Recently diagnosed and anxious

[aprilb]

Hi my name is April and I am an overweight 42 year old woman who has sleep apnea in the family. I have been told for years by family that I should be tested and that I snore and stop breathing. I have experienced moderate to extreme anxiety all my life. I went through a bout of severe clinical depression four years ago and two months ago it returned. I have started back on anti-depressants and am currently on a month leave from work. I finally did it and asked to be referred to a sleep clinic because I have heard sleep apnea can cause depression. I went for my initial study two weeks ago. My follow appointment was suppose to be a month from the date of first study but they called me two days later and asked me to come in the next day. The doctor said it was the worst case he had ever seen. In 5 hours I stopped breathing 700 times. My oxygen levels dropped down to 70% for two out of the five hours. I had no rem sleep. I had 140 in an hour. I don't know the length of episodes. I don't know much of the lingo yet. I have been using a machine but I don't feel much difference. I don't think the setting is right because I still will wake up gasping for air. I go back for my second study in three days. I started with a full face mask but woke up feeling claustrophobic, panicking. I switched to nasal pillows last week. I find my nostrils hurt and sometimes I have to take it off for a couple of hours during the night because my nose hurts and I can't sleep. I've been told I will get used to it and my skin will toughen up. I am worried what if the machine doesn't work. What if I don't feel better because everyone says I should feel so much better. Of course the depression and anxiety are only making it worse.

[Wulfman...]

It would really help if we knew exactly which specific machine and mask you're using (brands and models) and all the settings.

Welcome to the forum. We've all been where you are and understand what you're going through.


Den

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[chillAtGVC]

Welcome April! I too am a life long sufferer of depression and anxiety. I'd been off of anti-depressants for a year or so trying amino acids (The Mood Cure) when I crashed so bad that I begged my doctor to put me back on anti-depressants. Six or seven weeks later I was no better and had an appointment to tell my doctor that they were not working. At the same time I started CPAP. Two nights of deep sleep and most of my anxiety and depression symptoms were gone. It has been up and down since then, but when I sleep well it has resulted in world's of improvement to my mood and energy and happiness. Stick with the therapy and find something that works for you. You deserve a better life.

[Mudrock63]

Hi my name is April and I am an overweight 42 year old woman who has sleep apnea in the family. I have been told for years by family that I should be tested and that I snore and stop breathing. I have experienced moderate to extreme anxiety all my life. I went through a bout of severe clinical depression four years ago and two months ago it returned. I have started back on anti-depressants and am currently on a month leave from work. I finally did it and asked to be referred to a sleep clinic because I have heard sleep apnea can cause depression. I went for my initial study two weeks ago. My follow appointment was suppose to be a month from the date of first study but they called me two days later and asked me to come in the next day. The doctor said it was the worst case he had ever seen. In 5 hours I stopped breathing 700 times. My oxygen levels dropped down to 70% for two out of the five hours. I had no rem sleep. I had 140 in an hour. I don't know the length of episodes. I don't know much of the lingo yet. I have been using a machine but I don't feel much difference. I don't think the setting is right because I still will wake up gasping for air. I go back for my second study in three days. I started with a full face mask but woke up feeling claustrophobic, panicking. I switched to nasal pillows last week. I find my nostrils hurt and sometimes I have to take it off for a couple of hours during the night because my nose hurts and I can't sleep. I've been told I will get used to it and my skin will toughen up. I am worried what if the machine doesn't work. What if I don't feel better because everyone says I should feel so much better. Of course the depression and anxiety are only making it worse.

One of the most difficult things about starting therapy is mustering up the energy to research the condition and take control of your own therapy. There are so many resources on this site, there for the taking. There are also seasoned, veteran users that can help you once you learn if your machine is fully data-capable, compatible with Sleepyhead, and once you learn to post screen shots of your therapy. Without specific information about your machine, mask, and prescribed treatment levels, the pros here are basically flying blind and cannot make specific recommendations. So try to muster up the energy to spend some time on here and educate yourself.

One suggestion I would make is to approach the therapy and treatment of your condition with anticipation, rather than anxiety. If your apnea is that bad, then treatment will in all probability vastly improve the quality of your life and how you feel. Will it cure depression? I think that's a heavy lift, but it could certainly help. I have never been diagnosed with depression officially, but I can tell you after years and years of suffering this condition without treatment, and being extremely fatigued all the time, I was probably the equivalent of depressed. Seriously, my life revolved around getting enough sleep, planning my naps, trying to manage my fatigue. And nothing worked. It got progressively worse as I aged. Until treatment.

One thing you need to realize is that for many this is not a plug the machine in and you magically feel 100% better experience. My diagnosed AHI was 37. A month on prescribed settings only reduced that to the mid-20's. It took a few more months of working with the people on this forum and tweaking my settings to optimize my treatment. My AHI is now reliably below 2.0, and consistent treatment at that level has tremendously improved my life. But again, it took work.

I guess my point is don't be anxious. Look forward to and be optimistic towards the treatment. It can, with enough effort and commitment on your part, be life-changing.

[Julie]

They gave you 'some' mask and machine as stop gaps til you're titrated and can then use equipment geared to your prescription and choices, made with some knowledge and try-ons, so don't think you're stuck with them. Once you have your results, come back here and we'll advise you which machine would be best (don't take whatever they give you until then) and how to best choose a mask. Things will get much better, if not overnight, then certainly within a reasonable time, however exhausted you feel now. And the business of them telling you you're the worst case they've ever seen has been heard before, so don't let that get you more anxious now - you've had OSA for who knows how long (and the weight could be a result, not the cause) so another few wks should be nothing much at this point... the trick is to feel good that you're finally being taken care of, not let them make you feel guilty!

[sheep1234]

Hi April! Welcome!
I remember being so frustrated in the beginning (2009) also. It was so strange to be wearing this thing on my face and I was mad that I had to.
You mentioned your nose hurting from the pillows...maybe the pillows are not the right size for your nostrils. I have the Swift LT for Her mask (the only one I've ever had because I love it) and it comes with 3 different sized pillows.
There are lots of different masks out there. Start researching them and then you can ask to see it when you get to the point of actually choosing one for yourself and not taking what they decide is best for you. They cost a lot and I think they don't like to open the package in order to help a person actually choose the correct style for themself.
I'm guessing that if you're gasping for air then your setting is too low. Also, when you turn your machine on does it start on a "ramp" setting? I turned that stupid feature off. I don't understand trying to fall asleep while barely receiving any air into my body.