Really Strange . . .

[j.a.taylor]

I've been on CPAP for almost two weeks now, and took to it quickly without much struggle.

Most nights, I turn on the machine, position my mask, and fall right to sleep until my alarm goes off in the morning. This has been a great feeling, because normally I wake up 4-5 times a night, and generally don't sleep longer than 2 hours in a stretch.

However, every two days or so, I suddenly wake up at night without my mask on. The first time, my mask was hung nicely over our headboard, but the machine was still running--that woke me up, and I put the mask back on.

The next time this happened, I woke up with the mask in my hand.

Last night, I went to bed at 11, put the mask on as usual, and at some point, had a "dream" that I was shutting my machine off. I then tossed and turned, with crazy dreams (in one I was promoting a Beatles reunion, which would have been difficult with two of them gone), but didn't actually wake up until 2:30 am when I realized I felt like crap. The mask was off, and hung nicely, and the machine was off. So, I'm concluding that I shut it down in a semi-conscious state.

I put the mask back on, started the machine, and slept until 7 when my alarm went off. But I've got to tell you, I feel like crap today.

Anyone else had similar experiences? Stranger experiences?

[Guest]

I generally go to be earlier than my wife. When I first started on xPAP (May 06) my wife would wake me up when she came up to tell me to put on the mask. Eventually, I stopped doing this (probably about 4 to 6 weeks in). Sounds strange but at that time right before I was falling asleep I kept telling myself that I would wake up with the mask on over and over (kind of like counting sheep) and eventually I did. Now I rarely wake up without the mask on.

TM

[DreamStalker]

I generally go to be earlier than my wife. When I first started on xPAP (May 06) my wife would wake me up when she came up to tell me to put on the mask. Eventually, I stopped doing this (probably about 4 to 6 weeks in). Sounds strange but at that time right before I was falling asleep I kept telling myself that I would wake up with the mask on over and over (kind of like counting sheep) and eventually I did. Now I rarely wake up without the mask on.

TM

Yea ... but can you keep telling yourself to promote a Beatles reunion?

[Guest]

LOL. Actually I would prefer to promote the original Allman Bros or even the current if they got Dickey Betts back/let him back; or original Little Feat.

TM

[neverbetter]

as long as your raising the dead, how about bringing up Al Jolson.
Mammy, my little Mammy, I'd walk a million miles for one of your smiles. my Maaaaamy

[sharon1965]

lots of people have done this when first starting out and there have been suggestions from veterans to give yourself a 'talking to' before going to bed, telling yourself you WILL keep the mask on and you WILL wake up with it on in the a.m.
i had the same thing going on at first, hanging it up neatly and turning the machine off at some point in the night...had to do the above to train myself...spent the last 5 months wearing it all night long, only to find the last two nights in a row i took it off, don't know when, woke up in the morning without it guess i'll have to give myself a good talking to!

[lilsheba]

I have to say after 3 and 1/2 weeks on cpap now I haven't woken up with my mask off. I'm glad cause I really have felt so much better. It's not perfect by any stretch but it's way better.

[drummergirl410]

I've been using an APAP, let's see.. almost two weeks. I've also seen a big improvment with the treatment and it seems to get better every day. I found myself trying to take off my mask only once so far, a few nights ago. I was dreaming that something was on my face and statred to take off the mask, but thne I woke up and caught myself in the act. I immediately put it back on and thankfully it hasn't hapened since!

[j.a.taylor]

LOL. Actually I would prefer to promote the original Allman Bros or even the current if they got Dickey Betts back/let him back; or original Little Feat.

TM

as long as your raising the dead, how about bringing up Al Jolson.
Mammy, my little Mammy, I'd walk a million miles for one of your smiles. my Maaaaamy

While it probably would have brought in a ton of money when all the Beatles were alive, they wouldn't be my first choice to promote as a group (although I do like their music). Maybe trying to promote the dead is what made me so restless.

If I'm going to raise the dead, I'd opt for bringing back Billie Holiday. She's not rock, but her voice . . . her jazz . . .

As far as dead rock stars . . . the guys from Lynyrd Skynyrd, or Kurt Cobain, Duane Allman, Fred "Sonic" Smith . . .

And where did I even come up with this idea of promotion! It's certainly not connected to my day job in any way (never even been a fantasy of mine--I wanted to be the rock star, not the promoter). Oh well, we'll see what happens tonight. "To sleep, perchance to dream . . ."

[lilsheba]

I vote for Robert Palmer he was awesome and taken way too soon.

[echo]

I've only been a hosehead one week, and I half woke up one night about 1.5 hours after falling asleep, took off the mask, fiddled with the machine - but don't really remember what I did... and in the morning woke up with BOTH the mask and the cpap (in off mode) in my lap and me snoring away.

Reminds me of a story from one of my colleagues who sleep-walks - he knows he does this, so when he stays in hotels he normally bolts the windows and doors and blocks them both with objects so he can't open them. One night at a hotel, he had put a really heavy cabinet in front of the window (10th floor room!), and in the middle of the night woke up with the cabinet to one side (he still has no idea how he moved it in his sleep), the windows wide open, and him standing in front of the window (ready to jump?!).

...So at least you don't have to worry about plunging to your death just from taking your mask off!

On the other hand, sorry I don't have any good advice about the mask - except as others have said, repeat the "I will not take off the mask if it's not time to get up" mantra 3 times before you fall asleep.

Some machines have an alarm that you can activate that will go off if you take the mask off without shutting off the machine - perhaps yours has this function as well? (though I guess that won;t work if you shut the machine off as well! - maybe you can rig it so you cant shut the machine off easily??) good luck mate!

[j.a.taylor]

...So at least you don't have to worry about plunging to your death just from taking your mask off!

I'd prefer to plunge to my death in my dreams.

At least I wake up before I hit the bottom.

[Guest]

If I'm promoting a concert. It's gonna be Elvis Presley Although I heard he was last seen in Kalamazoo, MI

[Slinky]

I second bringing Elvis!!!

And THE PLATTERS! Gotta have THE PLATTERS!

[Sal_In_Ga]

I've been on CPAP about 6 weeks. I still take off my mask occasionally and my husband (at my request) nudges me and says. "Put your mask on." Sometimes I awaken not sure that I have my mask on and have to check. One night last week I awoke thinking that I had turned off my machine, so I reached over to turn it on - pushed the button Whoaaaa! "uptub - ubtub!" I had turned the machine OFF!!! Nearly laughed myself awake!