Hello everyone. Thanks for offering this web site for people who have been diagnosed with sleep apnea.
I was recently diagnosed with medium sleepapnea and have been using the REMstar Plus with ResMed mask for one week. My questions are regarding two main areas: Apnea related symptoms and using the cpap.
Symptoms: I am very interested in knowing if some of the physical (and mental) concerns I have had for most of my life are associated with sleep apnea. My quest for answers to these concerns has led to various diagnosis over the years such as panic attacks, anxiety and depression. Could it be diet, exercise, low-blood sugar heart problems? — I've pursued them all.
So here I am, staring at this sleep apnea thing. I am both optimistic (that I have finally identified something that could be causing my symptoms) and pessimistic (that it will be another dead end) I am a 52-year-old male who is NOT overweight.
1. Daytime sleepiness: I have experienced periods of excessive sleepiness and fatigue since junior high school. Is it possible to have sleep apnea from such an early age? I have always had a difficult time napping during the day, however.
2. Low stamina: I exercise but often feel that I have low stamina.
3. Panic attacks/ anxiety: I am taking 10 mgs of Lexapro. I am wondering if sleep apnea has been the real culprit all this time, or whether it is at least exacerbating these conditions. Anyone had experience with this?
4. Poor short-term memory and short attention span at times.
A cpap therapist has assured me that some of the complaints I've had with the cpap machine are common ones that people have when first using the machine, and that I should give myself time to adapt. What has been your experience with these?:
1. Dry mouth. I have been waking periodically with extreme dry mouth and have caught myself exhaling through my mouth at times. Last night I awoke and noticed that my mouth was closed but my cheeks were inflated with air. Think chipmunk with it mouth full of nuts.
2. Pockets (?) of air. I have the sensation of what must be air trapped in my throat sometimes and feel the need to swallow or cause myself to burp air. This happens mostly when I try to sleep while laying on my side. It isn't painful, but it does interrupt my sleep because it is a weird sensation. The therapist said that my pressure level of 11 wasn't too high and that I should stay with it long enough for my body to adapt.
Thanks for your input.
Newbie questions
3 posts
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Welcome to the group. We'll get right to it. Day time sleepiness, depression, short-term memory loss, loss of concentration, panic attacks, and the others you mentioned are ALL symptoms of OSA. (Obstructive sleep apnea.) It is quite possible that you've had this since being very young. Realize also that restless leg syndrome, or periodic limb movements, as they are also called, can lead to frequent awakenings during the night (300 or more awakenings per night is not uncommon) and can lead to the same type of tiredness as OSA. The only difference is your 02 levels aren't dropping. Just had a friend of mine go through a sleep study, and I was SURE he had OSA. Nope! Just the legs moving all night long. (About once every 35 seconds.) He was waking so often and so briefly, as with OSA, that he never got into a deep sleep. But medication was the answer for him, not a CPAP. That was a new one on me!
Sounds like you're using a nasal mask. Perhaps a full face mask might be better suited for you regarding exhaling through your mouth and the dry mouth thing. A heated humidifier would help as well. Talk to your DR about these concerns, and don't necessessarily believe everything your DR tells you, especially when you KNOW that you know. That's where this forum comes in. Many people will voice a concern or problem and then find others with the exact same problem. Usually, the problem is, the DR has never heard of it, or was never taught it. Usually, the best OSA DRs are OSA sufferers themselves! Just keep at it, realize it may take a day or a month to start feeling better, but if you're still having problems after that, get back in contact with your DR and work on the problems till you're doing better.
Good luck and welcome to the OSA family.
Peter
P.S. Make sure to make your posts to the cpaptalk.com forum index, as the introductions section isn't viewed very much. Don't even know why they have it.
Sounds like you're using a nasal mask. Perhaps a full face mask might be better suited for you regarding exhaling through your mouth and the dry mouth thing. A heated humidifier would help as well. Talk to your DR about these concerns, and don't necessessarily believe everything your DR tells you, especially when you KNOW that you know. That's where this forum comes in. Many people will voice a concern or problem and then find others with the exact same problem. Usually, the problem is, the DR has never heard of it, or was never taught it. Usually, the best OSA DRs are OSA sufferers themselves! Just keep at it, realize it may take a day or a month to start feeling better, but if you're still having problems after that, get back in contact with your DR and work on the problems till you're doing better.
Good luck and welcome to the OSA family.
Peter
P.S. Make sure to make your posts to the cpaptalk.com forum index, as the introductions section isn't viewed very much. Don't even know why they have it.
Hi
Hi,
Looks like Peter has addressed much of what you need to know to get good information about this sleep apnea thing. Like Peter there are so many people on this forum who are so knowledgable simply by experience. I can't add anything, except to also welcome you. I have seen from this forum that sleep apnea can affect people of all ages and for different lengths of time. I remember growing up with a father who on his spare time was a musician performing on weekends. A bass player would always come to our home to accompany my father on their gigs. My memory of him was him constantly asleep seated on our sofa, and I learned he spent most every hour of his life napping. It wasn't until later in life, in his 70's, he was diagnosed for sleep apnea. So I figure anyone at any age can consider themselves fortunate to find a treatment for this. Even knowing you have a solution, it can be daunting and depressing. But whatever you do, don't give up. And keep in touch.
Linda
Looks like Peter has addressed much of what you need to know to get good information about this sleep apnea thing. Like Peter there are so many people on this forum who are so knowledgable simply by experience. I can't add anything, except to also welcome you. I have seen from this forum that sleep apnea can affect people of all ages and for different lengths of time. I remember growing up with a father who on his spare time was a musician performing on weekends. A bass player would always come to our home to accompany my father on their gigs. My memory of him was him constantly asleep seated on our sofa, and I learned he spent most every hour of his life napping. It wasn't until later in life, in his 70's, he was diagnosed for sleep apnea. So I figure anyone at any age can consider themselves fortunate to find a treatment for this. Even knowing you have a solution, it can be daunting and depressing. But whatever you do, don't give up. And keep in touch.
Linda
3 posts
• Page 1 of 1