Going through a hard time...

[banarabbyt]

Thanks- yeah they sent me this little piece of paper with a few numbers on it. That's all, no charts, no graphs, nothing. I've seen what others have posted here- I have nothing like this at all. I can scan and upload it when I get home to show you what I have- but according to them I'm fine... I told them the efficacy study basically showed nothing. She actually agreed with me in the end I probably didn't need the study!

[pdean44]

Thank you your post helps so much (as well as everyone else).

I'm looking into the chin strap tape stuff- but it kind of freaks me out for some reason. Maybe it's cuz I work in forensics- I don't know lol.

I never thought about a humidifier- I guess I can ask for one but I've never needed it in the past few years.

I only estimate for myself I need to lose about 90 lbs at the most. I didn't have sleep apnea until I hit 200+ lbs and at my heaviest was 225. I'm currently 205. When I had my sleep test I was at 195 so I'm guessing going below that number would be best. I think for being 5'3" 135 is a good weight (I am pretty athletic so I just don't see myself getting below 130- even in high school when I was a swimmer I was 150 and in great shape).

It's funny because I was told even 10 lbs makes a difference and I've lost double what the sleep data company told me... I'm really just seriously annoyed now lol. I'm like with the lack of communication from them I feel like they don't really want to help- they just want to kick me aside and move on to the next person... ANd no my machine does NOTHING in terms of data it seems. I can't even change the pressure if I wanted to- the only adjustment I can make is up.

I'm looking at pillows and think I will order one for now.

I ordered the cpap.com chin strap they offer as an alternative to the more expensive ones out there. CPAP.com Deluxe Chinstrap is the one I bought. I works pretty well and the wide band to it makes it fairly comfortable. I toss that on and throw the mask over it and tolerate it fairly well. i am the type of person that gets claustrophobic at the drop of a hat. I have not had a problem wearing this chin strap.
I would give this one a go before you drop any cash on more expensive ones that probably are not going to work as well. Other than maybe the cpap cap which I have not tried. I am not inclined to use any other ones.

I hope you get your therapy in order soon and that you are sleeping soundly and restfully in the very near future.

[Country4ever]

Humidification is sooooo important. I can't imagine using my cpap without it.
Also, don't assume because you have a small nose that you need the small nasal pillow. I have a small nose and ended up using the "large" and it leaked alot less. You probably got a "M" and "L" with your first mask. Dig them out and try them.
I use 1" blue painter's tape on my mouth and it totally stops the mouth leaks. I don't think I could have started off doing that though. I had to take awhile to not feel claustrophobic with it.
Everyone is different with pressure. I'm finding out that if I get much above 7.6 cm of pressure, then my leaks go way up. The only way to figure what will work is to try different pressures and then check your numbers in the mornings.
Good luck to you. And congrats on your weight loss!!

[Jersey Girl]

Dear Bannarabyt,

Here is another option for a comfortable chin strap: http://www.pur-sleep.com/products/produ ... category=6.

I, personally, would not be able to use CPAP without my heated humidifier. Without it, my throat and sinuses would bother me. My sinuses, by the way, have been much, much better since I've been on cpap.

Here's a little tidbit about losing weight. My dad had severe sleep apnea. He lost a lot of weight...he still had sleep apnea. He still needed the cpap machine. I have sleep apnea - I am in the process of losing some weight. My guess is that I will still need this machine for the rest of my life. Losing weight and a healthier diet will hopefully lower my cholesterol and my blood sugars, but I sincerely doubt that I will be able to go off of CPAP because of it. It is possible that you will not need CPAP with weight loss, but I would not count on it as a definite.

It also sounds like you need a really good sleep doctor with a more thorough sleep study and avenues of communication. I have already seen my sleep doctor's nurse practitioner once since my sleep study - just to check in and tell them how things are going. They hooked me up with a wonderful DME who saw to it that I got 4 different masks to try with no out of pocket expense to me. I think that it is really important to be able to have that good communication with your sleep doctor, especially when starting out. And yes, you are definitely entitled to your reports - all of them! I only wanted the summary, because now I have a baseline to start from.

Please, continue to let us know how you are doing.

Warmly,

Jersey Girl

[banarabbyt]

Thanks- I have requested the humidifier from my doctor and referral for a sleep specialist so we'll see when I get it. In the meantime I'm just doing my best I guess. I'll definitely post an update.

Countryforever I've used the small pillows from February 2008 to November 2009 with no issues. I can't imagine that'd be the problem. I even tried the medium ones for a month- seemed to have no change...

Thanks I'll keep you all updated.

[jweeks]

I'm not sure about getting older- I'm 27, I mean do most people start having apnea issues in their late 20s? If I were over 40 I could see oh yeah I'm getting older, but then I could be wrong.

Hi,

I was 25 when I had my first noticeable symptoms. By age 30, I was having issues staying awake in meetings. By age 35, I was having problems holding a conventional job. I attempted to get treatment at that time, but my insurance company at that time denied me any coverage. I was in denial until I hit age 45 and had some issues where I finally had to seek treatment. I feel really dumb that I didn't push the issue 10 years ago and get treatment on my own.

Anyways- it doesn't matter why I have sleep apnea- what matters to me is that I get some good quality sleep!

Yes. I agree 100%.

-john-

[gasp]

Good job taking control of your therapy. Sometimes it takes awhile to get it all worked out.

I see you used medium pillows at one point too - I was going to say that I have very small nares and the small size was too small for me. It didn't allow for enough air flow and when I slept on my side, the nasal pillow would squish shut and almost stop all air flow. I also find that when I keep the nasal pillows a bit loose and let them puff up with air, they stay sealed better.

When at first if I tightened them too tight, they didn't fill up with air and just leaked.

The new pillow should help. I use a Tempurpedic so I can push the pillow in where my mask goes so the pillow doesn't unseat my nasal pillows.

Keep up the good work!!

[banarabbyt]

Thanks

Someone was kind enough to pm me and tell me how to adjust the pressure on my CPAP and last night I gave it a shot. I lowered the pressure from 8 to 7 and I actually feel so much better this morning. I myself am finding this hard to believe. *knock on wood*

I had NO dry mouth this morning, I felt so much better than I have in a long time, I had no more headache when I woke up, and I also didn't have any chest tightness. My husband also said he didn't hear ANY noise from me last night at all and he had a perfect night's sleep! He's a VERY light sleeper so if I had made any noise he would have heard it!

I'm hoping this trend continues... *crosses fingers*