Has anyone ever used a fitbit to track sleep?

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Zara-Newman

Zara-Newman

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So I got a fitbit for my birthday, I wanted it because I like to exercise, but also I was interested in the sleep tracking bit - I was hoping to catch sleeping seizure on there and see what it looked like.

Anyway, at first my sleep looked typical until it was pointed out to me that there was a special setting, to make it more sensitive which is better for people with illnesses or disorders that effect sleep.

So now it looks like even though I am in bed from around 11 till 10, I am only getting about 3 hours of proper sleep, instead of the 8 that I should get.

I wondered if anyone else has ever used their fitbit on the sleep sensitivity setting?

I am getting tested for sleep apnea now, but the doctor said it may just be an epilepsy issue.

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Hi Zara,
When you get tested for sleep apnea be sure to tell the Dr. to do a e.e.g. and e.k.g. at the same time by doing this they will be able to see if you are having seizures in your sleep. I know when I had my testing done they did all of this plus they had me on camera the entire time except when using the restroom. Good Luck to you and May God Bless You!

Sue
 
I've had a video eeg and ekg before, I've had so many of them I am not sure what new ones would show that would be different, I will definitely ask though. Xx

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Do I Need New Tests Done?

Zara-Newman,
When trying to analyze any type of E, the doctor needs test results from now, not the past. E has the ability to change and change drastically over time! This means that a previous test result may not be showing the doctor what is taking place at the present time. This is proven by the fact that many times a person's E changes in the way that seizure may be felt by the person or what the person does during the seizure. This can go both ways.
I'm sure you have heard of how some people have E as juveniles, but their E seems to end when they become adults. The thing is that some of these people have something happen that nobody would want to see. Their E returns sometime again during their life. This can happen at any time so the doctor has to have test results from now to see what is happening in a person's brain at the time the test is taking place, not some time in the past!
Using old tests could very well result in a misdiagnosis and severe problems for the patient w/E. By having new tests taken, the doctor is doing his/her job the best way he/she can for the patient.
A doctor can NEVER be too careful when it comes to working with a patient to control the patient's E! :twocents:

ACsHuman
 
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Sorry, I meant regular ones, the most recent being less than a month ago.
I didn't mean to pluck one from my past history.

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Hope your testing goes well! My youngest will be doing polysomnography to check for apnea/reason why rem/nrem sleep cycles are messed up, are there other good ways to test that? Polysomnography includes eeg recording along with other things, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polysomnography - not sure how many leads are used at our clinic but usually more when they know seizures are a potential factor. They assured me that the test would be definitive if the problem is obstructive or central apnea so that's better than vague EEGs. We just had to reschedule one due to a cold, being sick can muddy the results.
 
I was told that I have to go down for a questionnaire and some tests, then they will see about doing any tests or if I want to go to a proper sleep clinic.

I don't really know a huge amount about it, I only really started thinking about it when I saw how bad my sleep patterns were - and then picked up a brochure about sleep apnea that had a lot of things in it that related to me, horrible headaches on rising, seizures and myoclonic jerks when I wake up. That sort of thing

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I wouldn't give too much merit to what the Fitbit says as several things can affect the results like bed partners, animals, etc. Some people just move around a bit more when sleeping - and it doesn't necessarily cause actual awakenings. I stick to the regular setting now and not the sensitive one. I do have sleep apnea and when I use my clap I still have very restless nights according to the sensitive settings but nearly perfect sleep in the regular setting. I'd take it with a grain of salt. If you get an actual sleep study, wear it and see how it compares to what their results show.
 
I wasn't basing what I was saying specifically on my fitbit, it was along with lots of other things.
Such as horrendous morning headaches, falling asleep during the day and many other things.

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Since the title was about Fitbit tracking sleep I wanted to give you my .02

Those are common symptoms of sleep apnea, yes.
 
I made the connection because of the fitbit, I looked up the abnormal patterns I had and they were the same as people with sleep apnea had.
Then I researched sleep apnea and found there were lots of similarities.

The normal sleep one also says I grt nearly a perfect sleep, it also doesn't show me as awake when I have seizures or when I get up to wash blood off my face/pillows after seizures.



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It's good to address apnea, so there's a silver lining if it gets a person help, esp. since apnea can contribute to poor seizure control.
 
Hobbes said:
It's good to address apnea, so there's a silver lining if it gets a person help, esp. since apnea can contribute to poor seizure control.
Click to expand...
Exactly, and it says it makes seizures and myoclonic jerks worse on rising.
Which is what I have always had.

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Get doc give you that thing that go on face like mask it push air into lungs that for sleep apnio.
Still not convince Fitbit helps.doc could put you in sleep laboratory for night or two you be 100%sure and have proof for nuro
 
It's sounds like Zara-Newman is in the process of getting it properly evaluated. It's my understanding that different apneas may be treated differently so it's not one size fits all (although one solution seems to fit for most).
 
No, I have the fitbit to use on the treadmill and such, I didn't get it for this reason.
But if I had never seen this, I would never have mentioned it to my nurse, and she would never have given me the leaflet.

So it has helped, without it I would be in the same position as before, just wondering why I feel so shit.

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I have a FitBit and I don't trust the sensitive setting. Everyone I know that uses the sensitive setting ends up thinking they never sleep.
 
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