Results in

[synonymous]

Just thought I would share:

I wake up on average 38 times an hour.
I breath shallow for most of the night.
Average blood oxygen is 87 percent
Longest without breathing is 45 seconds.

Not central, it's all obstructive. Doctor has asked me to get a second doctor to begin a slow taper off my benzo meds. The doctor was kind enough to 'rush' my CPAP order. The company is coming this afternoon with all the gear for tests and trials. It will be nice to wake up tomorrow (Hopefully) and feel like I've actually slept.

[dlg_az]

Just thought I would share:

I wake up on average 38 times an hour.
I breath shallow for most of the night.
Average blood oxygen is 87 percent
Longest without breathing is 45 seconds.

Not central, it's all obstructive. Doctor has asked me to get a second doctor to begin a slow taper off my benzo meds. The doctor was kind enough to 'rush' my CPAP order. The company is coming this afternoon with all the gear for tests and trials. It will be nice to wake up tomorrow (Hopefully) and feel like I've actually slept.

Good luck with your new machine. Your stats are very close to mine; I've been on CPAP now for about three weeks. The first night after use I felt pretty darn good, the second night I was amazed how good i felt. Just keep in mind it goes a tad up and down in how you feel each day but nothing beats how much better you feel overall for using the CPAP machine. Hoping to see good news from you in the coming days.

[synonymous]

I just got my machine from the company.

Apparently all of us with sleep apnea start with the same type of machine. It's a Sleep Mate S8. I asked about masks, humidifiers etc and he said all of it will go through the doctor. If I can't sleep with my current mask, tell the doctor and he'll ask them to bring another type. Same goes with every other piece. My current mask is nose only. Feels fine for the 20 minutes I tried it (I had some midday nap time). I didn't actually sleep and it was fine. I just have this feeling that I'm an 'open mouth' sleeper. The company man told me they have headbands that keep the mouth closed but that he never thought of bringing one (Usually it takes a few business days to get a machine but my doctor rushed my prescription through and the company was kind enough to come by the same afternoon.)

The data for the machine is recorded inside and when I have to bring the data to the doctor in one months time I have to slip a little data card (I've never seen this time of card before) into the machine and it will record all the months data. I'm actually looking forward to sleeping tonight. I hope tomorrow is a good day.

[busylady]

Wish you luck. I've been 6 weeks now. Your Dr. sounds a bit like mine. My observation is that he orders machines that offer no software access for us users so he can have control. He starts everyone on pillows, then after a month says "you need a FFM. My DME sort of agreed with my observation though maybe he couldn't come right out and say it. My machine at least has a screen so I can see some numbers, but I have now learned they are the true numbers. I'm actually better off than I thought I was, for #s are about half what they show on screen. I went back at 5 weeks and Dr. printed out my charts. Make sure you ask for copies so you can study them at home. My next appt. is in 4 months, and he's changed me from pillows to FFM. Now I'm wondering if I need higher pressure with the FFM. (It's now 5-10). So now, do I need to call Dr. tomorrow and ask for pressure change, and how long will it take to get that taken care of. I actually do know how to get into the clinician's menu now and do it. If I could see the charts I would know if I'm making progress, when leaks and apneas occur, is the pressure enough to control the apneas, etc. Since my #s were better than I thought with the pillows (AHI that last 7 days from 1.5-2.5, but leaks still 35-45), I decided I will just go along with things... Guess the phrase would be to trust, but on the other hand how can you trust when the Dr. won't trust you to have the data because you might change the settings! Horrors!! I'm an educated, data oriented person, so it is frustrating. ............... I need to go back to bed!!!

[synonymous]

I'm sure I'll get the data when it comes back...I just don't know how the CPAP collects data since from what I can see it's only putting pressure on my airways. The company said that the mask would be somewhat easy to tell if it leaks with my wife right next to me. From what I understand it's a monthly visit to the doctors office.

[Pugsy]

Does the data card look sort off like a weird credit card? Along the lines of this?
https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... -card.html

[synonymous]

That's the one

[Pugsy]

I have no idea what data is on the machine but that card and this reader should work with ResScan software and give you whatever data the machine collects.

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... -cpap.html
Hard to find as the S8 and all its stuff has been replaced by the S9.

Might wait till you see a report to see if it is more than hours of use before investing in a scarce and pricey card reader.

[Janknitz]

[quote] Apparently all of us with sleep apnea start with the same type of machine. It's a Sleep Mate S8[\quote]

Welcome but I bear bad news. You bought the line your DME gave you hook, line and sinker. The DME took advantage of your lack of knowledge. You got an older, discontinued machine and most likely the only data it has is "use data" in other words all it will show is how many hours you use it.

You should read up to understand more by clicking on the lightbulb up at the top of this page. You may also find some posts on my blog helpful. Start by the link below for "what you need to know before you meet your DME, and ben look for my post called "help, I'm stuck with a brick".

[synonymous]

The DME gets specific instructions from the doctors. They have no say in what comes and goes (Not on the national healthcare system provided by the Japanese government). That's why if I have any issues, anything I want added, it all goes through the doctor. I will ask about getting a better machine that records actual data that I can see. There is only 1 DME in Japan (Or at least only one that provides for the national healthcare) and I tried looking at the different CPAP machines available. I could find only 3. Mind you it was in Japanese. I will talk with my doctor in a month.

[synonymous]

ETA:

First night sleep.

I'm feeling a bit better today. Unfortunately, my sleep was interrupted a few times by opening my mouth. THEN, I had my wife yelling at my mother-in-law before it was time to wake up WHICH woke me up. I might get a better idea of things tomorrow. I'm feeling a bit sleepy after a few minutes awake. My wife did say however that there was zero snoring, just a few quick mouth open, then closed. I think I need a headband to keep my mouth closed. I actually woke up at 4am first feeling pretty good. I still had 3 hours of sleep to go so I went back to bed.

Hope day 2 is a bit better.

[BlackSpinner]

ETA:

I think I need a headband to keep my mouth closed.

get a pair of your wife's panty hose and cut them up to create a chin strap. It is not rocket science.

[synonymous]

I will try that. The band he showed me in the flyer looked nice and comfy. Insurance covers everything over 50 bucks so at this point adding anything extra won't cost me a thing. I was worried about having a dry mouth but was surprised that I didn't.

Is it possible it will take the body some time to get use to the CPAP? I thought I slept well but I'm tired. I want to go home early and sleep with the CPAP more.