Carbonman nails it again - there was a moment in my own treatment of OSA when I suddenly realized one evening I had the stereo on - at which point I suddenly realized I hadn't had it on in several months, because I just wasn't interested - music, even to mere listeners and fans - requires attention ...

I confess to feeling rather pleased, overall - but still need to work on basic "sleep hygiene," and I worry about the long-term implications of being wrong - heart disease, diabetes, etc. On the other hand...improving fitness has probably reduced my risk of these things quite a lot. I had to cancel ...

Howdy - about 2-1/2 weeks ago I consulted with a sleep specialist (previously it was just my MD and a remote DME I never really saw), who upped my pressure to 9 and said come back in a couple weeks.... I tried that for a few nights, and found I tore the mask off without waking after a couple hours f...

The magic of medical profiteering is in the confusion.... I tried last month to sort through my just my 2009 medical bills...OSA is the only thing for which I am treated. I put all the papers in order by date, set up an Excel spreadsheet, and started entering data. For each portion of the treatment,...

For bad days? Well, for me.... More frequent but lighter physical exercise and meals, clear the evening calendar, avoid situations requiring rapid thought, get someone to "gut-check" my work if I must, that day, make any decisions, being more than usually aware of irritability and how I treat other ...

Rant away - it feels good, and believe me, I am certainly not the only person here that understands the exhaustion, and the frustration with DMEs and physicians.... I had started a rather aggressive fitness program about a month before my diagnosis and three months before starting CPAP; I missed muc...

Rant away - it feels good, and believe me, I am certainly not the only person here that understands the exhaustion, and the frustration with DMEs and physicians.... I had started a rather aggressive fitness program about a month before my diagnosis and three months before starting CPAP; I missed muc...

I think it's important for the physicians not to build false hope, but I also have felt more than a little "brushed off" by both my DME and my MD since starting CPAP in January. From my experience so far and from all I've read, it seems most users find CPAP improve their general sense of well-being,...

As others have said - it's life-saving treatment: no need to be embarrassed.

But do carry an extension cord, hardware to hang your hose, etc....

I think they're accurate - for the night they're done, under those conditions, in that season, with your physical and emotional condition at that time, with infinite wires routed all over the place....

After that, they're not. I don't think they can be.

As a nurse, can you ask around your peers and find out which DME's are better or worse, and which doctors are more inclined to cooperative relationships with patients?

For me, managing my "care team" has been a rather challenging part of my OSA / CPAP learning curve...

Hey - there was a typo in your post - you said "I feel like an alien wearing all that crap at night" when I'm very very sure you meant to say "CPAP at night....!"

Hehehe...

Vancouver, Washington - with regular forays on business to Seattle and other points north - Friday Harbor, Bellingham, Everett.....

As things roll along - had a positive conversation with a sleep doctor yesterday, and think we'll have a decent working relationship. He recommended I see an ENT, so will have to figure out how to get that done - I can never tell who I need my PCP's referral to get into, and haven't got a new PCP ye...

Well, I'm in the process of changing doctors.... Saw a sleep doctor for the first time yesterday - told his tech my titration was 7, that I'd raised it to 8, and it worked better. She looked shocked and asked how I did THAT - I said I Googled it - didn't want to out you guys! She remained mildly agh...