Brand new user of cpap

papasmurf · Post by **papasmurf** » Fri Oct 22, 2004 6:05 pm

Just got my machine on Wednesday and so far have managed 3 hours sleep on Wed and 4 on Thur...shooting for 5 or more tonite. Found this site a few minutes ago and just what I need as know it's going to be a grind over the next few days or weeks. Looking forward to being a HoseHead..lol

Wimsatt · Post by **Wimsatt** » Fri Oct 22, 2004 7:48 pm

It takes a few days, but stick with it and in a month from now you'll wonder how you ever slept with out it !!!

crealfilly2 · Post by **crealfilly2** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 9:06 pm

Wait a couple years and you won't be able to sleep with out it...lol.. They are wonderful

SnoreNoMore2005 · Post by **SnoreNoMore2005** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 9:24 pm

Pop. congrats on getting your new machine. You need to just make up your mind that you're going to get the CPAP to work for you! Period... end of paragraph. No excuses, no rationalizations, no cop-outs... nothing. You are going to make it work.

If you have particular problems in adapting, ask away on this board. The people here are great and are happy to help. We've all been there.

Good luck and welcome aboard.

SnoreNoMore2005

WAFlowers · Post by **WAFlowers** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 9:45 am

crealfilly2 wrote:Wait a couple years and you won't be able to sleep with out it...lol.. They are wonderful

For some of us (me!) it only takes a couple of months. If I doze off in my easy chair or foolishly attempt a short nap without my CPAP, I now find myself waking up gasping for air all too frequently; about every 5 minutes! I can actually feel my throat "unrelax" (another new word coined) from the closed position as I jerk awake.

On Saturday I laid down for what was planned to be a 20 minute power nap to make up for only 9 hours sleep in the previous 2 nights before going out to a Christmas party. I decided that I was only going to have such a short sleep that CPAP wasn't worth the effort.

I WAS WRONG!!!

I've learned my lesson and will never, ever do that again! .

dsg · Post by **dsg** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 10:09 am

SnoreNoMore2005 wrote:Pop. congrats on getting your new machine. You need to just make up your mind that you're going to get the CPAP to work for you! Period... end of paragraph. No excuses, no rationalizations, no cop-outs... nothing. You are going to make it work.

If you have particular problems in adapting, ask away on this board. The people here are great and are happy to help. We've all been there.

What they all said, but especially the above quote. Read that first paragraph. Now read it again. That's honestly what it all boils down to. It should be put on a sticker that's placed on the first CPAP of every new user! Welcome and congratulations on starting on this terrific new road toward restful, nourishing sleep!

slumberer · Post by **slumberer** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 11:52 am

I have begun my third week with my CPAP machine. I was diagnosed with mild OSA and have been 100% compliant (even naps!). The daytime drousiness comes and goes; frankly, I expected a faster result. I go to bed with my partner at 10-10:30 and wake up at 5:30. 7 hours may not be enough? My partner reports that I am no longer snoring. Because my case of OSA is "mild" (12.1 apnea/hypopneas per hour on average), should I expect a more gradual change? Also, I just finished trying a new full face mask (Respirionics ComforFull) and decided to return to my ResMed Mirage. At rate, any response would be welcomed.

mikemoran · Post by **mikemoran** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 12:04 pm

The one thing that is consistent on this board is the therapy all effects us differently. Some see immediate results others see gradual improvements. it is a function of current lifestyles, how long you were undiagnosed and how compatible the equipment is for you.

I have been on it for 8 months and still have some drowsy days. My approach was to eliminate as much interferrence as possible. Get the right machine and humidfier then find a mask that disrupts your mode of sleep as little as possible.

It has taken alot of perseverance and i wish i could say all my struggles are over, but I do feel better and don't zone out every afternoon like I used to. You truly do have to make a commitment to your own health and not give up.

I wish you both the best of a new life.

WAFlowers · Post by **WAFlowers** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 1:15 pm

Slumberer, I'd suggest the problem is that you are only getting 7 hours sleep per night. Studies have shown that a fully rested adult requires something like 7.75 hours per night (can someone post the exact figure? I can't find it at the moment, but that is close). When you are trying to recover from long-term sleep deprivation where you have built up a (controversial) sleep debt it is quite common to need more than 8 hours a night for week or even months!

Sunflower · Post by **Sunflower** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 2:34 pm

papasmurf wrote:Just got my machine on Wednesday and so far have managed 3 hours sleep on Wed and 4 on Thur...shooting for 5 or more tonite. Found this site a few minutes ago and just what I need as know it's going to be a grind over the next few days or weeks. Looking forward to being a HoseHead..lol

Good luck to you.....it took me about 3 months to feel comfortable with the whole thing....so give it time. papasmurf...the same name people used to call my father a few years ago...

Good luck to you too slumberer....

groggybob · Post by **groggybob** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 4:45 pm

Mikemoran meant to say "therapy effects us all differently"

The effects of CPAP therapy are as varied as the individuals undergoing the therapy. For myself, believe it or not, I noticed a difference the morning after my second sleep study. The first one was sans CPAP. That was after sleeping in a strange place, wearing a mask for the first time and being awoken twice during the night by the technician. On the flip side of this is my boss. Several times he has tried to stick with CPAP therapy only to give up due to frustration and not feeling any different than without therapy. His recent return to therapy, thanks to my nagging, is as fraught with frustration as before and he still says that he feels it is doing no good. Two days ago he claimed to have been able to sleep all night with the mask on for the first time. I asked him how he felt and his reply was "same as always". Then he went on to state how one particular irritation that he normally experienced upon waking up before CPAP, was gone. There are some other effects having to do with his personality that I have noticed.

The difference between our two diagnosis is that I have moderate apnea and he has severe apnea. I firmly believe that the more severe your apnea is and the longer it has gone undiagnosed, the longer it will take for CPAP therapy to correct the situation. That said though, I also believe that the effects of CPAP therapy begin almost immediately for all of us, just some of the effects can be so minor at first that you really don't notice them.

Welcome to our world aged blue one from wyoming, and yes, it is going to be a grind until you get everything figured out. Just remember three things - don't give up, don't give up, never give up!!!!!!

Bob

mikemoran · Post by **mikemoran** » Wed Dec 07, 2005 5:14 pm

Oops my dyslexia is showing. CPAP almost has that completely cured. LOL

slumberer · Post by **slumberer** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 12:32 pm

Thank you all for your words of advice and encouragement!! I went to bed earlier and feel much refreshed. Still some tossing and turning with the mask on, but I am determined to wrestle with it until it becomes a part of my body.

Another question: How essential is frequent analysis of my sleep either through a doctor's visit where I simply discuss how I feel or with hard data. My machine RemStar Plus does not seem to have a Smart Card slot. Does this mean that I cannot retrieve data from my CPAP? It seems to have a S-type plug in the back. My HMO (Kaiser) seems to not be very aggressive when it comes to follow-up. Is anyone out there with Kaiser and can offer me some advice. My sense is that every three months, at least at the beginning, would be nice to check in to discuss how my therapy is going. Should I insist on getting a model with more data retrieval capability?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Wulfman · Post by **Wulfman** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 1:21 pm

papasmurf,

It's good to see another Wyomingite on this forum. I KNOW there are more of us out here!!!

Like others have said before me....."Stick with it!"....."Don't give up!"

There's a "learning curve" to this therapy. It may take some time to build up the hours per night. After seven months, I'm finally up to an average of about seven hours per night......which is about optimum for me.

Check in as often as you can and let us know how it's going.

Best wishes,

Den

Wulfman · Post by **Wulfman** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 2:20 pm

slumberer,

I don't have Kaiser, but from what I've read in the posts over the last 8 months or so, your comments are consistent with others that do have them.
As you've probably gathered from your reading here, many of us are "into" monitoring our own therapy through data capture and software use. It seems to me that this option is a lot less expensive than future trips to the doctor to tell him how we're feeling and further sleep studies that would probably have to be done to veryify the therapy for the doctors.

I happen to be a firm believer in monitoring one's own therapy. In fact, I can't imagine doing this therapy without it. After all, it's YOUR therapy. You should be the first one to know how you're doing.

Hang in there.....stick with it and read as much as you can on this forum.

Best wishes,

Den

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