How do I know if it helps?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 1:11 pm

Hey everybody,

Been lurking for awhile now and I thought I would sign up. Guess I'll share my "story" here. (I'll try not to make it too boring).

So I go in for my 40th B-day physical. Everything is fine, except my EKG is "funny". Well after a myriad of stress tests, etc, it appears that this is just my "wakeup call". I'm "okay" for now. But I'm 50lbs overweight, usually stressed about my job, and cholesterol/BP need to be better. In short I'm a typical 40 year old American male. (Sadly, I truly believe this is the state of a large percentage of the population).

Anyway, my wife has told me repeatedly that I stop breathing at night and I snore like a banshee (At last some reference to what this forum is all about). I did this even before I was overweight. Well being a curmudgeon I resisted mentioning it to my GP for some time. Of course after all the above heart issues I finally said that my wife keeps complaining about my snoring and such. To his great credit my GP immediately said "Oh really, you need to get a sleep study done." and signed me up.

So off I go to the sleep study place and spend a miserable night there. I finally managed to get about 3 hours sleep. Which, of course, was enough to show quite well that I've got apnea. The words used were like "you've got it pretty bad...". (I've got a copy of the test, have yet to look it over in detail.)

So after the finagling of reports, prescriptions written, etc. and such I get setup with an Autoset Respond and an Activa Standard mask. Very enthusiastically take it home and spent the first night in complete misery. I was the grumpiest guy around the next day. But the next night was better and I'm figuring out how to adapt to it. So now it's been 4 weeks, I can sleep pretty easily with it on but sometimes I still wake up really early and need to take it off for a bit because it is irritating. But all in all, I've done pretty well with it. And my wife is much happier since I don't snore anymore and she can sleep without earplugs. (Oh, and I guess that fear of sudden death in my sleep is less of a bother now...)

So I can't complain too much. Going in totally ignorant I got pretty good service (and an APAP without even asking). I can sleep with the contraption on, most of the time. I don't even know how much everything cost since the insurance covered everything except a co-pay... The only thing I wish is that I got one of the APAPs that log info.

Which leads me to my question. How do I know it is doing any good? As far as sleepiness, I really don't feel any different than before CPAP. Of course, I never felt like I was falling asleep at a stop light in my car either. I know it has only been 4 weeks and maybe I need to wait longer. I've always felt "a little tired" and that is still occurring.

I've checked the leak data (which is the only thing you can get from the Respond) and it says zero leakage. My wife says I still occasionally snore, a little (and very softly) but it usually stops right away (guess that might mean the APAP is working). My range is 4-20.

I really don't want to go in for another sleep study (that was misery unparalleled ). But I would like some confidence that it's doing what it should do. Is the lack of snoring a good indicator? My wife says that my mouth does, rarely, open a little bit and she hears a little whoosh of air. It is only for a small amount of time so I don't think it is too much of an issue. (And I don't think I could adapt to those nightmarish chin straps/dental appliance either.) On the plus side, my gums seem to be less "bleedy" at the dentist this last time. Part of that might be the fact that I am forced from the land of the mouth breathers so my saliva level doesn't drop during the night.

Sorry for the book length post. Here's an amusing ancedote for those who are still reading at the point. I asked my wife if it bothers her sleeping next to "Darth Nose". She responded, "No you don't look like Darth Vader, it's more like Gonzo from the Muppets." Oh well, at least I'm cute and cuddly...

ehusen · Post by **ehusen** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 1:12 pm

Okay, so I thought I signed in. But guess I didn't

Jeb · Post by **Jeb** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 1:44 pm

Hello "Gonzo"!

I would say that it sounds like it is working for you. You may not feel much of a difference, but I bet that if you start to monitor your blood pressure, you will see a marked improvement.

As for me, having a CPAP machine has made a world of difference. I am most definitely getting a better nights sleep and I feel a ton better throughout the day. I no longer wake up in a pool of sweat feeling like I had just gone through a 7 hour workout! I wake up very refreshed now.

Stay compliant and you will reap some long term benefits. And your wife will thank you!

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Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:00 pm

Tee-hee. I may have to change my login name to Gonzo. (Funny thing is that I've always kind of identified with Gonzo. I've always considered myself a friendly but kind of goofy guy. Of course I don't have that strange chicken fetish of his...)

Yeah, I've already decided I'm sticking with it no matter what. The snoring cure alone is worth it. My 6 year old daughter who sleeps in a bedroom down the hall has even complained about my snoring.

I'm on a really low dose of meds for my BP at the moment. So far my BP has come down a little bit. I'm pretty sure if I get my act togethor and keep working out and start watching what I eat, my weight will come down again and everything will get better. It all comes down to me realizing that I'm not 20 anymore and I've got to take care of myself...