Sleep Position etc..

DanishLass · Post by **DanishLass** » Tue May 24, 2005 6:05 pm

Does anyone know of proper sleep position for people with apnea? I usually sleep on two pillows. Does it matter? Also, any other tidbits for a newbie on things I can do to help my condition? I need to lose about 10 pounds so there is that, but anything else? Types of exercise and vitmains, etc. Oh and promise LAST question, has anyone ever develop neuropathy like symptoms from their apnea?

chrisp · Post by **chrisp** » Tue May 24, 2005 6:12 pm

With an Auto PAP any position works. Without an auto whatever position you slept in during your titration. With no cpap try on your stomach with your head propprd on the headboard neck arched backward. After a while you will wear a notch in your forehead and it wont be so hard.

Chris

photogal · Post by **photogal** » Wed May 25, 2005 8:25 am

What Crisp said is funny, and yet not funny, because that's the discription of what I did for years. I'd go to sleep on my side and wake up on my stomach with my chin on my hands like you do if you lean over on the table that way. Elbows on bed, forearms up, chin on crossed hands, neck and back arched. Little did I understand or know this weird position that was hell on my neck and back that I kept waking up in was my natural way of opening my airway.
Without Cpap, sleeping on your back usually causes the most/worse apnea events. Pretty much any other position is better, but you'll still have them.
Once on therapy, you'll just have to try out different things. Usually you have less problems with leaks/fit on your back, but like me, I can only stand that so long and flip to my side. That usually pushes my nasal pillow barrel around some, causing leaks, and I wake up and have to adjust things like the pillow to stop if from happening so much.
You'll figure it out. All of us are different and what works for one doesn't necessarily work for all. Kind of like that quote, "You can please some of the people some of the time..." you know the rest of it.