room. There is a sleep tech there. Um, you're hooked up to a lot more monitors. Um, so it's it um it will look at um leg movement, eye movement, your brain waves, um, your breathing, snoring, heart rates, it uh it monitors many more things. And that's really good for someone who has a lot of other issues going on besides just um sleep apnea.
SPEAKER_01And uh what about the people that are like, oh, I just don't know if I could fall asleep in the hospital?
SPEAKER_00That's that's a common thread through this, and um, most times people don't realize their body is much tired than they realize. So once you get settled in, you usually fall asleep quicker than you think. The other thing is we do not need an entire night of sleep to get a result. So um, you know, we don't need a full eight hours of sleep. I mean, we do prefer that, but even if we get sporadic sleep in there, we can still kind of see what's going on and help get a diagnosis to help.
SPEAKER_01And what does that look like as far as like checking in? Is it, I mean, in the evening and it's I mean, it's a overnight?
SPEAKER_00So um usually they'll come into the hospital um and check in um with the nurses, and then um our sleep tech will come get them, take them to their room. It is not on the hospital floor. Um, it's we have a special area. And then um, once they get checked in, um the sleep tech will kind of go over everything they're gonna do, hook them up with their monitors, and then um when they're ready to go to bed, they just go lay down and sleep. You know, obviously, if they need help or anything, the tech is there to help them through any questions or discomfort or anything. Everything there is a lot of stuff hooked up to them, but that um is all there to monitor. It does not interfere with their sleep.
SPEAKER_01So that's good to know. And I like your um your note on it's like a hotel room. I know I don't know when we last updated those, but it's been somewhat recent. They're I mean, a beautiful room. You have a nice full-size bed, TV, your own private bathroom. So it is a comfortable setting for nations.
SPEAKER_00Um, right now, one of the rooms is being used for Mamo because they are doing some renovations in the radiology department. But as soon as theirs done, that will be back open again.
SPEAKER_01But we have one.
SPEAKER_00Yes, we have two rooms. One is currently unavailable. Yes.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Okay. So knowing the two different types, and you kind of talked about different diagnosis or things to look for, does insurance play a part of this too? On which one maybe you'll have to try first?
SPEAKER_00It does. So unfortunately, insurance kind of dictates a lot of that. Um, for most of our patients, um insurance will almost always make you do a home sleep test first. Um, and then if other if that does not give them a clear answer, then they will go ahead and allow for it in lab sleep study to do further diagnosis.
SPEAKER_01Okay. And with both of these, I'm sure people like they want to know, right, that how did my sleep go? Things like that. So, I mean, for either of those tests, what is kind of the follow-up progression for those results look like?
SPEAKER_00So normally we tell patients to give um about two weeks for those um results to come back in. Okay. Um, once they come back in, their provider who ordered the test would um follow up with them, um, go over any um results and then make a follow-up plan to um treat any of those issues they find.
SPEAKER_01And what what are some of those things? Is it getting a CPAP machine? Is it a medication? I mean, generally speaking, I know everyone's gonna be different, but you're doing this to, I mean, figure out what's happening, save your life. But what are some of those next steps for people?
SPEAKER_00Uh the most common um thing that happens is most people will get a CPAP machine, which that stands for continuous positive airway pressure. So with most people with sleep apnea, they're when they fall asleep, their tongue falls in the back of their throat and that blocks the airway. Wow. So with this machine, it has a airway pressure that keeps your airway open and pain that keeps that tongue pushed forward so you can breathe when you're sleeping.
SPEAKER_01And so that's would you say that's one of the biggest indicators of why people aren't sleeping well is because of that?
SPEAKER_00Correct. Yes.
SPEAKER_01Wow. And so something as simple as adding that, I'm sure people have had good results.
SPEAKER_00Yes, absolutely. It's the number one go-to for any sleep apnea.
SPEAKER_01Wow. Wow. That's I mean, that's just kind of wild of just picturing that or how people could, I mean, just really be not breathing. That's scary. Yes, yes. With it. Okay. So next steps, they have the results, possible CPAP, um, addressing what any mean any of those other underlying conditions that maybe your provider would talk to you about too. Um, is there follow-up? Do they need to come back in? What does that look like?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. So normally there is a follow-up. Um, sometimes your primary provider will do it, and then other times they might send you to the palmologist or the home doctor. Um, we work with Dr. Genatra out of Hastings, and he does a lot of follow-up with um sleep study patients as well.
SPEAKER_01Okay. So it's not just a one and done. We're gonna make sure that we we get you on the right path. Make sure you're because sleep effects, I mean so many different things. We hit on it a little bit, but once people are treated appropriately, what success have you heard from patients or or what are people saying? They probably wish they would have done it sooner.
SPEAKER_00So a lot of people love it right off the bat, and a lot of people um actually hate it. Um, they have a hard time getting used to it.
SPEAKER_01Um the the CPAP machine.
SPEAKER_00The CPAP machine. Yes. Um I have worked with a lot of patients, and I will say the best thing they can do is to really work with the company they get their CPAP supplies from and try different masks and um readjust. It's it's hard to get a great fit sometimes. And once you get it though, it it makes a huge difference in how you will sleep and how it feels. But you really have to give it uh, I would say, a solid three months sometimes to then get used to that pressure. So, you know, easing into it. Um if you can only wear it for a couple hours a night, that's better than nothing. Um, and then the more you wear it, the easier it will get.
SPEAKER_01And Leonardo, this might be common sense, but for my non-clinical brain, knowing that if your tongue is kind of back of the throat, that affects your breathing, and that's what causes snoring.
SPEAKER_00It it's it can be part of it. Okay. So your your airway kind of gets floppy, and then um, when you're breathing in, it causes noise, which can be your tongue. Um, it can also, you know, if you have swollen adenoids or your tonsils, that can also cause some of that. So there's there's multiple reasons, but for the most part, your airway is floppy and it's make a noise when you breathe in.
SPEAKER_01Okay. So if your significant other is telling you that possibly, I mean, this this could be something to help. So for any of you snorers out there, if you have a brother that snores, this this might be a solution.
SPEAKER_00Absolutely. It um makes wives much happier.
SPEAKER_01Okay, that's that's good to hear. Is there a is it typically found in males, females, a certain age? Any of that?
SPEAKER_00Um, it's found all across the board. I mean, it's found in kids all the way to adults. Um, I know uh a lot of people associate it with um heavier people, but it affects the skinniest. I've seen in shape work out people that have sleep apnea as well. The problem um sleep apnea is not just with your tongue, there's also it can be a neurological disorder as well. So it can be affecting your brain, your brain is causing it. So that's kind of when you need that more in-depth sleep study to kind of figure those issues out as well. So there's there's multiple issues. Um, we just kind of covered the basics, basics of it. Okay, there's other things that can cause it as well.
SPEAKER_01So that kind of leads me to my next segment of talk to us about the referral process because this is so much. I mean, it's a lot of medical, it's a lot of things you need to talk with your provider about. What does that look like if someone's, you know, resonating from this podcast? Oh, hey, that might be for me.
SPEAKER_00Uh, first and foremost, just talk to your primary provider. Um, if these symptoms sound familiar to you, you know, um, tell your provider and they should be able to get you get a sleep study ordered and then a referral sent in, and then we should be able to get you scheduled as soon as we can.
SPEAKER_01Okay, that's good to know. You mentioned kids too. Is that something that we do here?
SPEAKER_00Not typically. Okay. So if that is a problem, it usually has to go to a pediatric specialist that kind of works with that specialty. Um, we normally only do 18 and older here.
SPEAKER_01Okay, that's good to know because I'm assuming too, if it is a kiddo, there might be a lot of other things going on too that would be correct. Pretty high-level specialty. Okay. Okay. That's good to know. So getting a referral, scheduling it, you might come in to pick out, pick up a home device, or you might be going to our in-person lab. Yes. Should should this all qualify. Okay, Leonard, I have some rapid fire mythbuster questions here for you. If you're ready for them, you can say true or false, elaborate on them if you want or not. Snoring is always harmless.
SPEAKER_00False. So snoring can definitely be a sign of um irregular, irregular. Can be a sign of issues. Um if it happens just occasionally, obviously if we're intaking alcohol and um other medications that can cause that, that can be the only reason, but a lot of times it's because we're having airway issues.
SPEAKER_01Okay. If you're tired, it's just stress.
SPEAKER_00I would say faults. Um obviously if you're extra tired. I mean, you can be extra stressed, but it can also be because you're not sleeping at night and you just don't realize it.
SPEAKER_01You have to be older to have sleep apnea.
SPEAKER_00Faults again. So as I said earlier, um, it can affect even kiddos. So any age is susceptible to sleep apnea.
SPEAKER_01Okay. At-home sleep studies aren't accurate.
SPEAKER_00Faults. Um we do a lot of home sleep studies and they help a lot of people out.
SPEAKER_01If you can't sleep in a lab, the test is pointless.
SPEAKER_00Faults. So as I said, um, you don't need a full night of sleep. Even if it's just some sleep here and there, we're still gonna get results and be able to help pinpoint any issues going on, hopefully.
SPEAKER_01Awesome. Leonard, this was incredibly helpful uh for me. Is there anything that we didn't hit on or reminders that you want the listeners to know?
SPEAKER_00I can't think of anything at the moment.
SPEAKER_01Okay, we covered a lot. So, to our listeners, if you're waking up feeling tired, daytime drowsiness, snoring, grasping for air at night, please talk with your provider about whether a sleep study and the various different options might be right for you. Thank you so much for listening to this episode. If you found this uh episode helpful, please like, subscribe, and share it with someone who needs it. Especially, ladies, if you have a husband who's snoring, this might be a good one to point in his direction because better sleep is better health. And until next time, stay well.