I swear the machine's making me sleepier!

[Juliebove]

Twice this week, I found myself sitting her in my computer chair, nodding off. Now this NEVER happened before I got the machine. I felt so awful and groggy that I had to go to bed yet again! I do get about 5 hours of sleep at night and then another 5 during the day.

Now this morning, I managed to sleep through 4 alarms. My daughter did too. She doesn't use a machine. I don't know what her excuse is. But despite getting a little extra sleep, I feel exhausted now!

[TerryB]

I'm sorry to point out that being on the end of the hose is not the same thing as receiving effective treatment from the CPAP. If you sleep is being interrupted many times by problems with mask leakage, mouth leakage or others, you are probably more disturbed and less rested than before treatment began. I felt like hammered doo doo until I got my leaks (mask and mouth) properly under control.

Are you awakening multiple times per night?
Are you experiencing dry mouth?

Let's see if we can help you get things together.

Regards,
TerryB

[arthuranxious]

I check my data every morning and don't have high leaks or many hypopneas or apneas, but feel more tired now than before I started treatment. The only explanation I can come up with is that I may be more aware of tiredness. Perhaps before I knew I had a problem I just pushed myself to keep on going, and the tiredness may not have registered. You may be more aware of when you are tired now that your have been diagnosed.

[TerryB]

To maybe clarify a little, waking fully (or almost LOL) to deal with CPAP issues seems to me to be more destructive to a rested feeling than the events before CPAP. BUT, once the therapy is really working, there is a world of difference in the way you'll feel.


Arthur,
If you still feel crappy then there is a reason. Are you allowing yourself enough available sleep time to get sufficient rest?
Are you being disturbed by something besides the treatment?

Keep digging for the root of the problem.

TerryB

[Juliebove]

I'm sorry to point out that being on the end of the hose is not the same thing as receiving effective treatment from the CPAP. If you sleep is being interrupted many times by problems with mask leakage, mouth leakage or others, you are probably more disturbed and less rested than before treatment began. I felt like hammered doo doo until I got my leaks (mask and mouth) properly under control.

Are you awakening multiple times per night?
Are you experiencing dry mouth?

Let's see if we can help you get things together.

Regards,
TerryB

Nope. Neither of those things is happening.

[Juliebove]

I check my data every morning and don't have high leaks or many hypopneas or apneas, but feel more tired now than before I started treatment. The only explanation I can come up with is that I may be more aware of tiredness. Perhaps before I knew I had a problem I just pushed myself to keep on going, and the tiredness may not have registered. You may be more aware of when you are tired now that your have been diagnosed.

Maybe. I don't know.

[TerryB]

I'm sorry I missed this the first time around. Why only 5 hours per night? I try to always make 8 hours available for sleep before I need to get up. I usually wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed after 8 hours down. You need to try to get more night time sleep.

TerryB

[Juliebove]

I'm sorry I missed this the first time around. Why only 5 hours per night? I try to always make 8 hours available for sleep before I need to get up. I usually wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed after 8 hours down. You need to try to get more night time sleep.

TerryB

I am not usually tired at night. I generally don't get sleepy until around 1:30 in the morning. I then go to bed and have to get up around 7 to get daughter off to school. On the weekends, I sleep in a little more, but not much because I'm diabetic and need my food and insulin.

I have tried to go to bed earlier and it just doesn't work! I either lay there tossing and turning and unable to sleep, or I will fall asleep then wake up, wide awake 30 minutes to 2 hours later.

I do have Fibromyalgia and this means that it is much easier for me to sleep during the day than it is at night.

[feklar42]

Me too. I started nearly 10 days ago and I feel exhausted. Can you point me to a page that shows how you check all these problems people are referring to? I'm also a little frustrated that I don't feel my technicians have gone to much effort to educate me beyond "push this button."

Based on the "dry mouth" comments I'm wondering if I mouth breathe sometimes. A couple of nights I have woken with my mouth painfully dry. I am thinking of asking to try another mask. They didn't have the one I originally asked for and gave me one I hated--it scraped the skin under my nose raw and the upper edges kept overlapping my eyes--it was most comfortable when I pulled it so the bottom was on my upperlip, but it wouldn't stay there. But when the one I asked for arrived, it fits more comfortably, but I feel like It leaks. How significant are small leaks here and there? That leaks are a problem seems really strange given that the vent seems to give off a tremendous amount of air.

Also my ears are constantly clogged--not just while wearing the mask or in the morning, all day long. they've been pretty constantly clogged and my head has had a low level ache since I started the therapy. Drinking, yawning, talking all don't help to clear them.

I just use a nose mask now--F&P flexifit. Would a nose and mouth mask help with the ears?

[Wulfman]

Five hours of sleep is not enough. At first, when I read your post, I was thinking it may be the Quattro mask doesn't have enough CO2 washout (which has been a subject of discussion here occasionally), but after re-reading your post, I would be more suspicious of the lack of sleep.
I know that I don't function well if I get too many days of less than (about) seven hours sleep at night.

Den

[Juliebove]

Five hours of sleep is not enough. At first, when I read your post, I was thinking it may be the Quattro mask doesn't have enough CO2 washout (which has been a subject of discussion here occasionally), but after re-reading your post, I would be more suspicious of the lack of sleep.
I know that I don't function well if I get too many days of less than (about) seven hours sleep at night.

Den

But I am NOT getting 5 hours. I am getting 10! 5 at night and another 5 during the day. Yes, I know splitting up the sleep is not the best but for now it's all I can do.

[Juliebove]

Me too. I started nearly 10 days ago and I feel exhausted. Can you point me to a page that shows how you check all these problems people are referring to? I'm also a little frustrated that I don't feel my technicians have gone to much effort to educate me beyond "push this button."

Based on the "dry mouth" comments I'm wondering if I mouth breathe sometimes. A couple of nights I have woken with my mouth painfully dry. I am thinking of asking to try another mask. They didn't have the one I originally asked for and gave me one I hated--it scraped the skin under my nose raw and the upper edges kept overlapping my eyes--it was most comfortable when I pulled it so the bottom was on my upperlip, but it wouldn't stay there. But when the one I asked for arrived, it fits more comfortably, but I feel like It leaks. How significant are small leaks here and there? That leaks are a problem seems really strange given that the vent seems to give off a tremendous amount of air.

Also my ears are constantly clogged--not just while wearing the mask or in the morning, all day long. they've been pretty constantly clogged and my head has had a low level ache since I started the therapy. Drinking, yawning, talking all don't help to clear them.

I am fairly new with this so can't answer your questions. I use a full face mask because I know at least sometimes I do breathe through my mouth. I don't have a dry mouth. I don't have clogged ears, although sometimes when I first turn on the machine, air puffs out of my ears. Very annoying.

I just use a nose mask now--F&P flexifit. Would a nose and mouth mask help with the ears?

[yorkiemum01]

As someone who not only has severe OSA...I also have insomnia. When I began my therapy,
with the support of this site, I learned sooooooooooo much.
Now, I find I 'crave' sleep, as I no longer view it as an annoying portion of my life. I can
sleep fitfully, for the first time I can remember, and recently when I slept past 7am, a family member
came to check on me, as it was entirely out of character for me. Certainly every night is NOT like this,
but on those nights I can sleep 7-8 hours (rather than my normal 3-6), i feel ALIVE again. Today actually
was the first time in 20 yrs. where I turned off my alarm and found myself late for work.

[ozij]

How unfortunate that you are forced to take 5 hour naps during the day, Julie. I would never be able to go sleep early if I were forced to do that.
It's very very tough to solve sleep problems when you are forced to take 5 hour naps during the day.

It is so important to go to the doctor for a follow up when you yourself do not track you own results.
Have you managed to find out if this is the right machine for you, and if your breathing disruptions are controlled by it?
Have you ever been to that followup you mentioned in April? viewtopic.php?p=362211#p362211
Have overcome the hurdle of keeping the mask on every time you sleep? viewtopic.php?p=366115#p366115
Have you found any solution to those disruptive, sweat drenched nights without any cooling system? viewtopic.php?p=369554#p369554

O.

[Juliebove]

As someone who not only has severe OSA...I also have insomnia. When I began my therapy,
with the support of this site, I learned sooooooooooo much.
Now, I find I 'crave' sleep, as I no longer view it as an annoying portion of my life. I can
sleep fitfully, for the first time I can remember, and recently when I slept past 7am, a family member
came to check on me, as it was entirely out of character for me. Certainly every night is NOT like this,
but on those nights I can sleep 7-8 hours (rather than my normal 3-6), i feel ALIVE again. Today actually
was the first time in 20 yrs. where I turned off my alarm and found myself late for work.

I had actually gotten better with the sleeping through the alarms. This was before I got the machine. Used to be I had to set 5 alarms all over the room and still I would sometimes sleep right through them. My mom always had a horrid time waking me up in the morning. She said I slept like the dead.

I used to drop off to sleep very quickly as well. And I still can if I don't use the machine. But with the machine, I lay there for a very long time, listening to my breathing and feeling annoyed!