New to using the machine not new to having one

[Pugsy]

Your pressure settings are sub optimal.
See how you max out at 12 often?
The 2 AM cluster is likely either supine sleeping or REM stage sleep and my vote is for REM sleep at that time of the night.
You just need more pressure than what the machine can give you and you need to start with a higher baseline pressure (that's the minimum pressure) so that the machine can get to where it needs to go quickly enough to prevent the airway from collapsing...plus you likely need to give the machine a little more room on the upper end.
Once you go to sleep the machine never really drops below 10 cm...I suspect that a minimum pressure of 10 and maximum of maybe 14 to 16 will do a better job preventing the airway collapses.

I don't know if you feel comfortable making changes yourself or not but if you don't then I would suggest getting with your doctor about what we see here.
If you do...
Going from 6 to 10 in one leap can be difficult for some people...so I would suggest 1 cm increases for 2 or 3 days and then another 1 cm increase for 2 or 3 days and so on. Might get lucky and not need that 10 cm minimum that I think you are likely going to need.
Regarding the maximum...actually I would probably just open it up to 16 and see where it wants to go. It won't go where it doesn't think it needs to go for some reason and with a better minimum pressure it may not go as high as I think it will go.

[highhopes420]

Ok. Thank you both. I'm comfortable changing my own pressure. It takes me almost 2 months to get into see my Dr and really do not want to wait that long between changes.

I do have an appointment pre scheduled Jan 15th. It would be nice to go in with some knowledge of what is working and what is not.

I'll up the high end to 16 and up the low to 7 or 8 tonight and see how it does.

On a positive note it does look like I am getting some good sleep even though very little. Probably better than not using the machine at all.

[palerider]

Going from 6 to 10 in one leap can be difficult for some people...so I would suggest 1 cm increases for 2 or 3 days and then another 1 cm increase for 2 or 3 days and so on. Might get lucky and not need that 10 cm minimum that I think you are likely going to need.

while I'm normally loath to disagree with you, in this case, I don't think it would matter, since he normally is going from 6 to 12 within a few minutes, and then staying above 10 for most of the rest of the night, except for a couple of brief periods where things smooth out and then he bounces back up again.

[Pugsy]

while I'm normally loath to disagree with you, in this case, I don't think it would matter, since he normally is going from 6 to 12 within a few minutes,

Yeah, I know but I assume that it doesn't go to 10 or 12 while awake (because the machine shouldn't increase the pressure that much without the airway collapsing and it should not collapse while awake) and it's the awake perception that some people might have a problem with when making a 6 to 10 cm jump in starting pressure.
I was assuming that the pressure went up because he was asleep and the events drove the pressure up. Yes, he probably sleeps just fine once the pressure is up there.
For me that 4 cm jump wouldn't be difficult to deal with while awake but for someone else it might feel like going from a gentle breeze into a hurricane. That's the main reason I suggest going up slowly in situations like this. Strictly for awake breathing issues with increased pressures....that and maybe a person will get lucky and not need that much minimum after all.

[highhopes420]

I figure I will just try the 10 and see if I can fall asleep. I can always change it back to 7 or 8 for a few days if I'm having problems.

I am extremely excited to be getting somewhere.

The sleepyhead software should be common knowledge. Even though I don't understand a majority of what its telling me yet, it helps me understand the basics of what's going on.

Another thing I wanted to mention, if this is a pressure issue or not I don't know, when I am falling asleep and sometime when I get woken up it feels as if the air valve or check valve cuts off the air. Does that make any sense? I think it coincides with my shallow breathing .

[palerider]

I figure I will just try the 10 and see if I can fall asleep. I can always change it back to 7 or 8 for a few days if I'm having problems.

The sleepyhead software should be common knowledge. Even though I don't understand a majority of what its telling me yet, it helps me understand the basics of what's going on.
.

you can also use the ramp if you don't like the 10 right at first, help get you used to it

pugsy's stickied post in annoucements is a great place to start for learning more about sleepyhead.

[palerider]

while I'm normally loath to disagree with you, in this case, I don't think it would matter, since he normally is going from 6 to 12 within a few minutes,

Yeah, I know but I assume that it doesn't go to 10 or 12 while awake (because the machine shouldn't increase the pressure that much without the airway collapsing and it should not collapse while awake) and it's the awake perception that some people might have a problem with when making a 6 to 10 cm jump in starting pressure.
I was assuming that the pressure went up because he was asleep and the events drove the pressure up. Yes, he probably sleeps just fine once the pressure is up there.
For me that 4 cm jump wouldn't be difficult to deal with while awake but for someone else it might feel like going from a gentle breeze into a hurricane. That's the main reason I suggest going up slowly in situations like this. Strictly for awake breathing issues with increased pressures....that and maybe a person will get lucky and not need that much minimum after all.

as usual, good point

[Drowsy Dancer]

On a positive note it does look like I am getting some good sleep even though very little. Probably better than not using the machine at all.

Yes.

[highhopes420]

I thought I was doing better because of the lower AHI but the Obstructive and Hypopnea look just as bad if not worse.

[Drowsy Dancer]

I thought I was doing better because of the lower AHI but the Obstructive and Hypopnea look just as bad if not worse.

No, they don't. That looks a lot better. How do you figure that it is worse?

[MbMinx]

I am a mouth breather and I had a hard time getting a FFM to fit without shifting or leaking. I tried a hybrid mask (Mirage Liberty) and it works very well for me. I'm a side sleeper from way back, and this is the only mask that stays (pretty much) in place no matter which position I lie in. Leaks are minimal - I have one nostril that doesn't work and that's the only noticeable leak (and I've got that 80% solved with a cotton ball). It's worth a look.

[highhopes420]

I was thinking it looked worse because the Clear Airway was less of a percentage than it had been and the Obstructive and Hypopnea were greater.

I am a mouth breather and I had a hard time getting a FFM to fit without shifting or leaking. I tried a hybrid mask (Mirage Liberty) and it works very well for me. I'm a side sleeper from way back, and this is the only mask that stays (pretty much) in place no matter which position I lie in. Leaks are minimal - I have one nostril that doesn't work and that's the only noticeable leak (and I've got that 80% solved with a cotton ball). It's worth a look.

I might have to change my mask, especially if I need to increase the pressure. I had it on as tight as I could stand it last night to minimize any leaks. I thought my leakage was within an acceptable range most of the night. Should I be worried about that?

[Pugsy]

Leaks were extremely well controlled last night. The highest it ever spiked to was 6 L/min which is well below the 24 L/min red line area we want to avoid. I can tell you right now without even looking at my leak line...you beat mine all to heck.

Last night's report showed marked improvement. You want the AHI to be below 5.0 and yours did that easily.
Forget % of each category. Just look at average number per hour. Turn the pie chart off. It's kinda not all that useful.
If you only had one event for the entire night and it was an OA...the entire pie would be OA. Remember it's a whole pie whether you have 1 event all night or 20 all night.

How was the sleep quality last night?

[highhopes420]

I slept pretty well and feel good for the three hours I got. I only remember waking up once. My schedule is easier the next couple of days and I should be able to sleep for a good 5 or 6 hours. I should know more after that.

[LSAT]

How about another slight raise of the minimum pressure? Maybe to 11.