need help!

Hi everyone,

i have just been diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea. i am trialling the CPAP machine that automatically adjusts the amount of air pressure.

last night was my first night using the machine and i stayed in bed for 11 hours trying to get to sleep but with little success. i had 2 other problems:

1. it stills feels like i have stopped breathing or am not getting enough air just as i'm drifting off to sleep, which wakes me up.

2. even during the day i found it was very hard to breath as if my airways were narrowed or partialll blocked. this was quite scary because i have always had no breathing problems during the day!

i spoke with my doctor and he said regarding 1) that it takes time for our bodies to get used to the machine. regarding 2) he thought maybe because i used the CPAP machine for 11 hours it may have irritated my throat and cause some slight inflammation that made it feel like it was blocked.

i was wondering if anybody else has had or heard of similar experiences when first using the CPAP? any feedback would be great because i really need some peace of mind.

Thanks!

Eric

Eric

Could you please post details of your machine, its settings, and your mask. That will help Forum members to respond better to your queries.

And by the way - welcome to the Forum.

cheers

Mars

Hi Mars,

thanks! i'm really glad to be in contact with other people who have experience with sleep apnea.

the brand of my machine is ResMed. the model is the S8 Autojet Spirit. it is on loan to me for thirty days, after which i can buy it or another model.

my understanding of the settings is that it is set to start at 4 and will go up to whatever level is required due to airway blockage. there is no delay in the automatic adjustment.

my mask is the Mirage Micro nasal mask.


Eric

Welcome Eric,

What was your titrated pressure at your sleep study ?
Its sounds to me like a pressure of 4 might be too low for you to start off at.

hi Bob,

my sleep study did not mention anything about titrated pressure. it simply gave my apnea/hypopnea and respiratory disturbances indexes and my oxygen desaturation index.

i notice the although it is set to start at 4 it quickly moves up to around 10 while i'm still awake.

Eric

Eric_228 wrote:Hi Mars,

thanks! i'm really glad to be in contact with other people who have experience with sleep apnea.

the brand of my machine is ResMed. the model is the S8 Autojet Spirit. it is on loan to me for thirty days, after which i can buy it or another model.

my understanding of the settings is that it is set to start at 4 and will go up to whatever level is required due to airway blockage. there is no delay in the automatic adjustment.

my mask is the Mirage Micro nasal mask.


Eric

You prolly need to go ahead and join the forum. Seems like your health providers may have set your machine up for failure. Happens alot. They are very good at diagnosing OSA but generally cluless about effectively treating it. The forum members here however are very good at treating the condition.

thanks Dreamstalker. i will join now

Eric