Survey On How folks adapted to therapy

[pdean44]

After having spent some time on pap therapy I was curious of how folks felt they adapted to it after having been on it for a while. Was it what you hoped it would be? ETC

[Stormynights]

It was harder than I expected it to be. I just kept at it till it got to where I don't want to sleep without it. I am so disappointed that I don't think my husband is even going to try to give it a go.

[Emilia]

Almost two weeks into it, and I have had a extremely easy time. Low AHI each night, and two masks that have both fit perfectly. Who knew???????

[Jaylee]

Ack, I voted wrong. Sorry!

I meant to vote for the "took to it like a fish to water" but messed up.

[cobra4x4]

I took to pap therapy like a duck to water. Even though I use an older unit I got a perfect fit with my first mask the Swift II, I have since upgraded to the Swift FX.

My titrated pressure is 7 cm which is good, but I have used the fine tune menu to set it at 7.2 cm which seems to be ideal for myself.
I have experimented with 7.5 & 8 cm settings which made me feel worse.

Through this and other forums I have learned a great deal in order to take control of my therapy.

I have been compliant right from the get go and still get 8.2 hrs of sleep on average.

[pdean44]

Ack, I voted wrong. Sorry!

I meant to vote for the "took to it like a fish to water" but messed up.

oops

[Janknitz]

Your poll is missing the option I would choose: "It was just as hard as I expected it to be". In other words, very, very hard. I wasn't sure that I was going to succeed, but persistence and determination won out. And I'm glad I did

[pdean44]

Reading posts here gave me a feeling of how it was going to be. I was determined to succeed. I actually felt like it was easier than i anticipated. The first 2 weeks were rough but after that point i was used to wearing the gear. I went another week or 2 struggling with rainout. Once i got past that and mask leaks the mask hardly bothered me at all. In the beginning i was wearing the mask too tight. Took some experimentation to get it comfortable and to not leak.

[Julie]

The poll is frustrating, because even though adapting to sleeping with a mask at all was easy, doing the which-mask dance took quite a while before finding the right one(s), but you've lumped the two things together in the poll.

[deerslayer]

The poll is frustrating, because even though adapting to sleeping with a mask at all was easy, doing the which-mask dance took quite a while before finding the right one(s), but you've lumped the two things together in the poll.

EXACTLY my thoughts !

[reallyneedsleep]

On week 5 and I must say it's real been easy and great! One or 2 tweaks and Bam! All good.
1 at the point where my energy is coming back
2 sex drive is inceasing
3 black circles under my eyes are disappearing
4 no more snoring

Sleeping a little over 6 hours a night, would like to hit the 7-8 mark but that will come

I lived without this for how long...? To dam long, wish I started this years ago!

And major shout out to blackspinner...you give great practical advise

[LoQ]

It was about what I expected, but that answer is not in the poll.

[torontoCPAPguy]

I voted "was harder than expected" only because (a) the sleep doc sent me to HIS chosen supplier who were dorks (MediGas); (b) they provided me with a machine that was bottom of the line for huge money along with a mask that left blisters on my nose and had no name on it; (c) the pressure settings took time to self titrate to a range that worked well for me with AHI almost always under 1.0 these days; (d) the great mask tryout continues although I have zeroed in on a couple that work well for me... I continue to look for perfection and believe that one really needs THREE masks to fulfill the 'magic bullet' scenario in terms of fit, comfort and performance (a pillow, a nosebag and a FFM); (e) one needs to find MD's that will work with them and take the time to obtain and maintain data; (f) in general, it is just NOT a buy one and away you go type of situation... one must educate oneself as best one can, one must work to get to the magic bullet or as close as possible, and so on. It is not a simple process and the improvements being slow and steady, one tends to get frustrated with the time it takes because one is not seeing massive improvements... but as a scientist, the numbers are showing me the daily improvements although I still feel like crap I am sure it is better than it was. I can remember all of the raggedy anne doll days on the couch in past and now have energy to some extent - still need the magic bullet though.

The moral of the story is to be tenacious like a pit bull with this affliction. Yesterday, with the approval of my MD's, I have embarked on a course to lose a large amount of weight; part of my taking back my life and health.

And for the record, although I will never admit it to them, I intend to grow sufficiently old to be a pain in the ass for my two kids for as long as I possibly can in return for favours rendered (seriously, they are great kids, but I still intend to be a pain in the ass to them for some years before kicking off).

And I intend to be around to see my grandchildren (known ones anyway) pee and poop on my kids - I went out and bought a camera well in advance the other day and have it loaded up with fresh batteries and ready to go.

[chunkyfrog]

My DME only stocks ResMed products; so my choice in masks is very limited.
--Love the FX, but taping still leaves me with a pathologically dry mouth, and now I'm getting gum problems.
Quattro was a nightmare. somewhat the same with the Micro; I'd like to see a Sleepweaver hybrid!
What the heck--I sew; have flat-pattern experience --and I have some nearly airtight microfiber.
Hey, Circadience--I might be looking for a post-retirement career. . .

[Emilia]

@ chunkyfrog -- I read somewhere that Circadence was taking to heart the suggestions of users to help them tweak things and consider new options. Might be worth sending them that suggestion!