Sleep for Sampie

Sampie is an amazing man (as his wife, I'm qualified to make that statement!). He is a wonderful father to our four children and manages to juggle family, work, studies and ministry so impressively well.

As some of you may, or may not know, Sampie has severe sleep apnoea. That means he stops breathing while he sleeps. When he was assessed at the sleep clinic a few years ago they discovered he stops breathing 53 times per HOUR and he stops breathing for 15 to 20 each time. Essentially this means that he stops breathing about once every minute. Only getting 50% oxygen to his brain, he was chronically sleep deprived. Getting a CPAP machine literally changed his life! It changed the life of our family because he finally had the energy to do things he couldn't do before.

Why am I raising funds for him now? As you will know, a CPAP machine needs electricity to run. No electricity, no sleep! With loadshedding and other problems, Sampie's sleep is severely affected. His life is affected. He can't function without a good night's sleep and this goes far deeper than mere comfort. Studies show that untreated sleep apnoea has serious long term health consequences, which I won't get into here but you are welcome to google it.

After some research we found out that he needs a special inverter generator and battery to run the CPAP machine during a power out. These things are expensive. We received a quote from 2 places both saying the going rate is R11 000. Please help give Sampie the sleep he desperately needs!