Words of appreciation and encouragement

[kteague]

Hi. Was reading another thread about achieving successful cpap treatment, and remembering those early disappointing months of cpap use. Thank God for success stories that give hope to those only dreaming of success (if dreaming at all).

As was stated in the other thread, success is largely mental. That's because one who is newly diagnosed with sleep apnea needs the mental acuity to determine if their health care professionals are intent on helping achieve success, how to be a good historian for the health care provider, what questions to ask, what your rights are as a patient, what your insurance does or does not allow, how to navigate the system, what one's equipment options truly are, how to be your own advocate without shooting yourself in the foot, how to distinguish between good and well-intended bad advice, and how to hold on to hope that enables one to persevere. Sad that any or all of this may be required of us when one's mental abilities are at an all time low due to years of sleep apnea.

I shudder to think of how many new users go for months blaming themselves for not being able to adjust when what they really need is to have the effectiveness of their prescribed settings confirmed, the accuracy of their settings verified, and/or the comparative appropriateness of their machine and mask tested. Balancing that with "getting used to it" and "giving it time to work" can leave the even sharpest befuddled.

I'm grateful there are resources such as this for those of us who were in desperate need of someone to help them think things through until they learned the ropes and got enough treatment for the fog to lift. I just want to encourage folks that if you feel you don't have all that to give to the struggle, it doesn't have to be all yours. Nothing wrong with allowing others to undergird you and supplement your shortcomings for a while. But no one can mandate for another the bottom line decision that the goal is worthy of the effort. In that respect we can just be cheerleaders along the sidelines. I'm reminded of a poem that years ago hung over a coworker's desk...

Don't Quit!
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but do not quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

----------------
My word for the day - Tenacity.

Kathy
(a melancholy Bengals fan on a rainy afternoon)

[sleepy gal]

Thanks Kathy!

[lvwildcat]

Very nicely put, Kathy. I use the following signatures(words from Grateful Dead songs) and find them extremely appropriate.
-We will get by;we will survive.
-Every silver lining has a touch of grey

PS Kathy-try being a diehard Cowboys fan

[roster]

Thank you Kathy for those words of encouragement. "Rest, if you must, but do not quit." I am dealing with recovery from orthopedic surgery and the way this complicates my cpap treatment. The confinement for the last 15 days has been hard on me because I have always been so active. So your note reminds me that I have to rest but will not quit.

Anyway, good news is the doctor says I can be active again by early February.


Happy New Year,

rooster (resting but not quiting)

[Alisha]

Thanks, Kathy, for this reminder. When I worked for a particularly ungrateful and unpredictable (moody) supervisor, I had a copy of "Don't Quit" as well as copies of "I Refuse to be Discouraged" written by Liza Kurtzer and a song written by Mosie Lister, entitled "Till the Storm Passes By" on my desk. They were read and reread by me on a regular basis and kept me encouraged despite the unpleasant working conditions.

On this forum we not only gleen from the experience of others and share our own experience when we can, but we try to encourage each other, share humor, and some even write cpap songs. What more could a hosehead ask of an xpap site!

Good sleep to all,