Don’t blame being sleepy, grumpy and dopey on a sleep disorder!
Ed, my neighbor next door, was sure that I wasted both my time and money in recent trips to the Sleep Disorders Centre at the Saskatoon City Hospital. Ed does not consider snoring, a sleep disorder, that needs to be addressed. I tended to agree with him until my wife pointed out that I had snoring with pauses where I wasn’t breathing. She was anxious that I wouldn’t start breathing again after my pauses. She was sure I needed to be checked out to see if I suffer from ‘Sleep Apnea.’
I told Ed that I suffered from sleep apnea without knowing it. The word apnea means no breathing. Sleep apnea refers to pauses in breathing that occur while you sleep. These pauses in breathing last for 10 to 30 seconds until the body reacts to overcome the pause. These pauses happen over and over throughout the night, so that when a person awakes they are not rested or refreshed from their sleep. Sleep Apnea if not treated could result in the risk of more serious issues such as stroke, heart attack and high blood pressure.
Ed said that he can see that I’m not a rested and refreshed person at any time, and if sleep apnea makes a person sleepy, grumpy and dopey for sure I have it. According to Ed, half a glass of undiluted whiskey before bed should put me into a deep sleep each night. Putting a clothes pin on my nose, and duck tape over my mouth would cure my snoring, or at least turn it down to low. It is rumored that Ed himself snores. I warned him that snoring males over forty years of age may have increased risk of having sleep apnea so he might have to doctor himself one of these days.
Ed was sure that it probably is no more than a pill or day surgery to fix sleep apnea. I invited him to come over and see my CPAP machine. Its long name is Continuous Positive Airway Pressure which means a low flow generator delivers a flow of air to the airway through a mask. Ed took a look at the mask and said he would stick with whisky instead. The CPAP machine is an every night sleep mate for the rest of my life. Some cures are for as long as you live.
One of the reasons, that Jesus encountered such fame was that he compassionately healed the sick brought to him. He travelled about teaching in synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and affliction among the people. The people hailed Jesus as a prophet of God, a prophet, traveling among them, with power from God to heal, and to teach with the God’s own authority.
Jesus was on a mission from God to bring the eternal healing of our souls, not our bodies. We focus on good health for our bodies. We may not care about the health of our souls. Jesus came and saved our souls. He healed our spiritual disease of sin by the sacrifice of his body, and the shedding of his blood on the cross. His cure of our sin is forever and ever. Amen.
