Sleeping poorly with good machine numbers?

[Country4ever]

Hi. I haven't been here in a while. I've been using cpap for about 11 years now. In the last year though, I started waking up 3-4 times a night. Fortunately, I go back to sleep fairly quickly. I only sleep about 5-7 hours a night.
My mask is an old version of the swift nasal and I tape my mouth.
My machine is a Resmed S9. I'm on a set rate of about 10. I've slowly gone up in pressure over the past several years.
My doc always downloads the data and says everything looks good.

I'm 68 and have fibromyalgia and severe osteoarthritis. It's gotten so much worse in the past couple of months, and I'm suspicious of not sleeping well.....which always has affected my body. I know there is a lot more to a good night's sleep that isn't shown on the machine data.
But can I rely on what the machine tells me every morning as far as AHI and leaks?

I know my cheeks balloon out with the tape on, and I've always wondered if air goes in there and back into my lungs again, making the machine think I'm breathing okay??

Thanks.

[Goofproof]

Why depend on the Doctor, master and download Sleepyhead, get the ability to help yourself, and by posting links here, others may be able to help. Jim

[Rob K]

You probably have realized over the years that not getting enough quality rest and sleep affects your body in bad ways. I'm sure that's why you came here looking for answers. 5-7 hours per night doesn't seem like enough, plus you are waking several times. The good news is that you are able to get back to sleep quickly. Insomnia is not fun at all and I'm glad you don't have to struggle with it.

Learning to use the Sleepyhead software and letting the people here lend a hand to interpret the data from your machine is a good idea. Knowing more about your machine and what it keeps track of will empower you to take control of your therapy and hopefully move you in the direction of feeling better and having a better quality of life.

Here's a little inspiration to get you started. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia by my local doctor and a doctor at Mayo Clinic. I had all the symptoms. My body hurt like heck all over the place; day and night; 7 days a week. Normally daily routines were pretty torturous. The one thing that I noticed was that the more sleep I got the better I felt. Desperately searching for answers I eventually found the Sleepyhead software and learned how to adjust my machine. Shortly after that I found this forum and they helped me to interpret the data. We got my pressure dialed in and and my AHI down to 1 when it had been in the 3-5 range. This made all the difference in the world. Most everything resolved itself with adequate xpap therapy. I still have some aches and pains, but nowhere near like it had been. Turns out I didn't have fibromyalgia at all. My nervousness system had been really messed up from sleep deprivation and lack of adequate oxygen at night. This was the cause of so many health problems that are now gone. It would be awesome if this happens for you also.

[TedVPAP]

As goofproof implies, trust but verify. If you want to understand your treatment, you need to look at your data. It is easy to do, it is illuminating, and it is mostly easy to understanding.

[ChicagoGranny]

But can I rely on what the machine tells me every morning as far as AHI and leaks?

I do when my therapy and sleep are stable and good. Any other times, I pull the card and look at detailed data in Sleepyhead. You should do the same.

I'm 68 and have fibromyalgia and severe osteoarthritis. It's gotten so much worse in the past couple of months, and I'm suspicious of not sleeping well.....which always has affected my body.

Both of those conditions can affect your sleep, and your sleep can make your fibro worse.

I know my cheeks balloon out with the tape on, and I've always wondered if air goes in there and back into my lungs again, making the machine think I'm breathing okay??

No. It doesn't work like that. A look at Sleepyhead is due.

[TBonz]

Fibro and OA can mess up things. According to the machine, I'm doing great, with AHIs in the 1-2 range but I'm exhausted and feel no change since I went back on CPAP.

I think sometimes it's complicated - perhaps CPAP will stop worse things (heart attacks/strokes) but may not fix the exhaustion if you have other health issues.

[Country4ever]

Thanks everyone. I used to use the Sleepyhead softwear, but awhile back we had trouble loading it on a new system. I'm totally stupid with computers, but I'll try to talk DH into trying to load that up again.

Tbonz..........you're right about the fibro and OA messing things up. Right now, I'm dealing with constant tingling in my legs. I've had so much pain for so long. It gets old! (speaking of old, I'm 68....which comes with it's own set of problems.....things breaking down, etc.)

I do have alpha wave intrusion..........which probably is why I've started waking up more again. Yes, I'm very happy I don't have to deal with insomnia! Since I've gotten older, it doesn't seem to be a problem.

I have energy during the day, but I think I'm a person whose poor sleep manifests more in body aches and pains and depression.

I'll get on DH to help me figure out the Sleepyhead program again.

Thanks everyone!

[kteague]

Have you been diagnosed with RLS or have limb movements during sleep?