Started out strong……..Novelty is wearing off

[Tigger]

I started using my CPAP on Tuesday, December 6th with great enthusiasm. I thought ‘I got this’ and was going to sail through the treatment process and start feeling like the routine would be second nature. Last night, I removed the mask after about 5 hours of use. I woke up and felt the need to adjust the mask thinking it is leaking; then of course the hose needed re-routing as I turned to my other side. Now I’m awake . I have been performing this task more frequently throughout the past few nights.

I do not want to lose hope and start not using the CPAP. Any suggestions to keep motivated or techniques to use to make sure I stay on-track?
Thanks,

[Pugsy]

Some sort of hose management system to keep it up and out of the way is used by lots of people.

You can buy them or make your own.

viewtopic.php?t=10640 Lots of links here with lots of ideas.

[carbonman]

Any suggestions to keep motivated or techniques to use to make sure I stay on-track?
Thanks,

It's your life.

[Java Time]

I also had an initial few day "honeymoon" period where I was so tired, I could sleep and the CPAP didn't bother me.

After a few days, the sleep starts catching up and you wake up in the night realizing this unnatural stuff is tied to your head, air is blowing around and funny noises are happening.

It does get better, within about 2 months I had figured out a LOT of small things that really helped me - from how to manage the hose at night, how to re-position my head and body with mask, trying out a few different masks to find a good fit, etc.

Any time you make a major change, like a new mask, you need to learn all of the tricks that work best for you. I just recently changed masks for the 4th time and it took over a week to figure out how to re-adjust the headgear to get leaks under control.

Try different things. When you start to settle in, try not to change more than one thing per week. Otherwise it is hard to identify which changes are helping or hurting. You also need to live with changes for a week to let yourself "settle in" and see how it changes your sleep.

What helped me the most was reading everything on this website and trying lots of it. For every 10 or 20 ideas, maybe 1 helped me. Some ideas that I couldn't do at first, I was able to do once I was more used to CPAP. Over time all these small improvements start to add up.

I still don't like wearing a mask, but it doesn't bother me very much any more.

I'm at 2 1/2 months and still learning, but I see continuing improvement in my "sleep comfort", daytime energy level, and my sleep AHI/event information from the SleepyHead software.

If you had a strong start, from my subjective experience it would seem to indicate you will perform very well over time, you just need to get through the first month or so.

[Mary Z]

Using the machine is a big adjustment for many of us. Don't lose that enthusiasm and commitment you started with. CPAP is not a novelty item, but something that you will most likely have to use for a long time. Good look.

[apneawho]

I do not want to lose hope and start not using the CPAP. Any suggestions to keep motivated or techniques to use to make sure I stay on-track?

I think we all have these little hiccups from time to time. You can be rockin' along just fine and then have some new obstacle pop up unexpectedly. I am having some of the same issues right now. I ordered the Hose Boss from Pur Sleep. It is on back order so I am waiting for it to be shipped. I am waking up fidgeting with my pillow, the hose, the covers, you name it. Every 2 hours and it does get old. Try to stay positive. You won't have these same issues forever. This may clear up and then new issues may come along. I would try a hose management system. There are many out there. Search the threads here and look at reviews and comments before you decide on one that is best for you. Try thinking positive thoughts before you suit up and lie down. I am doing the same.

[archangle]

Remember, that even if you don't feel better with CPAP, without treatment, apnea will kill you or at least have increasing bad effects on your health.

[RocketGirl]

I do not want to lose hope and start not using the CPAP. Any suggestions to keep motivated or techniques to use to make sure I stay on-track?

On the motivation thing - I'm about 7 weeks in, and during my first week I wrote down a couple of paragraphs detailing exactly how I felt before starting - a no-punches-pulled rant about the crushing fatigue, the fuzzy thinking, the inability to get through a day, the headaches, the night sweats, the sense that absolutely nothing felt like it was worth the effort required. Looking at those paragraphs now, it really jumps out at me that even on nights that aren't perfect, I am still so, so far ahead of where I was before CPAP that there really is no way I would choose to stop. That helps with perspective and staying motivated for me.

[ThirdOutOfFive]

I know how you feel. I took several weeks, and a few different changes, before I started sleeping well. Life with PAPpy is a process. With a new job, new school, new love, there are changes in your life. You have a period of adjustment before things start working smoothly. PAPpy is the same. You have to try adjustments in your hardware and routine until you find what works for you.

Here is what I learned for myself: 1. I don't like nasal pillows, and I do like a nasal mask. (I would never have guessed I would feel that way.) 2. I don't like the ramp feature -- I feel like I can't breathe when it first starts. 3. A hose cozy is great for quieting the noises the hose makes when I move at night. 4. I can "manage" my hose by running the hose behind my mattress and up in the middle of my pillow.

I know that the other folks here have a list that differs from mine. We are all different, and different things work -- or don't work -- for each of us.

So, hand in with the process. You need this therapy. You will be glad you have this therapy once you start feeling better.

Keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.

[msat]

I sure can relate. I had some great nights in the beginning but mostly don't feel so great now. However, I'm determined to make this work -- any other option simply isn't an option, as far as I'm concerned. Still experimenting and trying to find that magic combination of equipment and settings that will give me mostly good nights.

[ameriken]

I do not want to lose hope and start not using the CPAP. Any suggestions to keep motivated or techniques to use to make sure I stay on-track?

As for motivation/losing hope....we all, each and every one of us, encounter problems of one kind or another. Mask leaks, hose breaks, aerophagia (gas), high AHI's, feel like crap, doctor won't listen, mask too big, mask too small, nose is stuffy, got a headache, can't breath, mouth too dry, can't fall asleep, wake up with mask off, doctor won't listen, DME tried to screw me, etc etc etc etc.

There are thousands of pages of these issues that everyone faces on a daily basis and they are all solvable.

But, 'losing hope' and possibly even quitting cpap is the equivelant of saying "My mask bothers me so I'd rather suffocate my body for 30, 60, 90 seconds at at time for dozens and dozens and dozens of times a night, every single night, and see how quickly that will kill me".

I think I heard someone relate it to 'a death of a thousand knives'. If you quit, you may eliminate the hose and other logistical problems, but the problems don't end. You just don't see your body dealing with the real problems of oxygen desaturation that leads to heart attack, stroke, and many other problems.

You can find answers to all the things that happen, but as far as the motivation, only you can do that.

If you want to live, then eliminate the idea of 'losing hope' and just do whatever it takes to make it work. Between this forum and your medical team, you can resolve virtually any issue you face.

Good luck!