Sleep stages not working - Does A-Fib play a role?

[BaileyMan]

I, like many others, am not having success with my new Sense not recording sleep stages.  I've searched for other posts and read help articles.  Nothing mentions atrial fibrillation with respect to these device features. 

I get a notification that says "Last night: No Data" for Breathing Rate (BR), Heart Rate Variability (HRV), and Skin Temperature.  It records Oxygen saturation (SpO2) though.  It's tracking the basic sleep patterns (i.e. time asleep, times awake, times restless, minutes awake / restless).  

The more advanced sleep tracking is one of the features that I'm particularly looking for in the Sense, so I'd very much like to get it working.  I've read lots of other posts, all the replies from customer service say the same thing.  Make sure the battery is charged enough, restart the device, update the app, update the firmware, wear it properly.  The FAQ that addresses the question, "Why don't I get sleep stages today?" states that:

"If you slept in a position that prevented your device from getting a consistent heart-rate [...]"

My Questions

1. What sleep positions prevent the device from getting consistent a consistent heart-rate?
2. Does atrial fibrillation (A-Fib) impact the ability of the device to gather the data it needs for these advanced sleep features?

Thanks in Advance for your helpful answers.

[CBV2]

Funny you should mention that.  I had noticed that I was having difficulty getting sleep readings but thought nothing more of it until after other issues caused me to investigate AtFib and, with the help initially of the Sense ECG (🙌 👍👏) subsequently confirmed by the clinic's full ECG,  that I was in that condition. Then I realised that the AtFib condition had compromised the pulse readings which compromised the sleep stages. So yes, for me the sleep readings problems were caused by AtFib.

[BaileyMan]

Thanks for sharing your experience @CBV2. Glad to know the AFib function worked for you to identify the need for a more formal workup. I hope that your heart health is under control.

Has your A-Fib improved?  If so, did the sleep tracking improve too?

Thanks!

[Rich_Laue]

For sleep stages a 3 hour of sleep is needed and a consistant heart rate needs to be recorded. 

Therefor sleeping with the arm in a position that prevents a recording of the heart rate will result in a simple sleep read out. 

Open a sleep in question, under the graph, there may be a reason for seeing simple sleep. 

[CBV2]

A-Fib does not improve, but it can be controlled/minimised.  The steps I am taking to do that have restored my sleep tracking to what it should be, so that's all good.  I do recommend, though, that you seek your doctor's advice on this.

[BaileyMan]

@CBV2 Good to hear yours is controlled. I actually got the Sense to monitor my heart rate after my A-Fib was diagnosed by my doctor. My A-Fib is the result of a leaky mitral valve. Valve repair is coming up in a few weeks. I'm hoping to use the fitbit to help monitor my progress as I recover, including breath rate at night and exercise info like heart rate, pace etc. Also looking for the motivatation to get moving more. So far the Sense is only partially meeting my needs, but really falling short with the sleep piece.  Sounds like it might not meet my needs given my condition.

@Rich_Laue, thanks for your reply. I have a few questions to help me understand better. When you say 3 hours of sleep, is that 3 hours during which no restless sleep is registered? I'm in bed for about 7 - 9 hours per night, but the Sense is measuring 6.5 to 8+ hours of sleep per night and restless about 20x per night. This  seems to be in the average range for adults, according to FitBit.

When you say consistant reading, do mean regular (i.e. not A-fib) heart beat or do you mean the device is in good contact with the arm and getting good readings constantly throughout the night?

I'm also wondering if you happen to know what arm positions would impact or prevent a recording. That's a piece of info that's not been specified in the FitBit FAQ or other threads. They keep saying it makes a difference, but with no specific suggestions to remedy it. 

Thanks again!

[Rich_Laue]

Let's say that we go to bed at 11pm and got up at 2:30. However fitbit says that we fell asleep at 11:30 and woke up at 2:30. This would be 3 hours of sleep and able to see sleep stages. I've seen exactly 3 hours give me sleep stages. 

Consistant means that fitbit is able to see most of the heart beats, and able to determine the time between them. Fitbit uses this timing to monitor our breathing. To help determine or stages. 

[Sharz1]

This is a great question and relevant to myself as I have A-fib. Oddly though out of 5 weeks I had 6 consecutive nights where my sleep stages were recorded. I’m now finding it suddenly won’t record my br, hrv and at times sp02. 

I have read posts regularly, FAQs, troubleshooted including deleting and reinstalling the app. 

Im really disappointed as what I have purchased is an extremely expensive step counter. Fit bit support are not easy to get a hold of either as they require you to use Twitter, which I don’t use. 

The fit bits bits should be marketed honestly and correctly a small no where do they say they may not work for varying reasons before you purchase. 

[BaileyMan]

I ended up returning my Sense. For whatever reasons the sleep features
weren't working for me (a-fib? some other reason?). It didn't make sense
to pay for the fancy features if I couldn't use them.

[Ajtorrance]

Hi @BaileyMan how did you manage to return it? I’m exactly the same. It’s seems a very expensive step counter when I purchased it for the health readings. 

[BaileyMan]

I bought mine from REI which at the time of purchase came with a 90 day
return period. Although it was probably less than 2 weeks before it went
back...

[Ajtorrance]

I bought mine through Fitbit as a half price replacement for a faulty device and then them sending me a worse state refurbished device! Not very impressed with their later devices and the sense isn’t tracking much of the ‘health’ items. I’ve only had mine 2 weeks. I raised this issue with their support but haven’t heard anymore from them. I’ll chase them up

[SunsetRunner]

Hi @BaileyMan - There is a problem with sleep stages, specifically the graphs for restoration and SpO2 spikes. Fitbit says they are aware of the problem and are working on it. You are not doing anything wrong. I’m dependent on this info, also, and hope it is resolved soon. 

[Ajtorrance]

@SunsetRunner I wonder how long this issue has been going on and whether I actually needed to replace my previous device 😔

[SunsetRunner]

I’m just another Fitbit user, @Ajtorrance . I do not know the answer. 

[Ajtorrance]

@LarisaAR  this might be making more sense now. My original inspire HR worked a dream until February time and then just started playing up. After much stress and anxiety with support they swapped out my newish device (only 6 months old) with an even worse refurbished device that wouldn’t charge or even track my HR. After several weeks they offered me another replacement device (wouldn’t guarantee or confirm a new one) or 50% off an alternative one. I took this opportunity to purchase the Sense! It’s doing exactly the same thing and less and causing even more stress!! So it looks as though there may not have even been anything wrong with the original one anyway. Fuming!

[Sharz1]

I agree as I have Afib but the sense tracked everything well when I first got it and then suddenly stopped. Last night I slept 4 hours solidly according to my sense yet still no data for br, sleep, hrv ect. I’ve deleted AP reinstalled etc etc.

Really annoyed at making a costly mistake. We would have been better off buying another brand. Wasted $800

[Ajtorrance]

@Sharz1  It absolutely has to be a Fitbit ‘system’ issue. There are too many similarities with timings and issues to be a ‘personal’ issue. I’ve logged another support case with Fitbit last night and mentioned these similarities in the email. At the very least, I’m happy to return my device for a full refund. It’s actually causing more stress than I had before!!!

[SunsetRunner]

Hi @LarisaAR - You can check the warranty here. And tap here to ask to start the return process.

[Rich_Laue]

@LarisaAR a link to the warranty will be found on the bottom of every page on the community. 

If the heart keeps beefing fast throughout the night up I would expect that sleep may not be detected.