xPAP may not be the cure-all, sadly....

Greetings, gang....

I have been on the Remstar Pro with C-flex for 8+ months. I had hoped this would be the magic bullet to fix my life.

I have been able to check my stats with Encore Pro through one of the gem guys on this website. Thanks, Sam!

What we found was that although my AHIs were very low, I still felt like sh*t in the morning. I started at 14, and my sleep doctor had me raise it to 16. At 16 my full face mask would not stay on my face without some serious tension via the headgear. That tension gave me bad headaches. I backed off to 15.

I went with 15, splitting the difference. Unfortunately, this didn't help my feeling every morning that not only just one Mack truck but the entire convoy had run over me sometime during the night.

Twenty years ago I had a sleep/nap test. The conclusion of the doctors was that I had a clinically great night of sleep. However, it did me no good. This was evidenced by me falling asleep during the nap test (multiple sleep latency test) within 5 minutes after they put me down for a nap.

Back then, they called this little problem "ideopathic hypersomnia." That means they didn't know why my supposedly "perfect" sleep did not refresh me. The solution was to give me stimulants, like Dexedrine. This did not help me much over the next twenty years. Seems like a dream for someone - be alert and lose lots of weight on legal speed.

However, it didn't work that way. The Dexedrine kept me marginally awake ( less than "normal" people" but did not help me lose one @#$%^@ ounce of weight.)

I'd had thyroid tests, etc but nothing ever jumped off the labs enough back then for docs to treat me for anything else but basic depression. (Gee, which comes first, the depression or the resulting depression from being totally exhausted all the time???)

I am supposed to have cortisol tests at the VA next month to find out if my adrenal glands are insufficient. At least my new doctor is trying. Before him I had an official diagnosis of fibromyalgia. This is seemingly innocent but a nastily pervasive muscle/energy disorder.

I'd tried food challenge tests, quality of life tests, other multiple tests both "real" medically and homeopathically. Nothing improved my life.

I should mention here that all my life I have had "reality" dreams. I can tell you in detail what the people were wearing in my dreams and what things tasted and felt like. I am still trying to interpret some of them. Some sources tell me to keep a dream journal but it would take me at least two hours each day to record my dreams properly.

My whole point here is that I really hoped that going on a xPAP (Cadillac version, too-Remstar Pro with Cflex) would dramatically improve my life. This has not been the case. I am really, really happy for those of your for which xPAP has made a difference.

We are all wired differently. My VA doctor here has graciously referred me to a second visit to a sleep doctor AND a "multiple sleep latency test" which is a fancy word for seeing how fast one can clinically fall asleep after a supposedly good night's sleep. It will at least give my VA doctor a clinical/laboratory reason to prescribe me a new stimulant (Provigil - $8 a pill) that is easier on my heart than the last generation of stimulants. I might be able to have enough energy to deal with the normal aspects of life, like self care...

The other ingredient in this mix is the fact that I am going through menopause. This little hormonal stage in my life means that my entire metabolism is now fouled up on top of my original metabolic foul up. Additional hormones have not helped. I have tried them.

I will continue to use my xPAP because it DOES keep my snoring down and may help my heart keep a decent oxygen level, and stop the heart arrythmias at night.

I post this not to whine, but to share my story with others who have had similar experiences.

Yet I still long for the normal folks' good night's sleep.

Zuniwolf,

So sorry to hear that your sleepiness in more complex than sleep apnea alone. Hoping to have found a fix then finding out there's still a problem is disappointing. Fixing my sleep apnea didn't cure my daytime sleepiness either, but it did help me have some decent hours here and there during the day, and like you, to know the health benefits.

Hopefully your upcoming tests will include sleeping all night with your cpap on, to eliminate the guesswork out of your treatment. That's the only way they can really know what your nights look like now.

Eight months is a long time. It wasn't long enough for me either. But don't give up on finding answers. Let us know how your next tests turn out.

Best wishes.

Kathy