Keep waking up in the night

[kajas]

I am on day 4 now with my CPAP machine. My mask (pillows) is comfortable and there are no leaks. However I keep waking up in the night and I am fully awake and find it hard to drift off again. During the day I feel very sleepy and can not keep my eyes open when watching a film. I refuse to take a nap in the day so sleeping should be regular. Any suggestions would be welcome. Thanks

[kteague]

Since all the sensations are still unfamiliar it may just take a while for your brain to not be on alert. How long do you sleep before waking, and how long do you lie awake? If you're not able to settle into a better routine fairly soon, you may want to look for other contributors, such as medication side effect, medical conditions, other sleep disorders, caffeine intake, etc. Does the sleep you are getting feel restful and deep?

[kajas]

I guess I sleep for 3 hours, I am dreaming which is quite rare for me. I am probably awake for a good hour then its intermittent till the morning. I am not drinking alcohol and have a cup of tea about 7 ish which is normal for me. Thanks

[andy5805]

running helps me as this is about breathing so it's almost a one size fits all thing to try- but not too late or the body will still think it's running when sleeping - doing one later as work tomorrow, let's try and set up for a great week.

I tend to have cut offs for things that my partner who doesn't have OSA just doesn't need to stick to - however I don't go over the top otherwise the planning itself becomes the ritual and stressful , - simple like not eating too late or too much, shifting the big meal to the first two, like running, like doing anything stressful. I do weights so if tomorrow is a demanding day no arm weights, let's up the odds I sleep on my side - I made a shutter out of MDF, the room is complete blackout, the bed is comfortable - I try and nudge all the none sleep apnoea related things right into place to enhance the odds for when I hit the machine

I have a one cup of coffee a day then ban on caffeine. I this helps as caffeine hangs around, I think the number is 50%, 8 hours later. Can't be helpful

last thing I did was mount a swivel mirror by the bed, to get the mask right - but you don't need this - you're better at leaks than me!

Regards
A

[JDS74]

I guess I sleep for 3 hours, I am dreaming which is quite rare for me. I am probably awake for a good hour then its intermittent till the morning. I am not drinking alcohol and have a cup of tea about 7 ish which is normal for me. Thanks

I am hypersensitive to caffeine and any amount really messes up my night. You might try going without anything with caffeine for a couple of days to see if sleeping improves.

Your comment about dreaming is a good thing - it implies you are getting to REM sleep and that is one thing that sleep apnea episodes sometimes prevents.

[jamiswolf]

I refuse to take a nap in the day so sleeping should be regular

Hi Kajas,
CPAP induced insomnia is a major problem for some users. Until you have your problems resolved, a nap (using cpap) can be very helpful and restful. Unless there's a work or schedule issue, you might want to try it. I don't take one every day,
but when I do...it really helps with the rest of the day. And even a few hours of good sleep is better then a night of micro-arousals that destroy your sleep architecture.
Good luck,
J

[Pugsy]

Did you have some trouble with waking during the night and it taking some amount of time getting back to sleep prior to using the cpap machine or is this a totally new problem?

[spmccord]

I'm having the same problem after 2 nights on my cpap.

I usually sleep pretty well, so no insomnia until the the last 2 nights. Last night I saw every "o'clock" except 3 o'clock (I think I slept a bit). I took the mask off about 4 and slept for 3 hours.