Did a CPAP changed your life?

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
lvwildcat
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Post by lvwildcat » Fri Sep 28, 2007 7:27 pm

Yes CPAP absolutely changed my life!! Gone is the brain fog and daytime sleepiness. I am a much nicer person(God was I a raving bitch before CPAP?) At first I had a love/hate relationship with CPAP now I definitely consider it my BEST FRIEND!!


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drummergirl410
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Post by drummergirl410 » Sat Sep 29, 2007 6:57 pm

It definitely changed my life as well! Last April and May I started feeling terrible! My asthma caused me a bit of a fit, and in the midst of that my mom and me started to suspect that something else was amiss. I did the whole round of pulmonology visits and sleep studies over the summer. I started on xPAP in late July. I've been on it now for a couple of months and it has made a world of difference! I work better, play harder and enjoy life a lot more! I was also one of those who relished a nap almost every day. Now I only nap when I want to and not because I need it. It's opened up more time for me to persue my hobbies and the things I really like to do!
Joined the Hosehead Club on 7/26/2007 100% Compliant for four months... and counting!

RAINSUX
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Post by RAINSUX » Sat Sep 29, 2007 7:20 pm

Me, too! I'm ready to get up when the alarm goes off, I wake up feeling rested, I no longer have that uncontrollable urge to take a nap in the afternoon, and I have more energy.

Do some reading here and make sure you get a GOOD machine, not a cheapie that has no features. You need one that collects data so you can monitor your own progress. Take some time trying various masks and make sure you get one that fits you well.

Good luck on your new adventure!

Sam
CPAP therapy is so easy you can do it in your sleep!

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Snoreless
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Post by Snoreless » Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:16 pm

I've been on CPAP for little over 3 weeks and I can tell you that to me it already has, I'm sleeping well so far, and feel rested in the morning when I wake up even if I only sleep for 5 or 6 hours, it's really quality sleep.
Another thing is that I'm not sleepy during the day and I haven't fall asleep at the light while waiting to change as I did a couple of times before.
I'm also feeling in a better mood during the day.
Let us know how it works out for you.

Cheers!

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Captain_Midnight
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thoughts on how a CPAP might have changed and improved life

Post by Captain_Midnight » Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:24 pm

CPAP has indeed changed my life for the better

As I look back, I've had undiagnosed OSA for about 50 yrs, since a childhood playground accident. It's apparently caused a diverse set of symptoms, everything from a minor social uneasiness, high blood pressure, inability to focus or multi-task, near-sightedness, sinus issues, a propensity to catch any cold going around...I could go on.

With CPAP, all of these symptoms (and several others, many that I didn't even know that I had) improved. I find that I'm more gregarious and at ease talking to new people, and in front of groups. My BP has dropped precipitously (except for "white coat" HBP), I can think more deeply, and concentrate more fully and for greater stretches of time. My eyesight improved (which is actually a bummer, because I had laser surgery 10 yrs ago, and now I'm over-corrected with PAP therapy), and my immune system has been recharged.

Most of us pappian-compliant folks will say that there's still some room for improvement; and, I'm no different. However, the results are so encouraging that I only wish I had known about OSA and PAP therapy years earlier.

One other thing, all of the cardio parameters on my last blood test were below average risk. They were all headed in the wrong direction previous to my OSA diagnosis.

Just a peek at some of the "issues" that 100 % compliant CPAP has helped me solve.

Good luck with your PAP experience.


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Heartful
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Post by Heartful » Sun Sep 30, 2007 10:24 am

I can understand how real resting sleep is the foundation of everything.
I look forward waking up energetic and able to tackle the challenges of every day instead of feeling dragged down and overwhelmed with what needs to be done.

It is very encouraging to see, throughout the different posts, how a CPAP has positively improved your life.

Feeling 'alive' instead of that heaviness and foginess that sticks to me will surely be life changing by itself. Not feeling like an old rusted machine at 41 yo will be a great improvement!!!

My appointment is next week.
Thanks to you, I will be more knowledgable when I get there.


I had to laugh at tuna's comment:
It has changed my life, but I still can't get a date!
That was my next question to come!

Heartful


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sharon1965
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Post by sharon1965 » Sun Sep 30, 2007 11:20 am

heartful
i wish you the very best, and i'm so very happy for all those who posted so far... and i honestly don't want to be a doomsayer, but i do feel the need to weigh in and offer some balance to this very optimistic thread!

i've been on cpap for 9 months now...as someone mentioned earlier, you don't want to get a cheapie machine that records nothing but compliance data, but, since i didn't find this forum until after my setup, i did just that...for 9 months i've muddled thru with this bare bones machine and did the best i could, all the while fighting with my dme for a better setup...so there may have been things going on with my therapy that i couldn't have known about, leaving sort of a grey area there, but possibly compromising my therapy...

however, when i found this forum i read all the posts about folks getting their lives back, having energy and feeling rested...these were all the same things told to me by my sleep doc and RT...it didn't happen for me that way, and to this day the only real difference i see is that i no longer conk out for 3-4 hours after work every day...YES! that is a big difference, but i haven't begun to FEEL any better, and that has been a disappointment to me; on a positive note, though, because i didn't start to notice improvements, the wonderful people on these boards weighed in with ideas, especially that i should check for underlying issues...thanks to the advice i received here i found out that i have not one but 3 sleep disorders, and they all contribute to my excessive daytime tiredness and all need to be treated; but the good news was that this explained why cpap alone wasn't the magic bullet i had hoped for and heard about

i tell you this, heartfelt, not to discourage you or to be a drag, only to point out that everyone has different experiences, and for some it's an almost overnight change and for others it takes lots and lots of time...but because i found this forum and have had so much help from the kind folks here, i have stuck with it...if i had read and heard nothing but positives about cpap, then had my own experience with it, i surely would've decided it didn't work for me...but because i found others who were struggling and still more people willing to help those of us who were struggling, i have been compliant since day 1, in the hope that one day i'll feel like these lucky folks do, and with the knowledge that at least i'm not making myself worse by refusing therapy

so the point of this long and rambling post is: even if you don't share the experiences of the other kind and lucky posters on this thread, stick with it, read all you can, ask for help when you need it and persevere...

take good care, best of luck
sharon


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Post by le_wif » Sun Sep 30, 2007 12:46 pm

I felt compelled to respond because of Sharon's response. My husband has been on CPAP for just over a year. For him, it was not an overnight, miraculous change, but rather something that changed over a long period of time. He's not 100% compliant, and there are many nights when he only gets in 4 or 5 hours on the CPAP. He would tell you that the biggest thing he notices is that he is no longer so sleepy in the afternoon. As his wife, I can tell you that I see that he is more alert, more active (he's lost about 20 lbs and counting), and he doesn't fall asleep the instant he stands still anymore. It's been great for our relationship--he actually talks to me more--when he sits down in "his chair" at night, he doesn't fall asleep within 15 seconds, but acutally starts conversations. He explores ideas in greater depth, and I can tell that he's more enthusiastic about the things he enjoys. It's like he's got the energy to do the things he likes to do, where before he was just getting buy with what he had to do and there wasn't a whole lot of energy left over. He's always had a lot of patience but now he has even more with out children. His libido is also very much recharged! I know his health is improved. When he gets up in the morning, his color is good, not pasty and pale as it was pre-cpap. I didn't even realize that he had been pale in the morning--but I noticed a difference when he came home from his sleep study! I could go on, but the point I want to make here is that this all did not happen overnight, but has just kicked in recently, in the last few months, after nearly a year on CPAP therapy. He also does not have a fancy machine--just pretty much a bare bones cpap with a humidifier, but he says he finds it comfortable, so I'm not pushing for a change. His compliance issues are due to his life long habit of falling asleep in places other than bed at night! We're working on it. Perhaps it just takes longer for some bodies to catch up on their sleep, but this has been our experience. I hope you find it helpful, and I wish you great success with your treatment! And for Sharon, I hope that you find a gradual change for the better in your life, too! Maybe it's just taking a bit longer for you than for some of the others, but it will come. Good for you for sticking with it!

Le_Wif

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Susanm
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Post by Susanm » Sun Sep 30, 2007 5:43 pm

Anyone who tries to take my cpap away is going to end up on a missing persons list somewhere.

It's certainly made a huge difference to me ... I haven't been this healthy and productive in over 10 years at least.

Susan M

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powernose
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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life?

Post by powernose » Mon Nov 23, 2015 10:38 pm

Which machines do you recommend? I have my first appointment next week...

Thank you!

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YappyVpapper
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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life?

Post by YappyVpapper » Mon Nov 23, 2015 10:44 pm

Here is what I was told by many people...

"You will wake up a new woman!"
"You will feel so refreshed!"
"You are a new person!"

Not me, I don't feel any of that, but what I do feel is alive. My cpap saved my life (probably) and saved all my bed friends (besties, boyfriends, etc...) from a horrible night's sleep. Before cpap, I slept like a mad woman with the blankets and covers, slept all night though, but I knew something was wrong with my sleeping. The snorgling I did was not good for people to hear, it was very bothersome.

Now I sleep in a coma every night, I don't even move. I was a tummy sleeper and now I am flat on my back sleeper, my arms are either above my head or resting on my tummy. Very big difference I have noticed in a good way.

My bed now can be made in 5 seconds lol

I do think I sleep better, but have never felt that "alive" or "refreshed" feeling.

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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life?

Post by Noctuary » Tue Nov 24, 2015 12:29 am

I do think I sleep better, but have never felt that "alive" or "refreshed" feeling.
Same here. I'm better with it, but I'm still really tired most days. There are a lot of us like this, if you look around the web. Not all of us get a miracle.

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gregzeng
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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life? NO. LACKING CPAP DID.

Post by gregzeng » Tue Nov 24, 2015 12:50 am

CPAP users are in the minority of users.

This forum, and the CPAP industries need to try to reach the non-users.

Since that is a new topic, I'll try to start another thread. The old timers might object though. again.

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zoocrewphoto
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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life? NO. LACKING CPAP DID.

Post by zoocrewphoto » Tue Nov 24, 2015 1:11 am

gregzeng wrote:CPAP users are in the minority of users.

This forum, and the CPAP industries need to try to reach the non-users.

Since that is a new topic, I'll try to start another thread. The old timers might object though. again.

This makes no sense. Unless non-users come to the forum, this forum has no way to teach them.

Are you sure you understand how this forum works?

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Re: Did a CPAP changed your life?

Post by chunkyfrog » Tue Nov 24, 2015 1:15 pm

powernose wrote:Which machines do you recommend? I have my first appointment next week...

Thank you!
Any Resmed Autoset, not Escape Auto--dumb brick.
Any Respironics Auto 560 and up
Any bilevel machine (if your Rx calls for it)
DeVillBiss Autoadjust.
Any auto can be run on single pressure, but unlike straight pressure machines,
you can use the auto feature to confirm correct pressure settings.

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