Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
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qckndrty
Posts: 16
Joined: Fri Jun 06, 2014 11:01 am
Location: Cocoa Beach, FL

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by qckndrty » Fri Jul 11, 2014 4:36 pm

I've been a Bipap user for 13 1/2 years. Same machine approaching 36,000 hours. I couldn't imagine not sleeping with the machine. In fact, I had anxiety from the recent two-night at-home sleep test without my blankey lol. Anyhow I'm about to get a new machine but prior to these last several years, I was pretty much a zombie.

For newbies, get assistance from the forum and you'll be a new person eventually. Now I get to tinker with Sleepyhead and really fine-tune things.

_________________
Mask: AirFit™ P10 Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Old Sullivan VPAP II replaced at 36,800 hours

finnsleep

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by finnsleep » Tue Jul 15, 2014 6:37 am

I have been using a C-PAP for 8 years and my wife is overjoyed having struggled sleeping with my gasping for air and stoppage of breathing. I won't leave home with out it. Hang in there. It truly works and you dream again, wake up refreshed, sleep without tossing and turning and most all sleep while breathing a full compliment of air with no snoring. Best wishes to a very successful experience.

uncommon
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Joined: Fri Jun 28, 2013 6:21 pm
Location: Lilburn, GA USA

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by uncommon » Tue Jul 15, 2014 10:58 am

Catnapper wrote: to hear the success stories. Something along the lines of before and after would be great. I would particularly like to hear about the moment that made you realize that you were better.
Joanie - Catnapper
Joanie,

Not quite sure it was quite like that for me. Like most folks, adjusting to all the gubbins on my cake-hole was a bit of a fuzz. I've got an oily mug, so I've really got to work at keeping things clean and shiny brite.

I'm quite compliant to medical instructions, and don't object to medical machinery-regarding it more with fascination than dread.

After about three months, I was away from home in England and through tiredness, forgot to buckle up the blower.

I woke the following morning with a throat like Rod Stewart's, as if I'd been gargling with house bricks and Laphroaig for three weeks. It really hurt and was clearly from snoring my head off.

It taught me a lesson, which I've not forgotten.

I lost 140 lbs last year--and a couple of times I've left off the machine deliberately--and things were okay. Dr's reckon if I lose another 50 I'll be able to do without the face furniture. At the moment, my numbers apparently still require a CPAP and with an S9, full face and water tank, I'm as comfortable as I've ever been.

I'm happy and grateful to have all the medical assistance I have.




brendan

Steve1121

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by Steve1121 » Fri Jul 25, 2014 6:44 pm

Do of your have a recommendation on what APAP to get. I am newer than new.

SAN

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by SAN » Sun Aug 03, 2014 6:40 am

The CPAP machine changed my life. Or one could say, it gave me life. If you sre strugling with the decision to use CPAP or with your machine, try it and keep at it. The results are worth the effort.

I was lucky and it worked immediately and it was simply a matter of tweaking settings until i found what was best for me. I also changed to the nasal pillows, which is way less intrusive and quite versus a mask. The pillows do irritate my nose, but I have begun rubbing a little Utter Cream on each night and it works like magic; prevents sores and redness the pillows were causing,

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ameriken
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Location: Colorado

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by ameriken » Fri Aug 08, 2014 11:40 am

So, it's been a long time since I've been here, I hope everyone is doing well.

An update: I've been methadone free since Dec 2012, it took me 9 months to detox from that killer med. Though my centrals were completely gone, i still wasn't getting the best quality sleep. Much much better, but still not what I thought it should be. I knew I was probably still dealing with obstructives.

The ASV prescription settings weren't cutting it (though they never did, not even for the centrals) so I tinkered with the settings from time to time for the next year and a half trying to find better settings (I know, may God strike me dead for screwing with the prescription settings ). This spring I finally found something that brought me to about 85% of where I think I should be.

Anyhoo, tired of screwing around with the machine I finally decided to call the VA. They did an oxymetry and found desats to the mid to upper 80's. I guess they can also see some kind of pattern in the oxymetry that indicates I still have apnea. They set up another split study. Long story short: zero centrals. The tech did say I still have airway resistance and arousals throughout the night, but the apneas did not reach the guidelines where he was able to put me on a machine and titrate.

So last week I got a call from the sleep Doc who says since I'm still having the resistance and arousals, and he felt I could benefit from a CPAP. He is ordering some kind of self-titrating machine. Don't know anything about the machine yet, I'm waiting to hear from the DME. Finally getting off the ASV!

Long story short: 3 or 4 years ago when I was on methadone for my back pain, I felt so crappy it was like I was slowly being lowered into the grave and I really didn't think I'd live this long. I still have problems with scoliosis, mostly in the form of sciatic pain in my low back, right leg, and more recently a really sharp pain in my right hip joint that feels like someone inserted a bowie knife into the joint. Still, I now refuse to go on any prescription meds and will continue to do for as long as I possibly can. Thank God for marijuana (and thank you Colorado for legalization) which I use when the pain in my back leg and hip gets severe. A few drops from a Marqaha sativa tincture gives me almost instant and long lasting relief.

Here's the proof: what I am really most excited about and proud of, is after years of mostly sitting on my ass dying, my wife and I and some friends went up to the mountains and completed a challenging 6 mile round trip hike at an elevation of 10,500 to 11,000 feet. I was nervous because I thought my back pain and the lack of O2 would knock me out early. In fact, just as we started to exit the parking lot to the trail, my sciatic pain that knife-in-my-hip-joint feeling kicked in that almost ended my journey right at the start. I went back to the car, took a few drops of the MJ, and within about 60 seconds the pain was gone and we hiked up and down the rocky trail for the next 5 or 6 hours. My wife was completely blown away: it was my younger and healthier friends who had trouble trying to keep up with me. I had no trouble breathing or climbing the inclines.

I feel alive again!


A view from the top...


Image
Thinking of quitting CPAP?

No problem, here's the first thing to do when you quit:


Advanced funeral planning. When you give up CPAP, you'll probably need it.

HoseCrusher
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Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by HoseCrusher » Fri Aug 08, 2014 5:21 pm

Awesome view. What a great experience. Glad you are doing better.

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Mask: Brevida™ Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Machine is an AirSense 10 AutoSet For Her with Heated Humidifier.
SpO2 96+% and holding...

AprilShowers

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by AprilShowers » Mon Aug 11, 2014 9:42 am

Sixteen years ago my breathing would completely close off at night and I'd wake up suffocating and in a panic. I'm sure without my CPAP I'd have died long ago.

mmhast

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by mmhast » Mon Aug 11, 2014 11:57 am

I have been using CPAP for a few months now and I has been very positive for me.
I am now sleeping usually 6 - 8 hours without get up in the night at all.
Before it was a bathroom trip every two hours. Also do not doze off in the middle of the
day anymore. Wife and kids say I am a new person.
Still have some struggles getting it adjusted sometimes but would not give the machine up now,
it has really made a difference.

Denzil47

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by Denzil47 » Fri Sep 12, 2014 2:59 pm

Been on my de Villbiss for 9 months now and will never look back.
Its a pleasant habit now.
My cardiologist mentioned that it can have all sorts of side benefits like weight loss and other good things.

Curtis
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Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2014 10:17 pm

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by Curtis » Tue Sep 16, 2014 10:32 pm

I recently join this community and want to say hi to all members. I think it is a best plate form to get knowledge on different topics. Some people join these communities only for fun and some for knowledge.

terrydk
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Joined: Thu Dec 10, 2009 10:11 pm

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by terrydk » Sat Sep 20, 2014 8:54 am

I was first diagnosed with OSA in 2004. At that time the machines and masks were nothing like they are today...I was never able to get used to all the gear and the noise. So for the next 5 years I ignored the diagnosis. In December of 2009 I had another sleep study and my condition was severe with an AHI of 126. I was getting up in the night and could hardly stay awake during the day even at times while driving. I am now using the new Resmed Airsense 10 Autoset and last night had my first 0.0 AHI. Today's equipment makes the journey to a good nights sleep so much easier. It does take some getting used to but in the end it is so worth it.

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Additional Comments: AHI 126 - Began Therapy 12/21/09, Auto Set Low 12cm - High 17cm

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PlinkerCraig
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Location: Beaverton Oregon USA

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by PlinkerCraig » Sat Sep 20, 2014 11:35 am

Hello, I'm a newbie joining this forum today.
I've been ignoring my sleep apnea for over ten years and this summer my wife put the hammer down demanding I get moving on treatment.

I had my sleep study a couple of weeks ago. After three hours sleeping the practitioner woke me and said "now let's see you sleep with the CPAP". With the CPAP on I was laying there at first thinking "how will I get used to exhaling like this" and the next thing I knew she was waking me up five hours later. Her words "I saw the worst-of-the-worst followed by the best-of-the-best". On my follow-up visit with the Dr he was shocked how low my blood oxygen levels showed - scary low levels I won't even admit to you folks here.

I've used the CPAP now for three nights with no problems adapting to sleeping with it. I'm bagging over 8 hours per night of glorious yummy sleep.

Now instead of ignoring the problem like I did for over ten years I've become vigorous about making the therapy work. I found SleepyHead software and I love looking at my data and correlating it to waking events in the night to figure out causes and cures. I'm a data junkie, being a typical engineer. My data for three days will really impress my doctor when I see him a few weeks from now since he said I had around 80 events per hour during the first part of the sleep study and now I'm looking at AHI numbers around 2. Yay! Finding that SleepyHead can also correlated data from an inexpensive pulse-oximeter I now have one of those on order just for fun.

Before getting the CPAP a few days ago I used to have a routine of waking early around 5:30am, getting some coffee, reading quietly until about 8am so that I could feel normal enough to begin work. I don't know why I let myself coast into that morning zombie behavior. Now I bounce out of bed at 6am completely alert and refreshed - I really forgot what "normal" was like. I cannot be happier.

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Mask: Wisp Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear - Fit Pack
Additional Comments: Using SleepyHead software to look at my data so far.

StubbornOne
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Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by StubbornOne » Fri Oct 10, 2014 5:28 pm

Time that I gave back to the community by posting my story.

I've been using the machine since last February (2014) Life is good now, but I was not one of those people who took to it easily.
I went through just about every challenge you can find described in these forums. Leaking masks, bloated stomach full of air (that was painful), mouth puffing, just on and on and on... For six weeks, Six solid weeks, I managed at most three hours of sleep a night. Most nights less. I spent an awful lot of time reading these forums at 1:00 in the morning, 2:00 in the morning, 3:00 in the morning, hoping to find a hint for how to stop the leaks, stop the puffing, just get some sleep. Let me tell you, going without a good night's sleep for that long plays merry H-E-double-hockey-sticks with your cognitive abilities.

But, I stayed with it. And, after six weeks, I settled in with a nasal mask that mostly worked. Talked my therapist into dropping the pressure a notch. Added a dab of nasal gel to stop the hissing around the edges and finally, finally! I started to get some rest. The best rest I've had in years. My AHI is 2 or less most nights. I dream. I no longer struggle to stay awake every afternoon. My memory is improving and my blood pressure is going down.

So, for any newbie who is reading this, looking for a bit of hope, all I can say is Stay with it! Keep trying everything you can try. Because eventually, you and the machine will come to terms and it will be worthwhile.

flyingcow
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Joined: Fri Apr 18, 2014 9:29 am

Re: Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

Post by flyingcow » Sun Oct 12, 2014 8:18 pm

How do I start?

Chronologically, I guess.

I suffered from some pretty nasty migraines in my late teens and early twenties, but they mostly went away for several years. I'd have the occasional migraine, and while it would suck, it was definitely manageable. All of my migraines have been with an aura. Often the pain wouldn't be so bad, but the blindness from the aura was really annoying.

Fast forward to 2012. I was on an 11 month long travel assignment for work. The migraines started getting bad again. Then they started getting really bad. I was up to 2 migraines with aura a day, in addition to waking up in the middle of the night with a third, and 20-30 retinal migraines a day. That summer, I had my 2 day time migraines, and while I was up on a ladder trying to get something done, I felt this weird feeling and suddenly, the left side of my face was paralyzed as was my left arm. I made my way back to our construction trailer, and got a ride to the hospital. After about an hour, I was regaining some function, and the CT scan showed absolutely nothing. It took 7 days for me to "completely" recover the use of my arm, hand, and face (I put that in quotes because I still notice the damage).

Sadly, it took a job change, a relocation, and a new doctor before someone said, "Hey, you should really talk to a neurologist about this." (side note, Dr. Prunty in Morrisville, VT is the greatest doctor ever)

I was down to about 2 migraines a week, and each one would affect my left side. As I started with this neurologist, I was nearing the point of quitting my new job because I was absolutely useless. In addition to the migraines, I was completely unable to handle stress or pressure, and I could not communicate clearly at all. My neurologist finally did an EEG and MRI. The MRI came back 100% clean, finally ruling out a stroke (I'm 32). She started with all the non-offensive migraine treatments (melatonin, magnesium, calcium channel blockers) and asked me, "How's your sleep?"

I always thought I slept fine, although I was famous for making weird humming noises in my sleep. She thought I should go for a sleep study anyway, just to rule out the possibility of sleep apnea causing this. I met with my (AWESOME) sleep doctor, and he didn't hesitate to schedule my sleep study. The results were funny. The apneas fell into the "Mild" category, the hypopneas fell into the "Moderate" category bordering "Severe." The desat numbers were what scared him. I was desaturating to 79% O2, which is pretty bad, but not horrific on its own. I was staying there for 15 minutes or so at a time... Ouch...

Got the phone call 5 days after the sleep study, and had a CPAP less than a week after the study. The first week was hell. I had an Airfit P10 mask that made me feel like I was suffocating the instant I put it on. Thanks to the incredible guidance of this board, I switched to a Swift FX which I have used every night since. That includes a 9 day camping trip that I managed to rock entirely on batteries (several nights in my hammock!) I got my CPAP in March, and had only one week of migraines (no idea why), and I have not had a migraine since late April. I'm no longer agitated, I handle pressure and stress better than I ever have, and I wake up every morning feeling fantastic! ...after a cup of coffee...


...that is unless I did one of my hikes the day prior. You see, I'm kind of a hiking and backcountry skiing fanatic. Before my happy little air compressor, I was spent at 5-6 miles. Last weekend, I did a 13 miler as a maintenance hike to keep me fresh between big days. I usually don't notice the increase in energy until I get back to the car after a 9 hour hike and still feel awake... sore, but awake. I'd post a gratuitous summit photo post CPAP, but I've been too busy hiking in the Adirondacks this season, all the pictures are all still on my camera.

So if any of you happy CPAPers see a big dude on the trail in Vermont or AKDland (or see me in my cow helmet during ski season) don't hesitate to say hi!


-pete