Excessive Daytime Sleeping, Obstructive Sleep Apnoea and Work

I have probably had Sleep Apnoea at least 10 years (first noticed by my father who is a health professional). I have been overweight since I was young and I am now 41 and obese (136kg, 5ft 6inch height, BMI~ 48). A couple of years ago it got so bad that I was frequently falling asleep everyday. I could fall asleep at the drop of a hat. This especially affected my work as an accountant (spend most of the day infront of a computer screen working on spreadsheets). After a trial with a sleep machine and pulse oximeter which measured my blood O2 saturation to see if I was hypoxic I was diagnosed with Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) in 2018. I was given a CPAP machine. This did bring me some relief initially. The best period I had with the OSA (i.e. the least Excessive Daytime Sleeping EDS) was when I lost some weight going on a Very Low Calorie Diet which was NHS supervised with a dietitian.

Over the last few months unfortunately I have put some weight back on. My health has deteriorated as I am highly unfit (cannot walk far) and in addition I was also diagnosed with Kidney disease. My obesity and kidney problem has caused water retention and the swelling of my legs. I think this has also caused my asthma for which I am now taking inhalers (steroids and salbutamol regularly). Over the past year I have found it difficult to tolerate the CPAP machine - I have been dragging it off my head in the middle of the night without realising it. This and the lack of effect i.e. no reduction in my excessive daytime sleeping has made me averse to wearing it. But I am going to give it another go.

The main reason I am writing is that my Excessive Daytime Sleepiness means that I am falling asleep frequently at work again. This has been noted again by my managers who are escalating things and have expressed that this needs stopping asap. I feel like the falling asleep is so out of my control. It just happens almost without warning sometimes. Also because when I have tiredness feelings I try to work through them and then suddenly end up failing and asleep. This has got to a head at work. I feel quite alone as on one side is my managers, Human Resources and Occupational Health all asking to get this sorted or I would start down a disciplinary proceedings and me alone on the other. And all this because of the falling asleep that happens to me involuntarily. This is not a cognitive issue as they agree my work hasn't suffered. But it is a conduct and professionalism issue.

I need advice on how I can approach this situation and what my options/rights are to explain that I need both time, understanding and a bit of leeway.

I hope you can help or advise me

Ta Guy

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