DO I REALLY NEED A CPAP?

I have not been able to get my sleep clinic nurse to understand me. I have been using my CPAP for about 9 months. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea about 12 years ago, but could not tolerate the CPAP during the 3-day test, so I never bought one. A couple years ago, I started waking up every 90 minutes every night. So I did another sleep test and my doctor said that I still had the apnea. So I bought a CPAP with the nose only mask, and that was tolerable. I have no trouble breathing without it, but the nurse said that the CPAP was to keep me breathing while I sleep because their test showed that I had frequent breathing stoppages while sleeping. And that was a risk of dying in my sleep, although after 12 years of sleeping without a CPAP, I am somehow still alive. My big concern is that even though it puts out a strong airflow and since I sleep with my mouth closed, the air does not go past my nose until I inhale and has no where to exit until I exhale. Therefore, I don't see how it is going to keep me breathing all night, since I have to physically inhale to breathe, and if I stop breathing, then it seems like the CPAP is just not going to help, and I will wake up dead anyway. That's what I can't get my sleep nurse to understand. So I just don't know if the CPAP is doing me much good. The only benefit that I have found is that while using it, I sleep 2 to 3 hours at a time instead only 60 to 90 minutes without it. Also, it does help me get to sleep a little quicker. So do I have to keep using it or not?

Glad to see you went ahead and joined the forum. Hopefully you'll get your equipment listed so we can see if it might contain any data to help pinpoint your problems. I think in your case, especially since it seems communication between you and your providers isn't satisfactory, hard facts in black and white could help. I would certainly be interested in seeing your data. Maybe there's a reason you're feeling as you do about your treatment. And if the treatment is actually working as it should, you seeing that could lessen your concerns. Also, if we could see a copy of your recent sleep study report, there may be clues there. If you are sleep deprived this may seem like a lot. There's people here to walk your through the discovery process. Look forward to seeing your numbers.

I think you need it and should continue to use it while looking into ways to lengthen the amount of sleep your getting. The "strong airflow" the machine pushes through your nose helps to keep your airway open supplying your body with oxygen. It's helping in that way. You only stop breathing when your airway is closed...... You sleeping longer and falling asleep faster is a good thing!! Sure you have survived those 12 years without it..... But sleep apnea can cause a long list of other health problems.

jerrydixon wrote:I have not been able to get my sleep clinic nurse to understand me. I have been using my CPAP for about 9 months. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea about 12 years ago, but could not tolerate the CPAP during the 3-day test, so I never bought one. A couple years ago, I started waking up every 90 minutes every night. So I did another sleep test and my doctor said that I still had the apnea. So I bought a CPAP with the nose only mask, and that was tolerable. I have no trouble breathing without it, but the nurse said that the CPAP was to keep me breathing while I sleep because their test showed that I had frequent breathing stoppages while sleeping. And that was a risk of dying in my sleep, although after 12 years of sleeping without a CPAP, I am somehow still alive. My big concern is that even though it puts out a strong airflow and since I sleep with my mouth closed, the air does not go past my nose until I inhale and has no where to exit until I exhale. Therefore, I don't see how it is going to keep me breathing all night, since I have to physically inhale to breathe, and if I stop breathing, then it seems like the CPAP is just not going to help, and I will wake up dead anyway. That's what I can't get my sleep nurse to understand. So I just don't know if the CPAP is doing me much good. The only benefit that I have found is that while using it, I sleep 2 to 3 hours at a time instead only 60 to 90 minutes without it. Also, it does help me get to sleep a little quicker. So do I have to keep using it or not?

The cpap machine works by making sure your airway stays open. If you inhale while your throat is closed, no air will reach your lungs. So, you stop receiving oxygen. Your brain has to wake you up to get you to open your throat and breathe again. Since you said your test showed you are severe, that means that this is happening at least 30 times an hour, probably more. It ruins the quality of sleep and starves your organs of oxygen.

According to your sleep test, you are NOT breathing well with cpap. You just don't know it. I used to think I slept pretty well. I thought I was waking up 4-5 times a night, but my sleep study showed that I average 79 times an HOUR.

The longer you go without treatment, the higher your risk of health problems. Some, you may already have. High blood pressure, weight gain, headaches, diabetes, stroke, heart attack.

As for the air and your nose, the air goes in AND out of your nose. It does help you keep breathing. Especially when you are asleep and don't know what is going on.

If you got the right CPAP machine, it will tell you whether you're breathing if you know how to ask.

Check the link in my signature line below about how to enter your equipment in your profile. If you can't figure out which machine you have, tell us EVERYTHING it says on the top or front side of your CPAP machine.

For most apneacs, you stop breathing because your throat closes up, not because you're not trying to breathe. The pressure from the CPAP inflates your airway sort of like one of those long balloon you make balloon animals out of.

Once the airway is inflated and opens up, your lungs do their normal job and pull air in and blow it back out.

jerrydixon wrote:ince I sleep with my mouth closed, the air does not go past my nose until I inhale and has no where to exit until I exhale. Therefore, I don't see how it is going to keep me breathing all night, since I have to physically inhale to breathe, and if I stop breathing, then it seems like the CPAP is just not going to help

Wow! You really have no understand of airway anatomy, how you breathe, what sleep apnea is and how CPAP works.

A good place to start is by watching this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gie2dhqP2c

Try watching some of these also - https://www.youtube.com/results?search_ ... leep+apnea

The next time you have a discussion with your "sleep nurse", you can be more knowledgeable and the discussion will go better.

Continuous positive air pressure (CPAP) holds the airway open making breathing easier and preventing apneas that disturb your sleep and increase respiratory pressures against a closed airway. Sleep apnea is a bit insidious because the victim is often unaware of it happening. Not only does it disturb your sleep, but those pressures caused by trying to inhale against a closed airway can cause or aggravate conditions like heart damage (A-Fib), hypertension, stroke, diabetes and others. Do an internet search on "Reggie White and Sleep Apnea". A 43 year old NFL star, probably never saw it coming.

CPAP is not a ventilator, but there are machines that do that for certain types of sleep apnea. You may not realize how it is helping, but it is important that you continue to use it. Getting a data capable machine and software to visualize that it is working, can be vital to someone like you who is not motivated by the sleep disruption, unwell feeling and snoring. Without the data, you don't know if it's working, and perhaps that is the problem for you, it may not be optimal.

ChicagoGranny wrote:

jerrydixon wrote:ince I sleep with my mouth closed, the air does not go past my nose until I inhale and has no where to exit until I exhale. Therefore, I don't see how it is going to keep me breathing all night, since I have to physically inhale to breathe, and if I stop breathing, then it seems like the CPAP is just not going to help

There are some better ones on youtube but I can't find them now.

I think you're looking for this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gie2dhqP2c

palerider wrote:I think you're looking for this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gie2dhqP2c

That's it. Thank you.

jerrydixon, That is a good one to watch. Educate yourself!

jerrydixon wrote: . . . I have to physically inhale to breathe, . . .

Jerry, I suspect you mean consciously breathing.
Most of us automatically breathe in our sleep, due to the autonomic nervous system;
If you were making no effort to breathe during the sleep study, you would have been diagnosed with central apnea,
and you would have been prescribed another machine entirely. Since that was not the case, the effort was present,
and you, like the rest of us, need a little air pressure to prop the airway open.

chunkyfrog wrote:

jerrydixon wrote: . . . I have to physically inhale to breathe, . . .

Jerry, I suspect you mean consciously breathing.

I get the feeling that jerry thinks that the machine is supposed to do the work for him.

I am aware that some school systems forgo science education due to a mistaken feeling
that it is contradictory to what they want to teach. (!)

chunkyfrog wrote:I am aware that some school systems forgo science education

For your own sake, never enter a school that teaches high school biology.

ChicagoGranny wrote:

chunkyfrog wrote:I am aware that some school systems forgo science education

For your own sake, never enter a school that teaches high school biology.

ok, Granny, that's enough, quit scaring our froggy!

jerrydixon wrote:I have not been able to get my sleep clinic nurse to understand me. I have been using my CPAP for about 9 months. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea about 12 years ago, but could not tolerate the CPAP during the 3-day test, so I never bought one. A couple years ago, I started waking up every 90 minutes every night. So I did another sleep test and my doctor said that I still had the apnea. So I bought a CPAP with the nose only mask, and that was tolerable. I have no trouble breathing without it, but the nurse said that the CPAP was to keep me breathing while I sleep because their test showed that I had frequent breathing stoppages while sleeping. And that was a risk of dying in my sleep, although after 12 years of sleeping without a CPAP, I am somehow still alive. My big concern is that even though it puts out a strong airflow and since I sleep with my mouth closed, the air does not go past my nose until I inhale and has no where to exit until I exhale. Therefore, I don't see how it is going to keep me breathing all night, since I have to physically inhale to breathe, and if I stop breathing, then it seems like the CPAP is just not going to help, and I will wake up dead anyway. That's what I can't get my sleep nurse to understand. So I just don't know if the CPAP is doing me much good. The only benefit that I have found is that while using it, I sleep 2 to 3 hours at a time instead only 60 to 90 minutes without it. Also, it does help me get to sleep a little quicker. So do I have to keep using it or not?

Er...maybe THAT is the sticking point with the nurse? Normally, if you're dead for whatever reason, the waking up part becomes moot.