Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
Air Force Officer
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Air Force Officer » Thu May 03, 2012 9:42 pm

Update - Almost complete with Month #1 on CPAP and it has gotten much better. Got over the hump 2 weeks ago and have been sleeping through the night with my nasal pillow. Everything seems to be working fine so far - however - one issue. I am developing a nasty red mark on the bridge of my nose where the nasal pillow contacts it. Tried a small band aid as a cushion- still get a mark. I am fiddling with the straps to lessen the tension.....If that doesnt work may try a new nasal pillow.

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GumbyCT
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by GumbyCT » Fri May 04, 2012 9:10 pm

GumbyCT wrote:Welcome Sir! I have 33yrs in the barrel myself. The AF barrel that is. IF you have to go in the barrel it IS a better barrel

From this -
Air Force Officer wrote:After a real headache with Tricare and finally getting my referral approved, finally got my CPAP 4 days ago.
I would say you did NOT get your machine from the VA is that correct?

I am not gonna pretend the VA is a paradise but I thought they only used cpap's that provide data; Top Shelf. Be sure the model you listed above is exactly what IS written (word for word) across your machine. They ALL do look alike and it is not uncommon for people to get it rwong

Getting CPAP equipment from the VA is probably one of THE best deals you will get for your service. IF you can't get a better machine from Tricare you will want to give the VA shot here. One way is have your doc write a machine make & model specific prescription with the words "Do NOT Substitute".

You can prob get this changed by your next visit.
You cannot tell IF your mask leaking with the machine listed. This means you have no way of knowing IF your therapy is effective. Everyone leaks when we start out.

Another point of order, this sleep industry is FULL of people who will lie to your face and mislead you. You can find good sleep docs and DME's but you will have to hunt and be selective.

Lots of good info here at this forum but there is a steep learning curve. Everything you need to be successful is here.

I think it took me a month to be able to sleep thru the nite but my pressure was a straight 17cm too. Try to exhale against that So you are doing good there

We can talk more about the VA later but let's get your equipment right.

Get your very own copy of the cpap AND mask prescription AND a detailed copy of your sleep study. You can get those either from the doc or the DME, they both have a copy.

You are in good hands with the people here.

Welcome to the best forum on the planet.

obtw - so we have some idea where on this plant are you read this from?

Good Luck
You should work on getting that brick replaced BEFORE your retirement date.

fwiw - the VA will provide supplies for any equipment they issue. As you can see each VA seems to behave a bit differently. I do get 2 nasal pillows each month (when the DME remembers)

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Air Force Officer
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Air Force Officer » Sat May 05, 2012 7:46 am

I have now developed a slightly black and blue welt across the bridge of my nose - I have reduced tension on the mask straps as much as possible, any more and it leaks badly. I have an appointment on Monday, hopefully can try out a different nose pillow. My nose is not wide but rather tall, hawk-like if you know what I mean. Right now I am using a Mirage FX wide.

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RandyJ
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by RandyJ » Sat May 05, 2012 8:23 am

Air Force Officer wrote:I have now developed a slightly black and blue welt across the bridge of my nose - I have reduced tension on the mask straps as much as possible, any more and it leaks badly. I have an appointment on Monday, hopefully can try out a different nose pillow. My nose is not wide but rather tall, hawk-like if you know what I mean. Right now I am using a Mirage FX wide.
The Mirage FX doesn't really put any pressure on the bridge of the nose - is it an option to stay with it? I use the standard version and I love it...

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Air Force Officer
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Air Force Officer » Thu Jul 04, 2013 1:42 pm

Just an update, I have been on CPAP for nearly 1.5 years now. I went "over the hump" at about the 3rd month.....really noticed an improvement in my overall sleep and my energy during the day has been awesome. Do not yawn like I used to constantly. I upgraded my setup with the fleece covers for my mask straps and it is great, also use the boomerang gel strip on my nose - no more red marks anywhere. Still using the Mirage FX nose pillow - tried other setups but have always come back to the Mirage.

I am still on my older model machine that only tracks usage, I got this machine through a TRICARE referral before I retired. So still paying monthly copays on it. I retired in June 2012 from a 26 year Air Force career and just last month finally got my VA disability rating. Severe OSA gave me a 50% rating.

Understand the VA hospital in my area (oklahoma city) has a good sleep clinic and trying hard to get into it soon, also understand VA will provide an upgraded machine that tracks a lot more data.

Anyone use the VA sleep clinic in their area? any feedback?

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Stormynights
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Stormynights » Thu Jul 04, 2013 2:13 pm

I have a good friend that got an S9 Auto there about a month ago. He got everything he needed except support. They just handed him his machine and mask and said good luck. He came to see me and I showed him how to put his mask on and gave him a different kind to try.

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mgaggie
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by mgaggie » Thu Jul 04, 2013 8:50 pm

Stormynights wrote:I have a good friend that got an S9 Auto there about a month ago. He got everything he needed except support. They just handed him his machine and mask and said good luck. He came to see me and I showed him how to put his mask on and gave him a different kind to try.
That is so annoying! And they wonder why so many give up on cpap. IMO support is the MOST IMPORTANT thing after getting the right mask.

Thank goodness for sites like this one

OKCSleepDoc
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by OKCSleepDoc » Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:37 am

To StormyNights and Air Force Officer, I agree that support is the biggest factor in CPAP adherence.

I am a Sleep Physician in the Oklahoma City area. I accept all insurances including Tricare, Medicaid, Medicare. If your friend would like to see a physician who offers support, please PM me. If not, there is no pressure either way. I also will be hosting a CPAP support group at Integris Baptist Medical Center on November 19th if they want to just check me out. Details should be up on their website in 1-2 weeks. Feel free to contact me or PM me if you want more info about my clinic!

Hope you are still doing well with your CPAP machine!

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49er
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by 49er » Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:40 am

OKCSleepDoc wrote:To StormyNights and Air Force Officer, I agree that support is the biggest factor in CPAP adherence.

I am a Sleep Physician in the Oklahoma City area. I accept all insurances including Tricare, Medicaid, Medicare. If your friend would like to see a physician who offers support, please PM me. If not, there is no pressure either way. I also will be hosting a CPAP support group at Integris Baptist Medical Center on November 19th if they want to just check me out. Details should be up on their website in 1-2 weeks. Feel free to contact me or PM me if you want more info about my clinic!

Hope you are still doing well with your CPAP machine!
I apologize for this off topic response but I wanted to commend OCKSleepDoc for joining this forum. Too bad more of your colleagues don't do this.

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OKCSleepDoc
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by OKCSleepDoc » Sat Sep 28, 2013 9:27 am

Happy to be here! hopefully I can help contribute to the forum from time to time. I agree, the problem is most "sleep docs" are more than happy to do the diagnosis, but most don't want to deal with managing CPAP. I hope that if more individuals enter into sleep fellowships, perhaps this will start to trend towards more docs who care about management (also that we will soon start to be measured based upon outcomes).

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Julie
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Julie » Sat Sep 28, 2013 10:53 am

It would help to start a proper thread dedicated to your agenda, rather than hauling out a very old one no one wants to plow through...

OKCSleepDoc
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by OKCSleepDoc » Sat Sep 28, 2013 10:59 am

I have no agenda.

You still plowed through and replied.

Enough discussion on this particular thread.

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BlackSpinner
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by BlackSpinner » Sat Sep 28, 2013 11:00 am

Julie wrote:It would help to start a proper thread dedicated to your agenda, rather than hauling out a very old one no one wants to plow through...
Julie the original OP came back and posted how he was doing with a question. The Doc answered.
The combination of old issues and the resolutions is always of interest to newbies.

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Julie
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Re: Newbie on Day 4 of my CPAP Odyssey

Post by Julie » Sat Sep 28, 2013 11:49 am

Oh well, guess I should have looked more closely.