New Year's resolution to do better -- several questions!

[catfan]

<t>I am almost two years into this CPAP journey -- got machine in March 2018. Still struggling with mask comfort and overall compliance. It was a New Year resolution to try better. So this is a long post.<br/>
<br/>
I have an appointment withmy sleep doc on Thursday, haven't seen her in over a year. I take the machine with me for her to get info, there is no Smart card or chip or whatever it is. I don't have any "app" for checking my stats, or the Oscar thing. <br/>
I have the REsMed Airsense 10 AutoSet and it will just show the smiley or frowny face for the mask, and the hours used. I have not signed up with ResMed for any type of tracking.<br/>
<br/>
My DME provider (suggested by doc office; they said some are better with Medicare than others) is Pacific Pulmonary. They are not local. I have never had a real mask fitting -- I went with the mask I <br/>
did best with during my sleep study (relatively speaking - I went thru 4 masks the first study; I think my picture is on their Hall of Fame.) I had a nice tech. (Very quick history on how I got here -- I signed up to participate in a clinical trial on a new insomnia drug and got kicked out after first night for having sleep apnea. I had no idea I had it! (Live alone; the cat never said a word.) But I do wake up a few times a night and was looking for some help and thought the study would be good in that regard. Trial sponsor of course did not want people with existing sleep disorders other than insomnia. I was told to go see a sleep specialist -- I did, and then had two official sleep studies.) <br/>
<br/>
So...I really would like to see someone in person and find out what's best for me. I have two local options -- ironically -- the owner of this forum, cpap.com...is a 10-minute drive from my home, but that of course is all out of pocket. Or there is a Medicare DME, Monitor Medical, also very close by, but some of their online reviews are withering. I would like to go visit cpap.com and see what's best for me...but I don't feel that's kosher if I just want to "window shop" but order thru <br/>
the Medicare DME?? <br/>
<br/>
So these are very random questions:<br/>
<br/>
1. I have the ResMed AirTouch F20 mask. I am a mouth breather so alas, need full face mask. I like the memory foam, hate the nose marks. I am confused with the "for Her" products... how different is a "for Her" mask other than a pink color on the headgear? My other issue is the headgear does not fit me well -- it sits on/near ears and causes irritation at times -- I need to pull it "up" to get off ears but it is not adjustable. Do I need to buy <br/>
2. Which leads me to my other mask -- the ResMed F30. (DME provider suggested it a year ago...I tried itLike that it doesn't go high on nose, but don't care for the plastic. If the F30 came with memory foam that would be fabulous. Also its headgear is adjustable on the crown. Is there a mask out there that incorporates the style of the F30 but also has memory foam??<br/>
3. I'm confused about the CPAP machine economics...I know Medicare/my Medigap pay the "rental" each month -$30. So after two years (which will be March) do I "own" it? I was thinking that might be a good time to break with my current DME provider if I choose, because then I wouldn't have to give the equipment back? Or am I misunderstanding that? As 99% of my income is now Social Security I don't want to pay out of pocket if I don't have to for replacement cushions, headgear, tubes, etc. <br/>
4. In Bed Bath & Beyond I saw a "CPAP pillow"...anyone use one? I am mostly a back sleeper or occasionally side. Do they help? I usually just let the hose fall over the side of the bed. The machine is on a little table below the bed. I don't have a headboard to loop the hose. I don't think I move too much overnight so yanking the hose doesn't seem to be an issue.</t>

[Pugsy]

If you have the ResMed AirSense 10 AutoSet then you have chosen the wrong machine in your equipment profile.
Look down in the R's section of the menu for the AutoSet.

If you have Medicare then you should already own the machine. Medicare does a 13 month capped rental.
If you have some sort of Medicare Advantage type of plan then you may never own it. Some Advantage plans are a perpetual rental and some do the 13 month capped rental. You need to check with your plan carrier if you do have some sort of Medicare Advantage plan as to which way they go.

Usually the only difference with the "for Her" stuff is headgear color or maybe the size of the cushion that the package comes with or maybe size of the headgear in some situations.
But in terms of the cushion itself.....the small or medium or large isn't any different between regular or the for her packaging.
Example...the small cushion in the for her package is the same size small cushion as in the non for her package.
Color of headgear or size of headgear might be different.

No...there is no mask that uses memory foam in anything but the AirTouch model. There is no memory foam F30 or similar.
Heck of an idea though....might be real sweet.

You can adjust a clinical setting in your machine and get more than hours of use and Smiley or Frowny face on the LCD screen sleep report.
https://www.respshop.com/manuals/ResMed ... %20her.pdf
There is a setting called "Essentials" and the default from the factory is "ON" and all you get is hours of use and the smiley face..
Change it to "Plus" and you can get more details. It's not as much detail as using software but it's more than hours of use.
The manual above explains how to get to the clinical setup menu area.

Sorry...no experience with those fancy cpap cut out pillows or any sort of hose management stuff. So can't comment on them.
I don't use them.

[babydinosnoreless]

I use the "for her" sizing on the N-20. The headgear is smaller. The DME said they had two sizes in the "for her" headgear a standard and a small. I'm not sure I trust this statement (it's a DME) and both "for her" headgears that she had me try on were a lot smaller than the standard N20 headgear I had. I kinda think they were both small and one was just stretched out a little more. In any case the smaller headgear helped me a lot with leaks and I like pink color. Lol.

[palerider]

I don't know what you're doing to get HTML markers in your post, but they are not needed, and just distracting.

The only question of yours I can answer is about the special pillow, I never needed one, I'd either sleep towards the edge of a regular pillow so it didn't mash the mask out of place, or I'd mash my face, and thus the mask, into the pillow.

[catfan]

If you have the ResMed AirSense 10 AutoSet then you have chosen the wrong machine in your equipment profile.
Look down in the R's section of the menu for the AutoSet.

If you have Medicare then you should already own the machine. Medicare does a 13 month capped rental.

Thanks for your reply Pugsy. Can you elaborate on why it's the "wrong machine"? I didn't choose it, my doctor did. I was in shock I think over the sleep apnea diagnosis ... it didn't occur to me to question the equipment in any way.
And I have no clue what you are talking about in the second sentence...don't even see a "menu" anywhere on the top taskbar, or even in the FAQ's? Where do I find this "R's section"??

Yes I have Original Medicare...so it should be paid for. I guess I have to dig out the statements and see what's going on. I hear from the DME when they want me to re-order masks, tubes, etc.

My initial post was first in Drafts here...but when I went back to it I could NOT edit it in any way, not delete words or add to it...I gave up in frustration and just posted it. All the HTML stuff was from that draft. Don't know more than that.

[Julie]

I have heard (from members hear) that those pillows do work for side-sleepers... and if you can sleep on your side more often (back-sleeping provokes more apneas) and stay there through the night, the pillows might just be a good fit.

[jimbud]

And I have no clue what you are talking about in the second sentence...don't even see a "menu" anywhere on the top taskbar, or even in the FAQ's? Where do I find this "R's section"??

Profile
Edit Profile
Edit Equipment
Machine

Look under the R's for your machine.

JPB

[Pugsy]

You've made the wrong choice in your equipment profile if you do have the AutoSet machine.
What you have now says "AirSense 10 CPAP" and that is NOT the AirSense 10 AutoSet machine.

What does it say on the lower right front of the machine where you see ResMed and AirSense?

Does it say
CPAP
or
Elite
or
AutoSet
??????

It's real important to know exactly which model you are using and it helps avoid confusion later for you to choose the correct model in your equipment profile.

[palerider]

If you have the ResMed AirSense 10 AutoSet then you have chosen the wrong machine in your equipment profile.
Look down in the R's section of the menu for the AutoSet.

Thanks for your reply Pugsy. Can you elaborate on why it's the "wrong machine"? I didn't choose it, my doctor did. I was in shock I

Did you actually*read* what she said?

[catfan]

And I have no clue what you are talking about in the second sentence...don't even see a "menu" anywhere on the top taskbar, or even in the FAQ's? Where do I find this "R's section"??

Profile
Edit Profile
Edit Equipment
Machine

Look under the R's for your machine.


Thank you, I get it now!

[catfan]

You've made the wrong choice in your equipment profile if you do have the AutoSet machine.
What you have now says "AirSense 10 CPAP" and that is NOT the AirSense 10 AutoSet machine.

What does it say on the lower right front of the machine where you see ResMed and AirSense?

Does it say
CPAP
or
Elite
or
AutoSet
??????

It's real important to know exactly which model you are using and it helps avoid confusion later for you to choose the correct model in your equipment profile.

Sorry for the confusion. It is the AirSense 10 Autoset and I have changed my equipment profile.

[jimbud]

I am almost two years into this CPAP journey -- got machine in March 2018. Still struggling with mask comfort and overall compliance. It was a New Year resolution to try better. So this is a long post.

I have an appointment with my sleep doc on Thursday, haven't seen her in over a year. I take the machine with me for her to get info, there is no Smart card or chip or whatever it is. I don't have any "app" for checking my stats, or the Oscar thing.
I have the REsMed Airsense 10 AutoSet and it will just show the smiley or frowny face for the mask, and the hours used. I have not signed up with ResMed for any type of tracking.

Now that you have correct machine in your profile, we know that you can get a SD card and use Oscar.

https://www.sleepfiles.com/OSCAR/

You can also get your Clinician manual at:

https://www.apneaboard.com/adjust-cpap- ... tup-manual

With these tools and the experts on this forum you will be able to get your therapy optimized.

Stick with this thread.
Ask questions. (maybe one or two at a time)
Do what is asked of you.

You will be amazed at what you will learn on here.

Good luck.

JPB

[catfan]

With these tools and the experts on this forum you will be able to get your therapy optimized.

Stick with this thread.
Ask questions. (maybe one or two at a time)
Do what is asked of you.

You will be amazed at what you will learn on here.

Good luck.

JPB

Thanks JPB. I will ask the doc tomorrow about getting the SD card. I did check my Medicare statements and it appears I do own the ResMed machine now..I see no rental charges after 3/2019 for the machine, just all the accessories.

So now that I own it I'm not eager to spend money on a new machine if I don't need one...but I am curious about the "for Her" aspect of the machine, as I note you have one in your signature. I understand the possible sizing elements in a mask or headgear, for example, but how is the CPAP machine itself optioned for the gender of its user??

[Jas_williams]

Just go to your local store and get an SD card the cheapest you can find,no need for one from your DME in fact have you looked under the rubber cover on the left hand side of the machine with SD printed on it there might be one in the machine already

[jimbud]

With these tools and the experts on this forum you will be able to get your therapy optimized.

Stick with this thread.
Ask questions. (maybe one or two at a time)
Do what is asked of you.

You will be amazed at what you will learn on here.

Good luck.

JPB

So now that I own it I'm not eager to spend money on a new machine if I don't need one...but I am curious about the "for Her" aspect of the machine, as I note you have one in your signature. I understand the possible sizing elements in a mask or headgear, for example, but how is the CPAP machine itself optioned for the gender of its user??

Short answer. It is somewhat more complicated than this.

The For Her model of ResMed's popular CPAP machine has a more sensitive flow algorithm that picks up Hypopneas/flow limitation better than the standard model. Often females have more Hypopneas and flow limitation than Males due to menopause or any hormonal imbalances.Jun 22, 2018
https://www.cpapmachines.ca/www.cpapmachines.ca › blogs › better-sleep-blog › resmed-cpap-review...
Resmed AirSense 10 Auto VS. The For Her Model ...

To be clear, I am no expert on here.

The "for her" is in additional algorithm to the regular machine. You can set it in the "regular" or the "for her" as you wish.
I tried the "for her" once and it did not work as well (for me), but I am a very manly man.
It just gives one more options. And as Pugsy says "Who doesn't want more options". (Pugsy is one of the experts)
Once you get set up (if not before) one/some of them will guide you to therapy bliss.

Good luck.

JPB