CPAP no longer working?

Hi CPAPtalk community! I have lurked on and off here a few years, but I now have a question. I know I need to go see my kinda worthless neurologist, but I wanted to take advantage of the collective wisdom here first. I started CPAP about 3 years ago, after first having been diagnosed with Restless Leg Syndrome and then Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PMLD). I still have PMLD, or something that causes me to still twitch at night, but I am not sure how germane that is to my problem. My problem is that over the past few months I find myself waking up lousy. When I first started CPAP it was a revelation, but now I wake up feeling crappy, headachy, generally out of sorts. Here some random info that might help: 1) Using Phillips machine, does have an SD card so I can get sleep data via Sleepyhead if you think it would help; 2) Using Quattro FX FF mask, will try Airfit in about a month when insurance will cover it; 3) keep my mask and reservoir generally clean, use distilled water, but I don't clean my hose as much as I should; 4) air pressure is 8.5 cm, if that's how you measure it. I can adjust that if I want but haven't self-medicated that way yet; 5) as mentioned previously, still twitching a lot. Cutting out stimulants like alcohol, coffee, chocolate in the evening, but I still twitch. Maybe that's the Apnea reasserting itself? 6) I slept on the couch last night as my poor wife desperately needed some sleep, and I said screw it - I slept without my mask - and feel much better than I have recently.

Ideas anyone? Feel free to ask me more questions if it helps you diagnose or get inspired as to my problem. Thanks!

Maybe its the twitching disturbing your sleep quality.
But how about making sure that the cpap therapy is going like it should be going first. Maybe something on those software reports is just screaming "fix me".
We really need to see a typical night's daily detailed report.

If you don't know how to post image of the reports..we talk about it here along with some examples.
Screen shot thread viewtopic.php?f=1&t=81072&p=737779#p737779

Oh....when you have time please add your equipment to your profile like I have added mine.
If you are unsure of the exact model of your machine just look on the bottom of the blower unit for a 3 digit number..may have REF or DS in front or behind it.
Tell us those 3 digits and we can tell you exactly which model to choose from the equipment menu>

RLS and PLMD can make for really lousy sleep. If your twitching is bad enough, you will have many arousals but not necessarily awakenings. My first study showed 4 arousals per hour and the doctors didn't seem to think that was enough to treat given the diagnosis of complex sleep apnea. The second study showed 14 per hour and that was enough to start treatment. I don't have the results of my third study which was meant to determine how well the meds were working.

It probably is time to go back to your doctor and see if you need a new sleep study and/or start/change your meds for these conditions.

Separately: Here are some helpful things to do:

1. Get a copy of your sleep study and your sleep titration study. They have interesting information that will help in understanding your therapy. In the sleep study will be some discussion of the severity of your RLS/PLMD.

2. Get a copy of your prescription for your own records. It will be necessary if you choose to change DME's or order online

3. Post your equipment. There is a link on how to do this in my signature block below. Please select TEXT as a display choice as many CPAP machines and masks appear similar but are significantly different

4. If you need to post images of your reports, there is a link in my signature block on how to post using PhotoBucket.com

5. While the LCD display is somewhat useful, it is better to use one of the reporting software programs to get detailed information on your therapy. The two available for Respironics machines are: Encore (Basic or Pro) and SleepyHead.
If you have a ResMed machine, the SleepyHead and ResScan are the programs of choice.
Encore and ResScan only run on Windows machines (or Macs with Windows installed), SleepyHead is available for both Macs and Windows machines.

Thanks Pugsy and JDS74! I am downloading Sleepyhead as we speak. I know there about a zillion posts about Sleepyhead, but is there a tutorial somewhere? I am being slightly lazy and I also have to take my wife for her Chemo (another story, another message board) shortly, so bear with me. I will definitely be contacting my kinda worthless neurologist, see if insurance will pay for a new sleep study. I do have my original sleep study from 2012 in front of me in case you want to know anything about it. But of course it's two years old.

Roboski wrote:...is there a tutorial somewhere?

First line in the "announcements" at the top of the website.

Roboski, the model number of your machine is important -- because SleepyHead can't give you any information if your machine doesn't record treatment data like AHI and leaks. The SD card doesn't necessarily mean that your machine provides this data. It may just be recording hours of use depending on the model. That's why Pugsy is asking you for the exact model number.

Equipment noted, thanks! FYI, tried Sleepyhead when I first got machine, so taking another whack at it. I know my machine can pull the data.

OK, I have an image saved in Photobucket. How do I paste it into the body of this reply. That I can't figure out, and yes, I am technologically challenged

Roboski wrote:OK, I have an image saved in Photobucket. How do I paste it into the body of this reply. That I can't figure out, and yes, I am technologically challenged

look for a set of links off to the side of your image, I think it's the forth one down, paste that link here.

In Photobucket with the image open you should see a little box with 4 addresses in it.
You have to have the single image open though...just the general album address won't show it.
The bottom address is the IMG address...copy that address and paste it into the body of your text here...you will then see the image code....click on the preview button to see if the image shows up and if it does just click submit.
If it doesn't show up then you missed something somewhere.
An example of that little box with the addresses in it is in this thread..
Screen shot thread viewtopic.php?f=1&t=81072&p=737779#p737779

I played around and got it to work, yee hah My last question for today: what Sleepyhead data would you like me to post on this thread? The statistics icon shows 813 days of data, ouch. The there's the daily stuff, with the summary pie chart and lots of graphs. Overview, with more graphs and an adjustable date range. Any specifics are greatly appreciated and will not drive us all crazy. Thanks!

Roboski wrote:I played around and got it to work, yee hah My last question for today: what Sleepyhead data would you like me to post on this thread?

full page screen shot, no calendar no right panel.

details tab in the left panel

charts showing event flags, flow, pressure, leak, snore, and flow limitation if available, in that order, move charts around and shrink to fit as necessary.