Post heart surgery sleeping difficulty

[BEC82V]

I had quadruple heart bypass on 9/18/2009 and have had difficulty sleeping ever since. I read that this problem is common after surgery and gets better with time but I am unable to get a good nights sleep. I usually go to bed about 11 PM and most nights can not sleep past 4 AM. What sleep I do get is broken usually in periods of 10 minutes to 2 hours but usually never any more than 2 hours. My doctor had me try a medication, (clonazepam) which did help some but after taking it for 4 days I got almost no sleep for the next 3 days. I stopped that. I am hoping this soon gets better as I am really tired all of the time from not getting enough sleep. Does any one else have this problem or have any suggestions for getting more sleep. I have no distractions in my room either from lights or a TV. I like it dark and quiet and have no trouble getting to sleep. I just can't stay asleep.

[BEC82V]

I sincerely thank you for taking the time to respond to my question. I guess I should have mentioned that I do have severe obstructive sleep apnea and have been using a CPAP since 2001. I had surgery to remove my uvula and tonsils and repair a broken nose also in 2001 prior to going on the CPAP. I also suffer from chronic pain due to severe degenerative disc disease. I was hit by a truck 25 years ago and now have about 13 or more protruding or bulging discs with 2 levels of stenosis in my cervical spine and 3 levels of stenosis in my lumbar spine. I do take a low dose of oxycodone (5mg) 2 or 3 times a day to help manage my pain. I don't know why I am having such trouble sleeping. I was doing fine before my heart surgery and would usually get 5 or 6 hours of uninterupted sleep. Last night was another bad night. I went to bed about 10:30 and slept for about an hour. I then fell back to sleep until 2:05 am and could not get back to sleep again for the remainder of the night. I am considering asking my doctor for some medication to help with the sleeping. I have read that melatonin helps with sleeping and am going to check with my doctor and maybe try a supplement to see if it helps.

[Steven Y Park, MD]

Am I correct in assuming that you normally like to sleep on your side, and not on your back? If you are suddenly forced to sleep on your back, you're more likely to stop breathing because your tongue falls back more easily, especially when you're in deep sleep due to muscle relaxation. If it doesn't get better, see a sleep doctor. Many people with heart disease have undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea, which can cause or aggravate heart disease.