What a difference knowing your own information makes !

[sleephunter]

2 weeks ago I was on the verge of collapse. I hadn't slept in almost 3 weeks and I was fearing trying to get to sleep every night with that god awful machine.

A few posts here helped me realized the pieces I was missing and how to go about fine tuning my own therapy.

On the great advice of SnoreDog, RestedGal, SleepGuy, DreamStalker and countless others I embarked on taking my therapy into my own hands.

I met with my Sleep Doctor and asked to get my machine switched out to a RemStar Auto A-Flex as well as medication to help with my anxiety and difficulty getting to sleep. He agreed.

I also ventured out and got my hands on a copy of the software I needed, a card reader and the knowledge of what I was about to get into.

Well let me say ...............................................

I am on my second day of 100% compliance !!! YAY

2 nights in a row I have been on the machine 7 hours, with an AHI of 1.0 each night !!!


My original prescription had me on a standard C-Flex machine with a pressure setting of 12CM. However the Auto A-Flex has brought to light that I use 8CM for half the night ramping up to 9-10 and sometimes 11 for less than 5% of the time. 90% of the time I am in the 9.5 - 10 range.

What a change. I am still tired but certainly no where near where I was. This is THE step in the rigth direction.


Thank you all and god bless you all for this wonderful forum !!!

[Panhandler]

That's great to hear!

I'm sure you'll share the good news with your sleep doc. I wish they all could hear and understand the value of our involvement in and responsibility for our own care.

Thanks for sharing.

[Organplayer]

Excellent news. I read this forum extensively and have learned so much. The good folks here bring a wealth of experience. So glad you can take your care into your hands and run with it. Now get out there and live.

[JeffH]

[quote="sleephunter"]2 weeks ago I was on the verge of collapse. I hadn't slept in almost 3 weeks and I was fearing trying to get to sleep every night with that god awful machine.

A few posts here helped me realized the pieces I was missing and how to go about fine tuning my own therapy.

On the great advice of SnoreDog, RestedGal, SleepGuy, DreamStalker and countless others I embarked on taking my therapy into my own hands.

I met with my Sleep Doctor and asked to get my machine switched out to a RemStar Auto A-Flex as well as medication to help with my anxiety and difficulty getting to sleep. He agreed.

I also ventured out and got my hands on a copy of the software I needed, a card reader and the knowledge of what I was about to get into.

Well let me say ...............................................

I am on my second day of 100% compliance !!! YAY

2 nights in a row I have been on the machine 7 hours, with an AHI of 1.0 each night !!!


My original prescription had me on a standard C-Flex machine with a pressure setting of 12CM. However the Auto A-Flex has brought to light that I use 8CM for half the night ramping up to 9-10 and sometimes 11 for less than 5% of the time. 90% of the time I am in the 9.5 - 10 range.

What a change. I am still tired but certainly no where near where I was. This is THE step in the rigth direction.


Thank you all and god bless you all for this wonderful forum !!!

[Guest]

That's wonderful to hear! It gets better the longer you are on it. I feel like
I'm growing a new brain or something after being on it for 3 1/2 months.

Having the auto with data quickly helped me discover that I shouldn't be on a pressure of 5, which is what the sleep clinic said, but rather 8.5. My AHI averages around 1.0 now. I've been able to see how various masks affect my treament, the effect of leaks and side sleeping. Possibly even GERD, though I'm not sure of that one yet. Without the data, I'd be in the dark.

I took my laptop in to my doctor and showed him several nights and some Encore Pro Analyzer charts. He acknowledged that I knew more than he did, so let me explain them to him. He really liked having the data. I suspect he will prescribe the auto data capable machines to his patients in the future. You might take a few printouts in to your doctor if you think he'd be interested.

[sleephunter]

You might take a few printouts in to your doctor if you think he'd be interested.

I plan on it

[AdmiralCougar]

Oh seeing posts like this make me so happy. I'm glad things are going so well now.

[Snoredog]

[quote="sleephunter"]2 weeks ago I was on the verge of collapse. I hadn't slept in almost 3 weeks and I was fearing trying to get to sleep every night with that god awful machine.

A few posts here helped me realized the pieces I was missing and how to go about fine tuning my own therapy.

On the great advice of SnoreDog, RestedGal, SleepGuy, DreamStalker and countless others I embarked on taking my therapy into my own hands.

I met with my Sleep Doctor and asked to get my machine switched out to a RemStar Auto A-Flex as well as medication to help with my anxiety and difficulty getting to sleep. He agreed.

I also ventured out and got my hands on a copy of the software I needed, a card reader and the knowledge of what I was about to get into.

Well let me say ...............................................

I am on my second day of 100% compliance !!! YAY

2 nights in a row I have been on the machine 7 hours, with an AHI of 1.0 each night !!!


My original prescription had me on a standard C-Flex machine with a pressure setting of 12CM. However the Auto A-Flex has brought to light that I use 8CM for half the night ramping up to 9-10 and sometimes 11 for less than 5% of the time. 90% of the time I am in the 9.5 - 10 range.

What a change. I am still tired but certainly no where near where I was. This is THE step in the rigth direction.


Thank you all and god bless you all for this wonderful forum !!!

[Nodzy]

SleepHunter,
Congratulations on your determination to better your health and life beyond what the doctors and other medical professionals encourage.

You are absolutely right -- knowing one's statistics intimately on a daily basis provides, at least for many of us, the incentive to stay on top of every detail. And to constantly seek quick resolve to any problems that may arise. Visuals talk louder and more effectively than just feeling blah and direly in need of quality sleep. It's so nice to see on charts the failings and successes in our xPAP therapy.

It took me over five-years to finally stop giving implicit trust to doctors for my health needs, and to take a front-seat proactive roll in assessing and managing my needs in combating OSA and the host of peripheral ailments it spawned.

In all honesty, a class action suit against the xPAP makers, forcing them to make and release to every patient who wanted a copy, a version of the software for their data compatible unit, should be highly considered. We deserve better than to be left hanging by a hose, with minimal knowledge of why we're there and how to better our a positon in the battle to regain our health.

[j.a.taylor]

SleepHunter,

Thanks for sharing your story.

It's an encouragement to the rest of us.

And it's great to know that you're sleeping much better.