Anyone ever cured?/More pressure required?

[SuzieQ]

I was just wondering.......have any of you ever known anyone who was cured of sleep apnea so that they no longer had to use CPAP? Is the normal progression of things that people require more and more pressure over a period of years to treat sleep apnea?

[Captain_Midnight]

Suzie asks...Is the normal progression of things that people require more and more pressure over a period of years to treat sleep apnea?

And, for me, I have required additional pressure over 3 years (I went from 5 to 9, where 5 was for CPAP and 9 is the lower pressure of an auto pap range). It is now stabilized, with no additional gradual upward trend.

I have a theory about this, and even a name for it. I call it...."therapeutic pressure creep"

I think that there are a couple of reasons for this (neither are bad) and I'll be writing more about this at a later date.

Cured? If is has happened, it's more than rare. I'll spend my nights like an alien attached to the mother ship for ever, (and feeling lucky to have the PAP technology.)

[alnhwrd]

Cured? No. Successfully treated? Absolutely!

[Guest]

If the problem is obstructive sleep apnea, then I have been told that it can be curred with weight loss. In fact, this diagnosis is an indication for weight loss surgery. Most people who are extreemly obese have obstructive sleep apnea.

[ozij]

While obstructive sleep apnea may be caused by extreme obesity, that is not its only reason.
There are many reasons for sleep apnea - and there are many thin people who have it.

O.

[DreamDiver]

In fact, this diagnosis is an indication for weight loss surgery.

Weight loss surgery This is a typical uneducated western medicine approach - cut something out or pop some pills. Surgery is not the answer.

Suzie Q, for some, sleep apnea may be entirely a function of weight. It may be possible that with a sensible diet and exercise, if someone gets to the right weight, they'll be free of obstructive sleep apnia. However, OSA can also occur in people of any weight simply because of throat and mouth anatomy. Often it's a combination. Some people who are just a little overweight have anatomy that predisposes them to more obstruction as they get heavier. Others can be rail thin and still have OSA. I know one guy who is tall and at his correct body weight, but has such a long, narrow wind-pipe that he has to have a bipap with an extremely high pressure. He's in his twenties and was diagnosed as a young adult. He's going to be on a bipap the rest of his life. So it's not just about weight. But for those of use who do have the weight issue, surgery is not a responsible answer. It took time to gain weight. A sensible program like weight watchers is much more reliable at helping you manage your weight after the excess is gone. Unless there is a genetic predisposition to immense weight gain even on a sensible diet, it's likely that surgery is a temporary and possibly dangerous option.

It's likely that most of us will be on the machine for the rest of our lives.

And I'd like to stress that for those who are new to the forum that if someone with an over-broad opinion doesn't sign in or at least leave a name, they're likely a forum troll.

[givemesleep]

I recently went to an ENT to see if there was anything anatomically that could be making the sleep apnea worse. I am overweight, I have lost 45 pounds since April and my original titrated pressure is 9. I knew that I needed to lose weight because of high blood pressure so I asked the pulmonologist for an auto machine so that I would not need to do the sleep study over once I lost weight. I got my auto and began the path to a healthier lifestyle.

45 pounds of weight loss and the pressure now averages between 7.5 & 8.5, so not much difference. I still need to lose another 40 pounds to be in a healthy weight range.

Back to the ENT...I have a deviated right septum, a polyp in the left side and large tonsils. He said my apnea was so severe that having surgery would not make the difference between being on CPAP and not being on it. I'm stuck with CPAP for life and I'm fine with that. I tolerate it just fine, 100% compliant. I just wanted to weigh in all my options.

[imsleepynomore]

my doc said if i lose some weight i possibly could get off CPAP i don't believe him at one time i was 30 pounds underweight and still was tired i have spent my entire life fighting sleep until now that i am attached -- my AHI without CPAP was54.4 and with CAPA is now 3.5 average my O2 levels had dropped down to 54.6 without and never go below 8605 now ,each day is brighter for me now hose nose for life

[SuzieQ]

I so didn't mean for this to become a discussion about weight loss. I think by addressing something a possible "troll" even says, we are giving too much attention to it. However, since it has been addressed, I will add my 2 cents.

I could stand to lose some weight, but I don't know if that is possible without correcting sleep apnea.

I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but it is my understanding that as we quit breathing or almost quit breathing (hypopneas), our bodies go into fight or flight and cortisol (the stress hormone) is released into our systems. I have had chronic hives overnight for the last 14 years to prove this. Excess Cortisol is one of the reasons that people gain weight around the midsection.

I have been on CPAP therapy for 2 weeks now, and I have already seen a loss of inches in my hips and waist. I don't weigh myself, so I can't speak to how many pounds I may have lost. I have been eating healthy and in proper portion sizes (most of the time! ) for the last 2 years or so, so I haven't changed anything about my eating habits.

I know that my metabolism has sped up by correcting breathing interruptions at night, because I wake up hungry. Before CPAP I might be up two or three hours in the morning before I was even hungry.


Anyway........I read the post of someone recently who, bless their heart, said they had gotten to the point where they couldn't even take a Sunday afternoon nap without their CPAP. I don't want to develop a dependence on CPAP in that respect. I want to be able to camp out for one night in the backyard with my son without having to be attached to a machine. No, I might not get a good night's sleep for that one night, but doing that 3 or 4 times year isn't going to hurt me.

[ozij]

Anyway........I read the post of someone recently who, bless their heart, said they had gotten to the point where they couldn't even take a Sunday afternoon nap without their CPAP. I don't want to develop a dependence on CPAP in that respect. I want to be able to camp out for one night in the backyard with my son without having to be attached to a machine. No, I might not get a good night's sleep for that one night, but doing that 3 or 4 times year isn't going to hurt me.

I have this inborn dependence on oxygen. My brain cells are harmed if they don't' get enough of it.

The cpap's dependence on a power outlet can be cured by giving it a battery.

O.

[Goofproof]

Anyway........I read the post of someone recently who, bless their heart, said they had gotten to the point where they couldn't even take a Sunday afternoon nap without their CPAP. I don't want to develop a dependence on CPAP in that respect. I want to be able to camp out for one night in the backyard with my son without having to be attached to a machine. No, I might not get a good night's sleep for that one night, but doing that 3 or 4 times year isn't going to hurt me.

True it won't hurt you, Unless, it's the night you O2 drop triggers the last heart attact you will have", other problems tend to come on in levels that build up progressively, but we can't predict when the "Big One", will arrive. Using a battery solution for the out back tent sounds like a workable solution. Maybe by using XPAP every time it will give you more time to enjoy your family. Jim

[SuzieQ]

Jim, I have always wondered why you call it xpap instead of cpap?

[allinknots]

Suzie, I can't speak for Jim, but I'm guessing the x in xpap is like the x variable in Algebra. So, speaking in the terms of our machines, the x could stand for c for continuous (cpap), a for auto (apap) or bi for bilevel machines. That way people won't say, "well I don't have a cpap, I have an apap" or whatever.

All in Knots

[Goofproof]

Jim, I have always wondered why you call it xpap instead of cpap?

"X" stands for the unknown, XPAP, being the politically correct name for all forms of PAP, Covers all the bases, no matter what machine is being used. Jim

[Guest]

SuzieQ says: "I have been on CPAP therapy for 2 weeks now, and I have already seen a loss of inches in my hips and waist."

Good for you. I wish that worked for me. Maybe there is something wrong with me: psychologically, intellectually,
genetically, physically, spiritually, morally...? I'll have to work on this and get back to you.
defective leonbergergirl