Exhaustion

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
nawchem
Posts: 82
Joined: Fri Jan 05, 2018 10:22 pm

Exhaustion

Post by nawchem » Fri Jan 05, 2018 10:53 pm

I'm trying to figure why I am so tired. I've been on cpap for 15 years, a really happy customer.

In the last 3 years I've led a near comatose life. I had a severe foot injury, I quit my job, I got state aid drs, my thyroid became very low, developed asthma, gained 68lbs (I've lost 30 of it and am 4lbs from being out of the obese category). I expected to feel terrific when thyroid levels were corrected. The brain fog went away but I'm still very tired and I don't feel a lot of drive or enthsiasm. I can drink 2 cups of coffee and fall asleep.

My cpap and heated hose and mask are 12 years old. They don't make my cpap anymore it has 21,353 hours on it. My hose lost integrity of the rubber on the ends is held together with tape. Sometime in all my exhaustion the idiot light came on.

I was finally able to get my drs attention it only took 3 appointments to get him on topic. He is sending me to a pulmonologist. Haven't seen this kind of dr before and expected to get new cpap equipment or see a sleep doctor.

Do you think its my cpap machine causing my fatigue?

I've been waiting 4.5 months to see the specialist, have 3 weeks to go. Is there anything I can do to get more sleep in the mean time? My original diagnosis came about when I fell asleep and crashed my car. I don't want to go there again. I turned my pressure up from 8 to 10 a while back. Could it be a higher pressure could get me thru the wait time?

Thanks!
Machine: Dream Station APAP by Resporonics
Mask: Resmed Airfit P10

freetimecreations
Posts: 145
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 9:02 pm
Location: Utah, USA

Re: Exhaustion

Post by freetimecreations » Sat Jan 06, 2018 12:15 am

Give us information in your User Control Panel under profile to show what CPAP equipment you have. There is an Additional Comments field if your CPAP is not listed.
Hopefully there is a way to see your nightly information so you have a reason and a plan on changing your pressure.
If my hose was failing, as soon as possible I would buy a generic non heated hose. (It should fit most machines) Out of pocket, under $15
I say this because if you are prescribed a new machine you will have a back up hose. Also, provided the current machine is not broken I would keep it as a backup unit.

_________________
Mask: ResMed AirFit™ F20 Full Face CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Pressure 8.2cm-14.6cm, EPR 1, Humidity Auto, Contec CMS50F

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MrsRinPDX
Posts: 246
Joined: Tue Nov 21, 2017 9:53 am
Location: Portland, OR USA

Re: Exhaustion

Post by MrsRinPDX » Sat Jan 06, 2018 12:26 am

That is my first inclination, that in equipment 12 years old, something is failing. Also, why is it taking so long to get in to see a pulmonologist? Seems like an extreme wait to me.

_________________
Machine: DreamStation BiPAP® Auto Machine
Mask: ResMed AirFit™ F20 Full Face CPAP Mask with Headgear
Humidifier: DreamStation Heated Humidifier
Additional Comments: Pressures: IPAP 18/ EPAP 14; Secondary mask - Nuance Pro Nasal Pillow

nawchem
Posts: 82
Joined: Fri Jan 05, 2018 10:22 pm

Re: Exhaustion

Post by nawchem » Sat Jan 06, 2018 3:35 am

Thanks so much for your fast replies. I entered equipment information. My machine only shows how many nights you slept 4 hours. I will get the hose first thing. I'm totally amazed that everything worked this long.

I don't know why the appointments take so long. Mayb just life in a crowded city.
Machine: Dream Station APAP by Resporonics
Mask: Resmed Airfit P10

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MrsRinPDX
Posts: 246
Joined: Tue Nov 21, 2017 9:53 am
Location: Portland, OR USA

Re: Exhaustion

Post by MrsRinPDX » Sat Jan 06, 2018 3:37 am

nawchem wrote:...

I don't know why the appointments take so long. Mayb just life in a crowded city.
Kudos to you for sticking with it!

_________________
Machine: DreamStation BiPAP® Auto Machine
Mask: ResMed AirFit™ F20 Full Face CPAP Mask with Headgear
Humidifier: DreamStation Heated Humidifier
Additional Comments: Pressures: IPAP 18/ EPAP 14; Secondary mask - Nuance Pro Nasal Pillow

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zoocrewphoto
Posts: 3732
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 10:34 pm
Location: Seatac, WA

Re: Exhaustion

Post by zoocrewphoto » Sat Jan 06, 2018 3:56 am

Several possibilities occur to me.

Your machine is old and doesn't have full data. While the machine may be working fine, odds are that your sleep apnea has gotten worse in 12 years, and thus, your pressure needs have changed. Without full data, you can't see this, so you are probably getting less than ideal therapy.

If your mask is really old, it may not be doing as well either, though usually you would notice the leaks.

Other bloodwork possibilities?

Back in October or so, I started feeling really tired. At first, I thought it was disappointment and stress after an event got cancelled at the last minute. After I had paid, taken vacation time, etc. It really threw me off. But it got worse in November. I am an extreme night owl. I normally go to bed between 4 and 6am and get up at 12:40pm for work. I was struggling to get up for work, getting home by midnight, and falling asleep while my dinner was in the microwave. Then awake with restless legs, then asleep. Then awake with asthma and acid reflux, even though I was taking my meds for both. Made no sense. My sleep was terrible, but I was in bed for extra hours and still getting more exhausted. I went to the doctor, and she tested me for iron. Normal is 30-180, and I was 15. I now take iron 3 times, and I am noticeablly improved. But forget a pill or two, and I feel some of the symtoms come back. OUt of breath (not asthma as I had assume), especially at night, but also just when walking around. I only took one pill yesterday (I tend to get messed up on days off, and I got a surprise last minute request for my cat to be at a photo shoot tomorrow. That threw off my schedule, since I had to find my grooming supplies and get him a good bath and dry). Today, I got up very tired, made it to the photo shoot, had a good time, got home, and collapsed for several hours before having dinner. The pills are helping, but I have no buildup in my system, so miss a pill, and it hits me.

I don't know if iron is tested in a regular blood panel. What I had was a set of 4 tests that all related to iron. It is quite possible that you have more than one item that needs to be corrected. Hopefully, you get them to do some more testing to make sure.

_________________
Mask: Quattro™ FX Full Face CPAP Mask with Headgear
Humidifier: S9™ Series H5i™ Heated Humidifier with Climate Control
Additional Comments: Resmed S9 autoset pressure range 11-17
Who would have thought it would be this challenging to sleep and breathe at the same time?

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Julie
Posts: 19898
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2006 12:58 pm

Re: Exhaustion

Post by Julie » Sat Jan 06, 2018 5:39 am

Your equipment didn't show up... did you hit submit after typing?

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LSAT
Posts: 13229
Joined: Sun Nov 16, 2008 10:11 am
Location: SE Wisconsin

Re: Exhaustion

Post by LSAT » Sat Jan 06, 2018 6:19 am

I'm surprised a 12 year old machine had a heated hose??? regular hoses are available on e-bay for under $5 with free shipping.

_________________
Machine: ResMed AirSense™ 10 AutoSet™ CPAP Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: Fisher & Paykel Vitera Full Face Mask with Headgear (S, M, or L Cushion)
Additional Comments: Back up is S9 Autoset...... Buckwheat hull pillow

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Pugsy
Posts: 63941
Joined: Thu May 14, 2009 9:31 am
Location: Missouri, USA

Re: Exhaustion

Post by Pugsy » Sat Jan 06, 2018 9:29 am

Whatever machine you selected isn't showing up in the profile. Most likely because the link is no longer active because the machine is no longer sold at cpap.com (where the equipment profile is tied to products sold by cpap.com since they host this forum) so it won't show up.
So just manually type your equipment in the comments section....see what I have in my comments section.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Additional Comments: Mask Bleep Eclipse https://bleepsleep.com/the-eclipse/
I may have to RISE but I refuse to SHINE.

If you want to try the Eclipse mask and want a special promo code to get a little off the price...send me a private message.

nawchem
Posts: 82
Joined: Fri Jan 05, 2018 10:22 pm

Re: Exhaustion

Post by nawchem » Sat Jan 06, 2018 2:44 pm

zoocrewphoto I had a physical in October everything was fine. They test red blood cell count, hemoglobin and hematocrit. They didn't test ferritin or transferrin. If the cpap isn't it I'll ask for a full panel for anemia.

Lsat I bought the heated hose, but I wasn't able to find it anymore. From what I could understand the hose is configured into the computer on the new machines. I had turbinate surgery on my nose so its dryer than the average person's. I like to crank up the humidity.

Pugsy I put the info in the signature.

Not only am I older but my thyroid swelled significantly during the low time and my neck was very fat just a week ago. My weight suddenly rearranged and I have skinny face and neck again.

I developed asthma in April of 2017. I rented a room in a guys house right next to the college I attended while my foot healed. He used an immoderate amount of chemicals, he also had 20 febreeze mostly plug inside and outside his house. I bought an air purifier but it didn't filter out the perfume fumes. I would have to get up in the middle of the night and change the water and clean the pillows because the smeill was so strong in my machine. It is the only time I've had an infection in the water chamber. I didn't know if the chemicals could have done something to the machine. I was able to buy a new chamber because Respironics uses it on another machine.

i probably kept the original hose, going into the garage...
Machine: Dream Station APAP by Resporonics
Mask: Resmed Airfit P10

nicholasjh1
Posts: 517
Joined: Wed Jun 14, 2017 9:07 am

Re: Exhaustion

Post by nicholasjh1 » Tue Jan 09, 2018 12:14 pm

nawchem wrote:I'm trying to figure why I am so tired. I've been on cpap for 15 years, a really happy customer.

In the last 3 years I've led a near comatose life. I had a severe foot injury, I quit my job, I got state aid drs, my thyroid became very low, developed asthma, gained 68lbs (I've lost 30 of it and am 4lbs from being out of the obese category). I expected to feel terrific when thyroid levels were corrected. The brain fog went away but I'm still very tired and I don't feel a lot of drive or enthsiasm. I can drink 2 cups of coffee and fall asleep.

My cpap and heated hose and mask are 12 years old. They don't make my cpap anymore it has 21,353 hours on it. My hose lost integrity of the rubber on the ends is held together with tape. Sometime in all my exhaustion the idiot light came on.

I was finally able to get my drs attention it only took 3 appointments to get him on topic. He is sending me to a pulmonologist. Haven't seen this kind of dr before and expected to get new cpap equipment or see a sleep doctor.

Do you think its my cpap machine causing my fatigue?

I've been waiting 4.5 months to see the specialist, have 3 weeks to go. Is there anything I can do to get more sleep in the mean time? My original diagnosis came about when I fell asleep and crashed my car. I don't want to go there again. I turned my pressure up from 8 to 10 a while back. Could it be a higher pressure could get me thru the wait time?

Thanks!
I've heard from friends that some docs only prescribe type 4 (I think) thyroid supplementation, because the body converts type 4 to type 3, however for some people this is not enough because there is something wrong with the conversion itself as well, and when they finally got type 3 supplementation they felt fantastic (This includes my sister). since we all know how clueless some doctors can be with apnea therapy, I would not take this story with a grain of salt.
Instead of Sleep apnea it should be called "Sleep deprivation, starving of oxygen, being poisoned by high CO2 levels, damaging the body and brain while it's supposed to be healing so that you constantly get worse and can never get healthy Apnea"