First OSCAR data

palerider wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:10 pm

Please stop spewing ignorance.

So you don't see any similarity?

dataq1 wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 26, 2021 11:37 am

Lars, It was not my intent to alarm you,...

No need to apologise -- I was only kidding

BW, Lars.

Miss Emerita wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:21 pm

You commented that the whole period was about 40 minutes long. Is it possible you were tucking your chin toward your chest during that period? This posture (whether you're on your back, stomach, or sides) can make it easier for all kinds of restrictions to develop in the airway.

Thanks. I think that's entirely plausible. I haven't yet really found a comfortable position in which I can sleep with a (full face) mask where the mask doesn't leak, and I'm adopting all kinds of positions that I wouldn't normally find myself in.

I certainly end up chin-down quite a lot of the time. I'll have to experiment with this.

Incidentally, in case anybody is still following this saga...

I turned the pressure back up last night (5-15cm) and found that the results were comparable with the first night for which I posted data, where pressure was in this same range -- AHI < 1. I guess I still don't have enough data to draw firm conclusions.

On the night with the pressure turned right down, I still only registered AHI ~5. Taken as an average, UK medial practice would probably consider this to be insignificant, and probably wouldn't recommend treatment. But I suppose even minimum pressure on my ResMed (4cm) could still be therapeutic, to some extent. So I don't know what my AHI would have been without zero pressure.

I do know what my Sp02 is with zero pressure, however -- under 90%. So hopefully I'll soon be able to get any idea whether the CPAP actually helps or not.

BW, and thanks, Lars.

Lars, as a fellow newbie I’ve played around with settings as well and found similar things to you, i.e. when I do strange things I get strange results. Your numbers with your original settings from your first post look great, many would love to have similar results. It takes a while to get used to things where you feel the difference instead of just seeing them in OSCAR.

One thought (as I’ve done the same) is we like to analyze things, in some cases over-analyze them, trying for the nirvana of low AHI or other number. In that quest we tinker with settings frequently and in some cases triggering weird results that we try to understand, but often lies the answer that we mucked about changing things that took us outside our “sweet spot” of pressure or other settings.

We need to be patient and let our bodies adjust to things before trying to fix something that may not be broken at all. You are doing great with your 5-15 setting and may just need time to feel the sleep improvements. Once you get consistent good AHI you should focus on sleep quality, which is where tweaking things may come into play. Trying to fix something that is not broken is the path to frustration.

Just my opinion of course, mileage may vary, offer void where prohibited by law, don’t run with scissors, never eat anything bigger than your head, all the usual disclaimers…

Hang in there, you are doing great!

About sleeping with the FFM -- some people find it useful to use specialty pillows with cutouts on the side to accommodate the mask. Take a look on Amazon to see whether anything looks likely to help you.

Jlfinkels wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 27, 2021 9:58 am

We need to be patient and let our bodies adjust to things before trying to fix something that may not be broken at all.

Thank you, and I am trying to be patient. The complication is that I don't have any classic sleep anpoea symptoms, and the graphs, and the AHI figures, don't affect how I feel in any way. I'm doing this CPAP thing on the advice of a cardiologist, hoping that OSA is the cause (in whole or part) of my cardiac problems.

In the end, all I really care about is that I get better -- regardless of what the results show. But if I don't feel any better, day on day, then I have to wonder how much patience I need.

I will know tomorrow, I hope, whether the use of the machine affects my overnight oxygen saturation figures. That, at least, is an objective measure. Hopefully there will be at least a little improvement.

Best wishes,
Lars.

Miss Emerita wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 27, 2021 10:52 am

About sleeping with the FFM -- some people find it useful to use specialty pillows with cutouts on the side to accommodate the mask. Take a look on Amazon to see whether anything looks likely to help you.

Thank you for this suggestion; I will follow this up. Dealing with the mask fitment is the hardest part of the CPAP experience, for me.

BW, Lars.