CPAP won't work after a year of trying.

[chriscummings83]

I have been using Auto Cpap on and off. I have the Resmed autoset 2, with humid, and swift lt mask. I have tried every mask.

My first problem is falling a sleep, but with the LT, I can after about 30 mins. I set my pressure from 7cm to 12cm, and everynight after 2-3 hours it says 95% @ 10.2cm

I have also tried it in CPAP mode and the same thing happens.

My major problem is staying a sleep. I can usually get 2 - 3 hours max and I just wake up. The machine is on 10cm auto for 95% of the time, there are no spikes right before I wake up.

I'm at a loss and tired of feeling tired and not sleeping straight through for 8 hours

[Rebecca R]

You might have another sleep disorder that is waking you up. Many of us have multiple sleep disorders to work on. Also things like pain can wake you, or r things in the environment--traffic etc.

You said you have tried for a year, but also say you are using it on and off. Depending on how much on and how much off, but perhaps you haven't been consistent enough to train yourself to get used to sleeping with it all night?

I am behind you by 5 months, but I have had to be very strict with myself about wearing it every single night, not taking the mask off and wearing it, even though it feels like torture sometimes. It is an entirely new way of living, and I am still tired too. Just a thought for what it's worth.

r

p.s. One of the lab techs at the sleep lab i went to has OSA and said it took him well over a year to start feeling better! I felt kind of discouraged hearing that, but now I see it was realistic and he didn't want me to be discouraged if I didn't feel better immediately.

[kteague]

Are you on any meds that are known to cause fragmented sleep? Do you have any limb movement issues? I wonder if you might benefit from a sleep study while using your best mask and see what else shows up. I understand your frustration with such long term fractured sleep, and it must be even more so because you don't know why. I too wonder how on and off your use has been. A year is long enough to keep doing the same and hoping for different results. Hopefully you can pinpoint other possible contributors to the problem, and begin to regularly use the machine to give your brain the best opportunity to find it familiar. Best wishes.

[angela06]

Are you against the idea of trying a sleep aide? On the non pharmaceutical side there is Valerian and Melatonin, and on the drug side there are the newest generation of sleeping pills like Lunesta, Sonata. generic Ambien, and Ambien CR. They could allow you sleep through the night.

[chriscummings83]

I took 2 PM sleeping aids, and it didn't help keep me asleep.

I noticed on my sleep studies I went into Stage 3 and 4 rim sleep a lot more without the cpap, and a lot less with.

[jules]

you taking a "benedryl" type OTC meds? cause some ppl get hyper off it

you do need to get further sleep type studies and get a complete thorough check up at a good doctor / med school perhaps a big name place with a complete examination of all the meds and supplements (and diet too)

[Wulfman]

I have been using Auto Cpap on and off. I have the Resmed autoset 2, with humid, and swift lt mask. I have tried every mask.

My first problem is falling a sleep, but with the LT, I can after about 30 mins. I set my pressure from 7cm to 12cm, and everynight after 2-3 hours it says 95% @ 10.2cm

I have also tried it in CPAP mode and the same thing happens.

My major problem is staying a sleep. I can usually get 2 - 3 hours max and I just wake up. The machine is on 10cm auto for 95% of the time, there are no spikes right before I wake up.

I'm at a loss and tired of feeling tired and not sleeping straight through for 8 hours

What pressure did you try in CPAP mode?

The 95% number means you spent 95% of the night AT or BELOW that pressure......NOT that much time AT that pressure.

What do you mean by "no spikes before I wake up"? Spikes of what?

Without knowing just how you have your machine configured and seeing report printouts, it's hard to come up with many ideas.

However, one that I have is that sleep stages supposedly cycle through every 90 to 120 minutes. If your sleep is being disturbed when you're in a deep sleep stage or REM (pressure changes while machine is chasing events or just the events themselves), that might be one possibility.

You may have your maximum pressure set to 12 cm., but the ResMed Auto algorithm, will not pursue apneas above the pressure of 10 cm. UNLESS they're preceded by snores or flow limitations. If you're not having either of those, the apneas WILL occur.


Den

[ozij]

Chis, what do you do when you wake up after those 2-3 hours?

O.

[azhosehead]

Many years ago (before CPAP), I suffered from some of the same symptoms you have expressed. The underlying problem was anxiety verging on panic. The lack of sleep only makes this condition worse. Most sleep aides only help you to fall asleep but they don't keep you asleep. I ended up going the valium and xnanx route and while the drugs do work, they have a backlash (sleepiness, cognitive impairment, and dependence). I don't recommend that route. If go with benzo's only use them for a month or so and stop. Otherwise, you are hooked...

Here are a few things to consider:
- no caffeine (I mean nada, zip) or decaf coffee/tea max
- exercise/yoga
- chamomile tea through out the day and valerian added in the early part of the evening when you don't have to go out)
- no smoking
- no booze (alcohol really doesn't help you sleep, only poisons your liver)
- avoid sugar (oranges and apples are good substitutes)
- develop a passion for reading at night to distract the mind
- use the cpap machine

Good luck....

Good luck.

[SleepingUgly]

ResMed Auto algorithm, will not pursue apneas above the pressure of 10 cm. UNLESS they're preceded by snores or flow limitations. If you're not having either of those, the apneas WILL occur.

Den, is that true of Respironics machines as well?

[roster]

I took 2 PM sleeping aids, and it didn't help keep me asleep.

I noticed on my sleep studies I went into Stage 3 and 4 rim sleep a lot more without the cpap, and a lot less with.

There is a lot I could suggest trying but that might waste time. I know finances are always an issue, but what about another in-lab titration study?

Also, what does your data look like for the hours you do sleep? You need to look at the detail chart and ignore the awake hours.

[Wulfman]

ResMed Auto algorithm, will not pursue apneas above the pressure of 10 cm. UNLESS they're preceded by snores or flow limitations. If you're not having either of those, the apneas WILL occur.

Den, is that true of Respironics machines as well?

No. Respironics has a different algorithm and different way of addressing potential Central Apneas.

Both companies' Auto algorithms try to avoid pressure-induced Central Apneas, but have different approaches to it.
Here's a link where you can read about how Respironics' algorithm avoids them.

http://sleepapnea.respironics.com/techn ... logic.aspx


Den

[fadedgirl]

To Chris & Others struggling: Please keep trying. My dad died far too young from undiagnosed OSA (that he had as early as 20 years old) and the health problems that resulted from it. Senseless, blatant oversight from too many physicians to even count.

My best friend's mom, who took me in as one of her own and became as a mother to me, died from OSA (I just realized this). She was diagnosed with it years before I knew her and never treated it. Those that did know about the diagnosis didn't know enough about OSA to harp on her for it. Why the myriad of doctors she was seeing the last 8 years of her life didn't see this as the cause of her ails is truly too spectacular to believe. It ruined her life and nearly all of her relationships due to her ending up needing to sleep or lie around most of the day, lack of motivation, refusing to go anywhere, manipulating people to do errands & almost everything for her, etc. She died in her sleep from it at age 54. She wasn't that way to begin with, it all happened slowly over many many years. A totally preventable, despicable waste. I found out a few days ago, when I informed my friend that I had OSA, that she had it. It literally sickened me to hear this, as the fact that she had OSA explains everything, including the way she died which supposedly the ME couldn't figure out.

And all they both needed was a CPAP. This realization might make me crazy.

I urge you to keep trying new things, maybe find a new sleep doctor, get a different machine, see if there are additional disorders at hand, just do what you can. Bug your sleep specialist senseless until they figure it out!! OSA is insidious & progressive, and your loved ones need you. Fight for a resolution, you are worth it.

[Muse-Inc]

...

I'm sorry for your losses...senseless is so true! Thanks for posting this, too many with OSA either do not understand that untreated apena kills or are in DENIAL that they have it. It is treatable. There are many types of masks and machines that can make this therapy effective. There is help and support.

[ldj325]

I hope my comments will not be out of line here. This is my first post and I know very little about OSA and CPAP and have no input regarding that. (I've only just self-diagnosed that I may have OSA and in doing my initial research I found this site.) But I am a health professional and know a lot about blood sugar issues. Many people (non-OSA related) find themselves waking up after a few hours (often 3-4 hrs, but it can be shorter) because their blood sugar levels drop (cortisol gets released which is more of a "wake up and find food" hormone). One way to test this out is to eat a moderate amount of protein (turkey would be a good choice--or a non-sugary protein drink) right at bedtime. If you find yourself extending your sleep cycle, then it is likely that blood sugar issues were at least a part of the reason for the premature waking. I am not advocating that eating at bedtime is the way to handle blood sugar issues, but it can be an effective sleep first aid for those with this pattern until they can do a proper correction. This may or may not be the case with your situation, but many, many people have this pattern. Unfortunately there is no law or rule that says we are limited to one malady or imbalance at a time. And most even moderately overweight folk (and there's a pattern for skinny folk too) have at least sub-clinical blood sugar issues. It's much like OSA where it goes undiagnosed a lot.