Advice for first time sleeping on airplane w/cpap?

[davecpap]

I've never attempted to sleep on a plane before, but I am taking a 7 hour redeye flight in a couple weeks. And then I'll be doing it again a couple weeks after that.

I'll be seated in the aisle. Since no guarantee of an outlet, I have a Medistrom Lite 24V battery. I'll be using an Airsense 10 Autoset, I already have the plug cover to remove the water tub as well.

Any advice for a first time sleeper on a plane with or without cpap machine? Has anyone tried a pillow that doesn't interfere with the mask? My mask is an AirFit N20 nasal mask. I am seated in the aisle, economy class on an A321neo.

[Sheriff Buford]

my advise is don't try to sleep on a plane with cpap. it's not worth the hassle.

sheriff

[Miss Emerita]

Please check with the airline to make sure that using both the battery and the CPAP machine are permitted on your flight.

[vandownbytheriver]

Try the whole rig at home before you fly... you're probably going to need to turn off both heater accessories to get the full life out of the battery.

Speaking of battery, as MissE said, check with the airline. Some won't allow big batteries, some *require* big batteries... look it up.

Sleeping upright wrecks my neck... see if you can get a soft cervical cushion to keep your head upright. Also helps with jaw drop!

Let us know how it goes. Bon Voyage!

[SleepGeek]

I'll be seated in the aisle.

I would be looking for a window seat. Better than that if there is a business section on this plane I would try getting a window seat in the business section - there is norm much more room and more quiet - not many screaming kids.

[vandownbytheriver]

I'll be seated in the aisle.

I would be looking for a window seat. Better than that if there is a business section on this plane I would try getting a window seat in the business section - there is norm much more room and more quiet - not many screaming kids.

The aisle lets you 'manspread'... until that cart comes barreling through and wrecks your kneecap.

I used to take shooter's muffs, the 30dB kind... finally bit the bullet... Bose NC headphones mean there are no screaming kids anymore. If you can afford business class you can afford Bose.

[lazarus]

My advice:

1. Take a nap using CPAP just before heading to the airport. 2. Take a nap on CPAP as soon as possible after landing.

Sleeping deeply in a crowd of strangers is something I'm not all that comfortable with at any altitude.

Hey, just me.

[davecpap]

I did not attempt to use CPAP on the flight. I'm not sure how long I slept, if at all. I feel like I slept for 10 mins or so, then would be woken up, then sleep a little more, etc. Never deep sleep. But somehow the time passed. It was maybe a 6.5 hour flight - we left 8:30PM eastern US time and arrived in Europe just before 8AM. I didn't have any problems just staying awake all day and going to bed at normal time at my destination.

I hadn't considered an eye mask, this will be a must on my next overnight flight. The seatback screens on the Airbus A321neo were so bright that adjacent screens it made it hard to sleep. No one seemed to know how to turn the screens off (its buried deep in the menus), I saw people trying to cover them with their jackets, with the blankets and pillows, etc.. that were handed out.

Additionally, as people would walk to the back of the plane to use the restroom, they would steady themselves by grabbing the seats as they walked down the aisle. As they did so, they would invariably put a finger on the touchscreen on the seat back waking up every screen on their way down the plane. I observed this phenomenon repeatedly.

I tried several different travel pillows prior to leaving, and I brought two with me, and I settled on the "Trtl" as the least awful travel pillow - it actually did a good job of keeping my head upright when sleeping upright, which might have helped with the apnea. Other pillows (I tried those of my companions) even those with "thin" cushions on the back of the neck seemed to interfere with the head rest built into the plane's seat, even if I adjusted the height of the head rest.

Link to "Trtl" pillow: https://global.trtltravel.com/

This is first time I attempted sleeping without CPAP machine in 10 years. Last time was due to CPAP machine failure of my ResMed S8 AutoSet II

I am going on similar trip again soon.

[Miss Emerita]

Glad it worked out for you. In addition to an eye mask, I like using earplugs. My favorite kind are the waxy ones. They block a little less sound than the foam plugs, but they're much more comfortable for me.

[davecpap]

Bose NC headphones mean there are no screaming kids anymore.

One thing I discovered is there is a Bose configuration app to toggle if the headphones should turn automatically off when no music is playing. I disabled this feature so I could still have the noice cancelling benefit without any sound playing.

[Really]

I'll be seated in the aisle.

I would be looking for a window seat. Better than that if there is a business section on this plane I would try getting a window seat in the business section - there is norm much more room and more quiet - not many screaming kids.

The aisle lets you 'manspread'... until that cart comes barreling through and wrecks your kneecap.

Apparently you've never been in Business or First Class. Really