Back from sleep study etc

[JeffH]

So I got 4.5 hours sleep at the sleep study and that was after taking sleeping pills twice...I'm a sick unit. Woke up 4 times in the night with the third one having my belly on fire. The tech came in and I asked her what pressure she had me at. She said 15. I said I'd heard of the air in the belly deal but never experienced it....I have now! She turned it back down to 13 and I got a little more sleep. When I woke up this morning I DID feel the old feeling of being more rested that I haven't felt in a long time.

Went to the Doc's at 9:00 and he said I needed to try a Resmed in APAP mode and if that didn't work, we'd go to a Bipap. He sent me to a DME and I left with a Resmed Escape II APAP. He just hates the algorithm of Respironics machines and said Resmed is a far superior machine. I'm tired and sleep deprived so I get it. It's set up to start out at 13 and the upper end is wide open. I'm going to play around with the ERP or EPR or whatever the hell is called. He said to use it. I don't have the clinician manual, but I'm sure someone here can point me in the right direction for that handy sheet of instructions.

Doc said he saw nothing that would explain the insomnia.

Then this afternoon I went to the urologist and he thinks I have a bladder problem, not a prostate problem. The first thing he suggested was getting off caffeine. I stopped on the way home and bought a sack of decaff coffee. I guess with the insomnia and peeing problems I've been having this makes a lot of sense. Wonder why I didn't think of that...LOL.

I have two appointments Wed and Thur day morning for bladder test so maybe by the end of this week I'll be back to my ornery self...I hope so, I miss me.


JeffH

[cflame1]

and he/they set you up to fail... a machine with no data.

[JohnBFisher]

.. I said I'd heard of the air in the belly deal but never experienced it....I have now! ...

No fun. I understand. I think you will prefer the APAP feature, as it will help reduce the need for higher pressure ... if you don't need it.

.. When I woke up this morning I DID feel the old feeling of being more rested that I haven't felt in a long time. ...

Headed in the right direction!

.. Went to the Doc's at 9:00 and he said I needed to try a Resmed in APAP mode and if that didn't work, we'd go to a Bipap. ...

Sounds as if he knows his stuff. Good to hear for you.

.. He sent me to a DME and I left with a Resmed Escape II APAP. ... It's set up to start out at 13 and the upper end is wide open. I'm going to play around with the ERP or EPR or whatever the hell is called. He said to use it. ...

You will probably want to use the software to monitor the effectivenss of the unit (if it is fully data capable, which it should be). I suspect you don't need 13cm H2O all the time. But definitely START there and work toward what works for you.

.. I don't have the clinician manual, but I'm sure someone here can point me in the right direction for that handy sheet of instructions. ...

Hmmm... A pointer might just show up for you.

.. Doc said he saw nothing that would explain the insomnia. ...

Well, other than fighting with really poor sleep. If you don't breathe you end up dreading sleeping. Been there, done that.

.. Then this afternoon I went to the urologist and he thinks I have a bladder problem, not a prostate problem. The first thing he suggested was getting off caffeine. I stopped on the way home and bought a sack of decaff coffee. I guess with the insomnia and peeing problems I've been having this makes a lot of sense. Wonder why I didn't think of that...LOL. ...

If you are sensitive to coffee, you might find even decaf coffee is too much. Decaf only means not quite as much caffeine. You might want to alternate with herbal (no caffeine) teas if you enjoy a warm drink in the morning.

.. I have two appointments Wed and Thur day morning for bladder test so maybe by the end of this week I'll be back to my ornery self...I hope so, I miss me. ...

Well, now. I don't know if we need a more ornery JeffH around! But we will enjoy having you feel better once again. We all understand how you feel.

[rosiefrosie]

If I were you I would take your machine back and request a ResMed Autoset II. It is an APAP and it is fully data capable so you can monitor your status.

rosie

[LSAT]

and he/they set you up to fail... a machine with no data.

That's a terrible statement to make to a person starting out on CPAP. There are many of us out here without date capable machines that are NOT failing. Yes...it would be nice to be able to exchange the Escape , but if he can't, that doesn't spell doom. I know 2 people that have data capable APAP machines that have no idea how to get the data...one told me that he checked the first month, but hasn't for the past 7+ years.

[JeffH]

If I were you I would take your machine back and request a ResMed Autoset II. It is an APAP and it is fully data capable so you can monitor your status.

rosie

That ain't happening. I just called them and they literally laughed at me for wanting to be able to look at me data. We aren't getting off on the right foot here.

JeffH

[JeffH]

and he/they set you up to fail... a machine with no data.

That's a terrible statement to make to a person starting out on CPAP. There are many of us out here without date capable machines that are NOT failing. Yes...it would be nice to be able to exchange the Escape , but if he can't, that doesn't spell doom. I know 2 people that have data capable APAP machines that have no idea how to get the data...one told me that he checked the first month, but hasn't for the past 7+ years.

Not starting out...been at this 11 years.

JeffH

[rosiefrosie]

That ain't happening. I just called them and they literally laughed at me for wanting to be able to look at me data. We aren't getting off on the right foot here.

JeffH

I'm sorry they laughed at you, but I would insist that that is the machine you want. Can you go somewhere else?

[roster]

I also say get a data-capable machine. Especially for someone needing a high pressure and having problems after eleven years on CPAP.

A quote from Dr. Barry Krakow: "I don't think I've seen one patient in the last 3 years where I was convinced we found the "perfect" pressure on the first titration. At our center, the norm is retitrate patients at least two more times in the first year. And, among my colleagues at the annual sleep society meeting, I hear more sleep docs moving in the same direction. " ( wiki/index.php/Upper_Airway_Resistance_Syndrome )

It is likely your insurance will not pay for two more titration nights, so that data-capable machine is important.

I won't say you can't get it right without a data-capable machine, but without one it is more difficult and less likely.

I would also second what JohnB said about coffee and caffeine. My friends with sleep apnea and I have noticed that some brands of decaf coffeee have enough caffeine to affect us. I believe most people with sleep apnea are extremely sensitive to caffeine.

[cflame1]

and he/they set you up to fail... a machine with no data.

That's a terrible statement to make to a person starting out on CPAP. There are many of us out here without date capable machines that are NOT failing. Yes...it would be nice to be able to exchange the Escape , but if he can't, that doesn't spell doom. I know 2 people that have data capable APAP machines that have no idea how to get the data...one told me that he checked the first month, but hasn't for the past 7+ years.

I've read posts by Jeff for years... he's not just starting out.

[jules]

In this case failure might give Jeff a good Bipap. Failure might not be so bad.

[Wulfman]

So I got 4.5 hours sleep at the sleep study and that was after taking sleeping pills twice...I'm a sick unit. Woke up 4 times in the night with the third one having my belly on fire. The tech came in and I asked her what pressure she had me at. She said 15. I said I'd heard of the air in the belly deal but never experienced it....I have now! She turned it back down to 13 and I got a little more sleep. When I woke up this morning I DID feel the old feeling of being more rested that I haven't felt in a long time.

Went to the Doc's at 9:00 and he said I needed to try a Resmed in APAP mode and if that didn't work, we'd go to a Bipap. He sent me to a DME and I left with a Resmed Escape II APAP. He just hates the algorithm of Respironics machines and said Resmed is a far superior machine. I'm tired and sleep deprived so I get it. It's set up to start out at 13 and the upper end is wide open. I'm going to play around with the ERP or EPR or whatever the hell is called. He said to use it. I don't have the clinician manual, but I'm sure someone here can point me in the right direction for that handy sheet of instructions.

Doc said he saw nothing that would explain the insomnia.

Then this afternoon I went to the urologist and he thinks I have a bladder problem, not a prostate problem. The first thing he suggested was getting off caffeine. I stopped on the way home and bought a sack of decaff coffee. I guess with the insomnia and peeing problems I've been having this makes a lot of sense. Wonder why I didn't think of that...LOL.

I have two appointments Wed and Thur day morning for bladder test so maybe by the end of this week I'll be back to my ornery self...I hope so, I miss me.


JeffH

'Scuse me while I beat my head against the wall....... < BAM > < BAM > < BAM >

Sounds like you've got a real "winner" there. A doctor who wants you to use an Auto with no data capabilities. OooooooK Did he actually put the "model" of APAP on the prescription? Or, did the DME hand out the one THEY wanted to push off on you?

How the Hell's he going to know what pressures your machine went to or see any other pertinent data? On the other hand, depending on the nature of your events, the ResMed A10 algorithm may not go up much farther than your minimum pressure of 13 cm.

Sounds like you can count on more sleep studies in the future.

There's some instructions in this link that'll get you into it.

http://www.apneaboard.com/CPAP%20Adjustment.htm

Good luck!


Den

[DoriC]

Jeff, can you get your Dr involved? He might change the RX to be more specific as to the Autoset. That's what we did when the DME delivered an M Series Plus machine and they exchanged it. As has been said here many times, "it's YOUR therapy". Good luck.

[JeffH]

So I got 4.5 hours sleep at the sleep study and that was after taking sleeping pills twice...I'm a sick unit. Woke up 4 times in the night with the third one having my belly on fire. The tech came in and I asked her what pressure she had me at. She said 15. I said I'd heard of the air in the belly deal but never experienced it....I have now! She turned it back down to 13 and I got a little more sleep. When I woke up this morning I DID feel the old feeling of being more rested that I haven't felt in a long time.

Went to the Doc's at 9:00 and he said I needed to try a Resmed in APAP mode and if that didn't work, we'd go to a Bipap. He sent me to a DME and I left with a Resmed Escape II APAP. He just hates the algorithm of Respironics machines and said Resmed is a far superior machine. I'm tired and sleep deprived so I get it. It's set up to start out at 13 and the upper end is wide open. I'm going to play around with the ERP or EPR or whatever the hell is called. He said to use it. I don't have the clinician manual, but I'm sure someone here can point me in the right direction for that handy sheet of instructions.

Doc said he saw nothing that would explain the insomnia.

Then this afternoon I went to the urologist and he thinks I have a bladder problem, not a prostate problem. The first thing he suggested was getting off caffeine. I stopped on the way home and bought a sack of decaff coffee. I guess with the insomnia and peeing problems I've been having this makes a lot of sense. Wonder why I didn't think of that...LOL.

I have two appointments Wed and Thur day morning for bladder test so maybe by the end of this week I'll be back to my ornery self...I hope so, I miss me.


JeffH

'Scuse me while I beat my head against the wall....... < BAM > < BAM > < BAM >

Sounds like you've got a real "winner" there. A doctor who wants you to use an Auto with no data capabilities. OooooooK Did he actually put the "model" of APAP on the prescription? Or, did the DME hand out the one THEY wanted to push off on you?

How the Hell's he going to know what pressures your machine went to or see any other pertinent data? On the other hand, depending on the nature of your events, the ResMed A10 algorithm may not go up much farther than your minimum pressure of 13 cm.

Sounds like you can count on more sleep studies in the future.

There's some instructions in this link that'll get you into it.

http://www.apneaboard.com/CPAP%20Adjustment.htm

Good luck!


Den

When I send my card to the DME to be read on the 25th of February and then see the Doc on the 9th of March. I'm beginning to understand all the frustrations people go thru.

If the APAP doesn't work for me I'm planning to setting it up with a pressure of 15 and EPR of 3 to see what happens.

JeffH

[elg5cats]

Went to the Doc's at 9:00 and he said I needed to try a Resmed in APAP mode and if that didn't work, we'd go to a Bipap.... DME and I left with a Resmed Escape II APAP. Urologist and he thinks I have a bladder problem....suggested getting off caffeine. I have two appointments Wed and Thur day morning for bladder test so maybe by the end of this week I'll be back to my ornery self...I hope so, I miss me. JeffH

Jeff,
Seems a bit odd, the MD prescribes APAP and you end up with a model T rather than the current Model available..........I agree it sounds like the DME is looking for the opportunity to offload a machine..........might be worth questioning before you are too far into being hooked by the DME. I hate it when I get home with a bag of rice with an expiration date two years earlier!!!!!

Might want to ease off caffine gradually, if you have been drinking alot of caffeine or caffeine sensitive, you may go through caffeine withdraw symptoms if you go cold turkey, so decaf on to less than decaf may be the way to go gradually. Caffeine withdraw can make you feel like you have the flu and may be disruptive to your sleep as well. Good luck with the urological tests!!!!! Is one of the tests a Cystoscopy???

elg5cats