Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

[bigbward@gmail.com]

I have been using the cpap for about 15 years. I am on my third machine which is a resmed s8 vantage with humidifier and it adjusts to my pressures. My setting is 18 which is quite high. The difference between pre diagnosis and treatment is amazing. I still remember falling asleep at my desk in the afternoon. I would usually be the person snoring in the theatre. My snoring was so loud you could hear it from inside the house. Scared a few of my daughters boyfriends away. I remember driving through the old faithful park and having to pull over and sleep for an hour as I could not stay awake in the afternoon.

I used to eat carbs to get energy and when I slept I was more tired. It was a viscous circle.
I sleep about 7 hours a night and wake up refreshed. The hose and me did not get along very well as most nights it ended up in the corner. I cannot sleep without it and have a machine I use to travel with now as I just got he resperonics one. The old one is a Fischer something or other. I don't politic about the machine and do not belong to any apnea group, but I will advise someone if they complain about their partner snoring or stopping breathing. I believe many people remain undiagnosed with this condition. I was the second worse ever diagnosed in this town of 80,000 people. I have given a presentation to the sleep apnea society as they requested that I speak. I have been somewhat of a public speaker having given over 250 presentations. That was another life.

Keep up with the machine, it is a lifestyle and one that is likely not going to go away. Given the array of diseases and conditions out there I guess we can live with this one.


Merry Xmas from Big B, getting smaller.

[soxfan426]

I have been on CPAP now for just one week and I noticed a great Improvement right away! I have severe OSA and my sleep study showed i had about 136 Apneas per hour! I was falling asleep at work and even got into a car accident falling asleep during the day. I would wake up gasping and choking sometimes and would wake up just about every hour. I have had this for years but went for my sleep study and got my machine last week. Wow, the first night i only woke up twice. The second night night once. I'm sleeping through the night now and i feel great. My doctor put me on blood pressure medication a few weeks prior to getting my CPAP but I think i will be able to stop taking that soon. I feel great! This machine has become my new best friend.

[3xdist]

In response to this thread and particularly "MoneyGal's" comments. I was diagnosed with OSA almost two years ago. This was after struggling with the symptoms for easily 8 years or better. On my first sleep doctors recommendation I first tried an Oral Orthotic. Which cost $2,000. Out of pocket. My insurance would not pay for it. This proved to be a waste of money and lost time on getting my OSA under control. I then was put on a CPAP. Since I was not given a follow up Sleep Study to determine my pressures (I just had the one to determine if I indeed suffered from OSA) they put me on a low setting to try. I like many struggled to accept this new "limitation". I quietly despised this ball and chain that had been hung around my neck. After many more months my condition continued to deteriorate. After meeting several times with my Sleep Dr.'s I asked them to give me a second Sleep Study so we could know what my settings needed to be. They also suspected I needed to be on a BIPAP instead of a CPAP. After this study they determined I needed a level of 18/14 to get me to a AHI of 5.5. I tried this pressure at home for a few nights but could not (or should I say would not) tolerate this higher pressure. So they compromised and set me on 14/10. (I see now I did not give it a chance and was still not "fully" converted to what I "NEEDED" to do. After many more months on a setting of 14 which was not correcting my OSA, I began to realize I could not go on much longer. The strain of the sleep deprivation and the years of pushing beyond my limits to function started taking their toll. I slipped to a whole new level of exhaustion. I can relate to "MoneyGal" when she says she was quietly preparing to die. You reach a point your body (and Mind) just tells you it has nothing left to give. I tried to subtlety say my goodbyes to my wife and loved ones. I knew I didn't have much longer left. After an emergency visit with a different Sleep Dr. He basically said if my BIPAP was working correctly I wouldn't be in his office asking for his help. This statement somehow made it through the fog of my sleep deprived brain and made me realize I had to try the higher settings again. I tried 16/12 for three days first to see if I could handle the higher pressure, things were a bit better but it felt like too little too late to make a difference. Then I used the setting of 18/14 as was originally prescribed by the Dr.'s almost a 6 months ago. The first night (Dec. 23th) was miserable. My stomach hurt terribly all night long from so much air being forced into my body. So bad it woke me several times at night to go to the bathroom. Horrible cramps. The next morning I was devastated, it felt like that was my LAST hope to keep going. I resigned myself to use the machine again on Christmas Eve, for want of anything else to try. I went to bed at 10 pm. That night I only woke a few times (that I can remember). I woke up Christmas morning after sleeping SO deeply I felt I had been heavily drugged. I was literally in a stupor from sleeping so deep. I can tell you that it was nothing like the stupor and fog I had been living through for the past 8-10 years. My body really felt more rested. Usually I would go 4 or 5 days with almost no rest and then my body would crash and I would sleep about 3 to 4 hours in one stretch. But when I woke I didn't feel better. After this first good night of sleep I had my first glimpse of hope that I could survive this thing. I have since had 3 nights of sleep that were really sleep. I do wake several times at night from the mask leaks or whatever. But I have been able to go back to sleep quickly and deeply.
I realize that if I had forced myself to use the recommended setting when they told me to I would have benefitted from the BIPAP much earlier. But I guess I just didn't think a few numbers difference 14/10 to 18/14 would make that much difference. For me it was the difference between working and not working.
I know I have a long way to go to recover from the strain my body has been put through, but to all those new or (old) xpap users, don't loose hope like I almost did. I am starting to think about each new nights sleep as an opportunity to get better instead of another step toward slipping further away. I pray that in a few months I will be able to post an update about how things for me have gotten even better.
If you know you have OSA the xpap should help improve your rest. Get help getting the RIGHT settings and REALLY give it a try.
Thanks to all those who have posted here. It has been very encouraging to see I am not the only one to struggle with this. I hope my post will bring some encouragement to those who need it.
I will find out what my AHI number is tomorrow now that I am on the proper (or at least closer) setting for my OSA needs. Wish me luck.

[MoneyGal]

3xdist. Keep on keepin' on, friend.

[BrownEyes]

My name is BrownEyes

i have been using my CPap since i was 17 years old. i am 38 now. i have "Obstructive Sleep Apnea. i have been through 4 machines. i use Oxygen with my CPap every night.

[BrownEyes]

i cant find my machine to put in my signature.

i have a Remstar M Series. it has the power dial and the ramp button sitting on top. then you open the lid in front of the those two buttons to see the screen to get to the navigation buttons.

my humidifier goes in the back of it. i have to open the back lid and slide it out, then slide it back in. there is a big dial button on top of my machine that goes from 1 to 5, this controls my humidifier

my machine also has blue lights on it when you turn it on.

[roster]

Welcome BrownEyes. From age 17 to 38 is quite a story of success and I am sure determination. Just 4 years for me, so I hope you will teach us a lot.

If you look on the bottom of your machine (Remember to remove the humidifier tank to avoid spills.), you should find a tag with a Model #. This is a long numeric number. If you give us that we can refer you to the model name to be used in the profile.

[BrownEyes]

This Is My Machine!!!!

REMstarPlus M series with Humidifer





i didnt see it in the signature section when i tried to do my signature

but anyway

Thank You Rooster

[Dingbat]

Howdy,

I'm a new CPAP nubie myself. Been two weeks with my CPAP (Prescribed pressure at 11.5) with a full-face mask and I immediately see a big difference.

- No more falling asleep as a passenger in a car.
- No more middle-of-the-night bathroom trips.
- Wake up "instantly" -- used to be I would hit "snooze" on the alarm clock often and always felt like a bus hit me every time I woke up. Now I feel alot better.
- I generally feel more awake, more patient, I notice stuff more.
- Wife tells me we spent the best holidays ever ... guess that's a sign too.
- Wife is sleeping better as well since I'm not snoring anymore (except maybe during the ramp up on the CPAP)

It really is making a big difference.

Very happy of the changes so far and I really am keen on seeing what's going to be next. Hope the lowering of the blood pressure and losing weight aspects will also come through.

I have chronic Hypertension and am very overweight.

31 Apneas per hour before. Now I'm under 5.

I did have little bit of a problem the first week since I started with a Nasal mask, being that I'm often congested due to allergies ... when I switched over to a full face mask -- perfect. (Mirage Quattro).

-- Yves (Canada, Quebec).

[emarcy54]

Hello Dingbat.

Congratulations on your new found successes. I hope your continued therapy helps to resolve the BP problems. We have many similarities.
Over weight - Have been most of my life. I presently take three different BP meds. All my life I had been a terrible sleeper, waking up startled and soaking with sweat. Heart racing because of the Adrenaline rushing through my veins. Wife waking me up to see if I was still alive. Kids coming in my room to turn me over to stop my snoring. Having to nap daily even in my car when on the road, which is a lot as I am in it 3 - 4 hours per day (sales rep).

My sleep Doc told me he was going to change my life when I was diagnosed with OSA. He was absolutely correct. From the second night of my sleep test which was the first time I had slept with a CPAP, I could feel a difference. Even though I went lights out well after midnight and was awakened at 5:00 A.M. I was bright eyed and bushy tailed all that day. I had much more energy than usual and I couldn't wait until my CPAP arrived. (Which took much too long, almost a month).

All of the issues associated with OSA have disappeared, literally. BP meds have been reduced. The energy level is way up and when I watch my diet and eat healthfully, along with regular exercise it's through the roof. Much better concentration. Minimal sinus infections which prior to CPAP usage were commonplace. No more wondering how long my eyes staid closed when I thought I just blinked, yes, when driving my car. The prior 54 years of my life were poor sleep at best. Unless ill, I never remembered being in bed longer than 6 hours. Now I sleep, and I mean sleep at least eight hours per night and have gotten as much as ten. I still wake to urinate and often have a hard time falling back to sleep. But that is because the previous immediate sleep was so deep and refreshing that I start thinking of things needing to be done. It may take 1/2 hour to fall back to sleep. My wife is the biggest advocate as it has allowed her to sleep through the night as well. The last time I saw sleep Doc she made me tell him what happened one night. I have a Condo at Hampton Beach, NH about a 30 mile drive from my home. Often times during the Winter we"ll stay over down there after visiting some friends in the area. One night I packed up my CPAP but forgot my mask. At bed time I realized what I had done. My wife asked me what I was going to do? We ended up going all the way back home. I was afraid to sleep without it.


I don't write many replies to too many posts but seeing the length of this thread had me wondering what everyone was so interested in talking about. What started as a member asking for a little boost, needing to find the positives in her continuing using CPAP therapy during a tough time for her, has turned into a therapy session for the many that have posted. That's a good thing.

[mtstromberg]

Been ages since I've visited this forum, but back then there didn't seem to be too many people on the mask as long as me so I'll chime in too.
I've actually lost track of what year I was diagnosed with OSA, but it was somewhere around 12 years ago or so. I was the worst that the sleep center had ever seen too (some honor). Been on cpap ever since.

I read posts occasionally where someone has given up on using cpap, and it's hard to imagine. I'm no longer too exhausted to notice that I'm choking when I nod off without the mask (actually nasal pillows). There's absolutely no way I can ever sleep without it. Big pain on long boring commutes when you're not driving

If you're told to use it, do it. Weird thing to add. I was re-tested 2 years ago, and the Dr. told me that I was in amazing health for someone that had been on cpap for so long. Don't know if it was an unnecessary pep talk or what, but he said that people seldom go that long without developing other health problems related to the OSA. He figures it's because I never skip using it. Just another thing to think about.

Mike

[roster]

I was re-tested 2 years ago, and the Dr. told me that I was in amazing health for someone that had been on cpap for so long. Don't know if it was an unnecessary pep talk or what, but he said that people seldom go that long without developing other health problems related to the OSA. He figures it's because I never skip using it. Just another thing to think about.

Mike

Plus it appears you have the sofware to monitor the performance of your therapy. 99% of CPAP users don't monitor their therapy. How can they have a good therapy for 12 years without monitoring data? They probably can't.

[mtstromberg]

Only thing is, I only got a modern machine with data logging and gasp! a heated humidifier! after my retest that I mentioned. Guess I got lucky.

[Sergey45]

I can’t name my CPAP treatment a complete success, thou I feel much better comparing to my “pre-CPAP” time, when I was suffering from sleep apnea without real understanding what is going on with me. I’ve been on CPAP since February 2006.
In this small web site I’m sharing my experience of dealing with CPAP equipment.
http://www.sleepapneasymptom.medgrip.com

[snoreking]

Been on the mask over 15 years. Sleep like a baby. (Apap has been the biggest advance in technology over that time span, imho, at least as far as ease of use is concerned.)
Anyway, you would have a far easier time talking me out of my first born than you would have of talking me out of my cpap machine and mask at this point. I simply LOVE it, and the fact that within seconds of putting on the mask, I am out cold. Even in a noisy room with the TV and lights on. It is just part of the routine such that I don't even think about it -- put on jammies, use the john, brush the teeth, wash the hands, slide into the rack, slip on mask, wake up in the morning!