Started my OSAS Journey - Shock but Relief

Hello Everyone

Brand new to this but not to health issues. Quick history:
55, male - climbed mountains as a hobby, 2 years ago Prostate Cancer, major surgery, still under treatment for side effects. Put on weight during recovery, slowly getting back to walking. 6 Months ago Colon Cancer scare. As a result, my GP took my BP. This was the first time since being in hospital 2 years prior. Found I was Hypertension Stage 2. Medicated over several months to get this under control. During this time, lots of tests, ECG's, XRAYS, CT Scans etc, they found I had LVH of the Heart, partially collapsed left lung and paralysed left diaphragm. Sent to Cardio-Respiratory in April who did a spirometry - they were not happy as they saw mild COPD. They then decided to do sleep test. This was done end of April. Monday I received a letter telling me I needed to immediately go for CPAP treatment as I had 'significant obstructive sleep apnea syndrome'. They also told me I had to notify DVLA in the UK. Tuesday I was called into the clinic. They talked me through everything.

Apparently I have an AHI of 29 , they said my oxygen levels were down to 88% when they should have been above 96%, also something about a desaturation of 70%. The combination of factors plus my other medical history re heart and lungs is why they wanted me to start immediately and why they considered my problem as severe.

All I could worry about was driving. They advised me that I had to stop. I do between 15,000 and 20,000 business miles a year and travel all over the UK and Europe. I have agreed to that. They have told me I will be retested in 5 weeks time and we will see how things are. If the AHI reduces, which they hope, then they will support me getting my license back to drive. This has a huge impact upon my job and income.

Back to the CPAP. Gave me a brand new ResMed Airsense 10 Autoset, with an F10 Large Face Mask. They trained me in how to use it and set it all up. Had a go in the hospital. It has been set to start at 4 and ramp to 20 over 10 mins.

Used it the other night for the first time - had problems sleeping but persevered.
Last night used it again. Must say I had the best nights sleep that I can remember for some time. Even though I woke up twice. One of these occasions was a mild panic attack, I felt like I was drowning/suffocating - calmed down and took some deep breaths and things were ok again.

I read the manual and found the clinical settings and was able to get a reading. It says my AHI average for the last two nights was 1.9 - am so pleased about that. I also recorded my sleep on my mobile phone - all quiet.

Cant believe that something so simple like this can have such a dramatic effect. Wondering now about all the medication I am on for my heart and also for some side effects of PCa , will I be able to reduce these as OSAS seems to be linked to all of this.

Lost to learn and it seems I am on a new journey. So the shock of OSAS is now turning into relief and we may have unlocked a key to something that was causing me other major problems.

Eddie

Congratulations on your success!

If you look at the first thread called "Pugsy's tutorials" you will find information on software called "Sleepyhead" which will show you in great detail (if that is what you want) exactly how your breathing goes while you sleep.

In about 6 - 8 weeks you may want to re-evaluate some of the meds you take with your doctors, especially the BP meds.

By the way if you are taking lots of drugs you may want to work with a good pharmacist / doctor to evaluate what each one does and how they interact also. This is especially important if they have been prescribed by many different doctors/specialists.

Welcome, eddie775! It sounds like you've gotten a terrific start. It's amazing to start getting some rest after so long, isn't it? From here on, it's just a matter of tweaking.

Many people do away with the ramp because it can be uncomfortable to breathe at the lowest pressure. It's considered a "comfort feature" and entirely up to you if you use it or not and how long to make the ramp. Same with the three exhalation relief settings - entirely up to how they feel to you and if you want to use them or not and at which level.

Please fill in the equipment section of your profile so that you won't have to keep telling people what equipment you use. This will automatically tack it onto the end of all of you posts as you can see under my post.

And I second BlackSpinner's suggestion to read all Pugsy's information about the wonderful, free SleepHead software at the very top of the forum page. You don't need to understand it all at first - concentrate on information related to getting it installed and reading your data. Her posts are like a wonderful reference manual that you can go back to whenever you want to understand more.