CPAPtalk.com

I'm a pretty new cpap user. I have an airsense 10 machine with a heated humidifier, a climate control hose, and an F-20 full face mask (cause yes I am a mouth breather). I have had my pressures adjusted a couple of times. The first time I called and asked if they turn them down cause it felt like I was sticking my head out of the truck window doing 90 MPH! The pressures were adjusted from 4-16 to 5-15, this seemed a little better but still to high at times. I called and got it adjusted again and they set it to 5-13. This seemed good at first but then I called and talked to them about getting a climate control hose cause I live in a very dry climate and I was having to turn my humidity up so high that I was getting rain out and felt like I should be wearing a swim suit to bed! I have the climate control tube now and it is set on auto which the book says it should keep it at 80 degrees and %85 humidity which seemed to be pretty good on the first couple of nights (probably cause they only 4-5 hour nights). Then the weeekend came and I got a 7 hour night and a 9 hour night! However both of those longer nights I woke up and the reservoir was empty. The first morning was not to bad all though I had a little bit of an irritating cough and dry throat. The next morning I woke up feeling like crap! I felt like my lungs were burnt like I had done a 5 mile run at high elevation and i felt completely zapped all day. The last 2 nights I have not used the machine. I'm feeling better but still not %100.
I usually do good sleeping through the night and not getting up whether I sleep 4 hours or 9 hours and my scores show pretty every day (80-100 depending on the amount of time that I slept). Some other frustrations are that my wife wakes me up 1-4 times a night saying that I have an air leak (sometimes I do and sometimes it is just the exhale vents blowing like a freakin tornado)! I have no idea what to do about that. Even when I get a good score and I fell like I slept a good amount of time iI still wake up feeling exhausted. the last 2 nights sleeping with out the machine I felt like I woke up a lot and was restless but I still feel more rested then when I use the machine and it all works good, not sure what's up with that I thought this was supposed to help get more quallity rest! I still catch myself nodding off during the day if I sit still for to long and driving is really rough sometimes. I'm so frustrated I'm ready to say forget the whole deal and sleep in seperate rooms (which would realy suck cause I do love sharing a bed with my wife!) so that she can at least get decent rest. I'm not sure what to do so I was hoping to get some feed back that might help!
I also have gas like crazy and I feel bloated at times and my ears are draining and producing more wax than ever, which I have never had problems with my ears (besides being almost deaf from workind to much loud equipment).

What EXACT machine are you using Airsense 10 xxxxxxx? What is the 80-100 score? 5-13 is a relatively low pressure setting. IF you have a data capable machine, you need to download Sleepyhead software so we can see exactly what is happening during the Without this data we cannot help you.night.
https://sleep.tnet.com/resources/sleepyhead

rockymtnman wrote:airsense 10 machine

Please fill out your equipment profile - https://www.cpaptalk.com/ucp.php?i=prof ... pment_info

There are several models of Airsense 10. You may have to look on the bottom plate to find the exact model. Make sure to empty the humidifier chamber before turning the machine over.

LSAT wrote:What EXACT machine are you using Airsense 10 xxxxxxx? What is the 80-100 score? 5-13 is a relatively low pressure setting. IF you have a data capable machine, you need to download Sleepyhead software so we can see exactly what is happening during the Without this data we cannot help you.night.
https://sleep.tnet.com/resources/sleepyhead

how does this work? does your machine sync up with your computer and does it show trending and usage data?

rockymtnman wrote:how does this work? does your machine sync up with your computer and does it show trending and usage data?

You have to use the little SD card that is in your machine (or should be in your machine) along with the available software to see what is going on.
And yes...trending and usage data is available along with even more details.
You can use SleepyHead or ResScan or both if you wish.
https://sleep.tnet.com/equipment

Do you have the provider/clinical manual for your machine?
If not, get it here. This manual is different from the "user" manual usually provided with the machines.
https://sleep.tnet.com/home/files/resme ... -guide.pdf
This manual shows where the SD card can be found.

The MyAir scoring system pretty much gives you a star for attendance. I can have an AHI of 17 and still get a 95.

Hi rockymntmam, I am new to this as well with similar problems. What I found that worked for me is to only use the machine for part of the night. It is not all or nothing.
Right now I use the machine for 3 hours and without for 4.
I have more energy in the day than I have had for years.

Hi rockymntmam, I am new to this as well with similar problems. What I found that worked for me is to only use the machine for part of the night. It is not all or nothing.
Right now I use the machine for 3 hours and without for 4.
I have more energy in the day than I have had for years.

What about the snoring? Does it seem to go away after using the machine for a few hours like you're saying? The snoring only bothers me when it bothers my wife cause then she has a reflex that automatically rams her elbow into the back of my ribs! HAHA

Guest wrote:What about the snoring? Does it seem to go away after using the machine for a few hours like you're saying? The snoring only bothers me when it bothers my wife cause then she has a reflex that automatically rams her elbow into the back of my ribs! HAHA

The presence of snoring means that the therapy is sub optimal. Snoring is one of the warning signs that the airway is trying to collapse. The AHI might still be low because pressure is preventing the snoring airway collapses from growing up and earning a full fledged apnea flag of some sort.

A random snore here or there isn't a big deal for most of us but if you are snoring enough to get a poke in the ribs from the wife then you are likely snoring more than a random snore here and there.

You need to be using the software to evaluate the effectiveness of your therapy...if wife is hearing snores then there's a real good chance your therapy pressure needs a bit of an adjustment.
See this thread of examples of what the software reports will show.
viewtopic/t103468/Need-help-with-screen-shots.html

Guest wrote:Right now I use the machine for 3 hours and without for 4.

That is some very bad advice, unless you are a newbie working toward using it all night.

ChicagoGranny wrote:

Guest wrote:Right now I use the machine for 3 hours and without for 4.

That is some very bad advice, unless you are a newbie working toward using it all night.

Hi ChicagoGranny,
Yes, I am new to this and I don't have very many of the answers.
rockymntman said that he feels like he's ready to give it all up, I take that to mean cpap therapy. I am just encouraging him to stick with it.
If I force myself to use the machine all night I feel worse than if I didn't use it at all, sort of like rockymntman. I have to work and need to feel my best. What I am doing is working for me. Yes I am trying to increase usage, but slow an easy does it.

ChicagoGranny wrote:

Guest wrote:Right now I use the machine for 3 hours and without for 4.

That is some very bad advice, unless you are a newbie working toward using it all night.

ChicagoGranny,
What are the reasons, benifits, and drawbacks for using the machine for a few hours a night or all night? If I use it all night I'm so groggy and out of it the next day and I have a hard time even staying awake, will this ever get better?

I would suspect that using it some of the time is better than not using it at all. Optimally, you should use it the entire time you sleep (including naps). If you can use it part of the time, and increase the percentage of time that you use it over time, that would be great!

What are the reasons, benifits, and drawbacks for using the machine for a few hours a night or all night?

Well, what are the drawbacks of taping your mouth around a soda straw and trying to breathe for several hours?

I'm only about two months into my CPAP therapy, and it's taken me most of this time to get a decent night's sleep. What helped me the most (especially after a couple of nights of going with out the mask) was the determination that I was going to put up with whatever so I could breathe. People learn to sleep in the worst of conditions: noise, temperatures, time, light, and more.

I looked at what the arousals were doing to my heart, and what the lower oxygen was doing to my body, and decided the CPAP was the lesser of all the conditions. I took one piece at a time and learned how to deal with it: the right mask, how to fit the mask, how to best sleep with the mask, making my own CPAP pillow (until I can buy one), dealing with air leaks, etc.

As a man said to his doctor: "I can live with this."
And the doctor replied: "That's the idea!"

Ed

rockymtnman wrote: rockymtnman

Just wondering how you are doing? Are you learning to use Sleepyhead software? There is help available from forum members.