I can't sleep the entire night

[wwva]

Hi, people. I've found this forum quite usefull in the 3 weeks I've been on CPAP and so far my problems are not unique.

Except I wake after 4 hours of sleep feeling wide awake. Being this awake is a new experience for me. The problem is, it's 2 a.m. My alarm is set for 6 a.m. By the time I get to work, I'm ready to snooze again. I can't win for losing. Any ideas?

[oldgearhead]

Except I wake after 4 hours of sleep feeling wide awake

This was a problem for me last January, when I re-started xPAP. If the mask is not leaking air, I just lay down and concentrate on breathing until the alarm rings.

[gregnga]

[quote="wwva"]Hi, people. I've found this forum quite usefull in the 3 weeks I've been on CPAP and so far my problems are not unique.

Except I wake after 4 hours of sleep feeling wide awake. Being this awake is a new experience for me. The problem is, it's 2 a.m. My alarm is set for 6 a.m. By the time I get to work, I'm ready to snooze again. I can't win for losing. Any ideas?

[pedroski]

I wake after 4 hours of sleep feeling wide awake. Being this awake is a new experience for me. The problem is, it's 2 a.m. My alarm is set for 6 a.m. By the time I get to work, I'm ready to snooze again. I can't win for losing. Any ideas?

I sympathise with you, you're clearly on the right track and getting results but not quite the fullness of what you want - frustrating! I hate lying in bed if I'm not sleepy, so like Greg I used to get up and do something dull until I'm ready to go back to sleep.

Since I've been on PAP it's no longer a problem for me. I wake up usually once to take a bathroom break, and I'm careful not to turn a light on or do anything to wake myself up, because if I go straight back to bed I'm falling straight back to sleep.

Good luck,

Peter

[Todd762]

I am on my third night with my machine. The first night I felt what is best described as a rush of energey sitting there breathing trying to get to sleep. I woke about 4 hours later ready to go to work, problem was, it was about 2 a.m. It threw my day all off like you.

I am still trying to get used to living with this machine. I try and do everything to keep me from ripping this device off my head. On night two, the corner of my mouth opened and it was like a jet stream of air coming out of my mouth that sucked the moisture out of my mouth in three seconds. I went back to bed after drinking a gallon of water but then woke up an hour later.

I like you haven't gotten to the point where I can sleep through the night without waking up feeling rested or frustrated. I guess it is doing it's job allowing me to get some deeper sleep than I have experienced in years but my body is telling me I am rested and get up.

I am becoming a little obsessive about trying to get a full nights sleep. It frustrates me that I wake up more with this machine than what I did without it.

[DreamStalker]

"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish." - JQ Adams

I slept a full 8 hours the first night then only about 5 to 6 hours for the remaining month or so. Now I am back to an 8 hour night. Enjoy the rest you get for such few hours of sleep ... in time you will be using the full 7 to 8 hours.

[ltd123]

Todd - it sounds like you are doing great for just your third night on the machine. Many people take weeks to get to the stage of being able to sleep for 4 hours. I found that progress comes in spurts and that there are setbacks for every new mask type or new idea I try. After 6 months of trying at this, I am able to sleep 6 to 7 hours a night but awake at least once ... hopefully for just a brief period.
I got a hybrid mask 3 days ago and have not managed more than an hour of sleep with it yet but I know that eventually I will solve all the problems and learn to use it. This sleep machine thing is an ongoing process.

It helped me to stop focusing on my expectation of getting a whole night's sleep by remembering that while I thought I was getting a full night's sleep before I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, I was really not getting much real rest out of all that time with my eyes shut. I was exhausted all the time and searching solutions from doctors. The 4 hours of "real" sleep with the machine was frustrating at first but I realized it equaled more real rest than I had been getting for years. That helped me deal with the frustration of not sleeping all night like I wanted and gradually the time asleep has improved.

Laura

[Guest]

One thing that I found helps is when you wake up in the middle of the night, go heat up some milk and make some hot chocolate (use instant in the envelopes) and drink it. The milk contains tryptophan that will help you get back to sleep. You'll be surprised how well this works.

One other thing, I always turn the clock around before I go to sleep so I can't see what time it is. That way I don't feel under pressure to hurry up and get back to sleep (which makes matters worse)

[Guest]

I didn't think I'd be the only one with this problem but it certainly is encouraging to hear how others have coped with this.

Thank you, everyone!

[Snoredog]

[quote="wwva"]Hi, people. I've found this forum quite usefull in the 3 weeks I've been on CPAP and so far my problems are not unique.

Except I wake after 4 hours of sleep feeling wide awake. Being this awake is a new experience for me. The problem is, it's 2 a.m. My alarm is set for 6 a.m. By the time I get to work, I'm ready to snooze again. I can't win for losing. Any ideas?

[KeziasPurr]

I have the same problem. Although I go to sleep around midnight and wake up around 4:30. I hate sitting around waiting to go back to sleep, so I've changed my hours at work to 6:00 to 4:00. It's over 8 hours, but I'd rather be working that staring at the wall.

I do wake up refreshed, which I am very happy about. Unfortunately I still crash around lunch time. Oh well. Can't have it all................yet.