Poll: Have Any of You Been Caught Changing Your Pressure?

[BubbleButt!@#$]

I told my sleep doc that I HAD to lower my pressures because occasionally the higher pressures were waking me up when the mask pulled away from my face. The straps were already too tight and since I made the changes my SleepyHead data has improved dramatically. Doc was impressed I knew enough to adjust my own CPAP let alone understood the data that the software provided me. His assistant looked at the SleepyHead data thoroughly and wanted to know more about the software and where I got it.

My DME insisted that I continue to provide them my CPAP use (after compliance and insurance purchased CPAP unit), said it was an agreement they had made with my insurance company. I firmly told my DME that, "my CPAP use is none of their f%@*#in' business" and they're agreement with my insurance company didn't mean squat to me because I NEVER AGREED TO IT!!!!!

If my DME wanted to continue to supply my compliance data to my insurance provider then they should have let me keep the modem attached instead of disconnecting it and sending back to them. Obviously cheaper to have me give them compliance data for their records than pay modem wireless fees for it. Every time my DME calls me I tell them to get lost! They stopped calling.

[The Latinist]

My DME insisted that I continue to provide them my CPAP use (after compliance and insurance purchased CPAP unit), said it was an agreement they had made with my insurance company. I firmly told my DME that, "my CPAP use is none of their f%@*#in' business" and they're agreement with my insurance company didn't mean squat to me because I NEVER AGREED TO IT!!!!!

My DME seems to expect me to keep my modem after the rental period is up (I asked them how long I had to keep the modem on the machine and they said, "always"). Not. Happening. That modem will be coming off just as soon as the rent-to-own period is up. I'll be happy to drop it off if they want it back. My insurance company doesn't even pay for supplies and only covered half of the machine and humidifier. Once the machine is mine, they can pound sand. I learned enough in two appointments with the DME's RT to know I want nothing to do with them as soon as possible. I'll purchase my next machine out-of-pocket to avoid the hassle of dealing with the DME. And if my insurance wants compliance data before approving future sleeps studies, etc., they can get it from my doctor.

[idamtnboy]

My sleep doctor's NP assistant was upset when I told her I had switched from CPAP mode to APAP mode and raised my pressure from 9 to 10. She told me to concentrate on losing weight and not screwing around with my therapy. I've only been back once since. Won't bother to go back until the DME says I need an office visit in order to continue supplying me.

[BubbleButt!@#$]

She told me to concentrate on losing weight and not screwing around with my therapy. I've only been back once since.

Someone would have had to pick her up off the floor if she would have said that to me!! I guess everyone hates their DME's, not just me!!!!!

[RogerSC]

Since my therapy has been going well, my sleep doctor has been quite tolerant of my messing around with the pressure that he prescribed. I didn't sleep enough for titration during my sleep study in the first place, so his prescription was pretty much a guess. My AHI has been consistently fine, few untreated OSA's. I've played around to see if I can't reduce the number of centrals that I'm getting, no luck, though. Don't have enough centrals for insurance to justify an ASV, so it goes.

[HoseCrusher]

I fired my sleep doctor right after he tried to explain my sleep study results to me. It was obvious that I knew more about the data than he did.

My PCP is interested in knowing how my therapy is working but isn't interested in the details. If something goes wrong, he would probably be interested then.

The RT at my DME was very helpful in setting up my initial machine and helping me find a mask that worked great. I keep in touch with him but he could care less if I made an adjustment or not.

Overall I have tweaked things to optimum using how I feel in the morning, reviewing my data, and reviewing oximeter data. I am more interested in my general health than anyone else and I hire a team of professionals to address problems as they arise. So far, so good.

[SleepyStar]

I've told the DME about sleepyhead since several of the RT's are CPAPers themselves. They're aware, and they're aware that I'm an engineer and they told me I can look to my heart's content but don't touch until the doctor OK's it since I was in compliance time still. I made them fix the time after I realized with sleepyhead that the timezone was wrong so I could show them I was still in "look but don't touch".

I figured that was good advice.

My sleep doc told me how to get at the clinician menu though, now that I'm out of compliance check time I'm debating lowering my minimum pressure 1cm as it spends about 70% of the night right about my minimum.

Before I got my autoset my doctor told me how to adjust my pressures and gave me a range that I could try playing around with until we got the autoset (I was about to change insurances in a month or so anyways, and I was having a lot of ear pain and air swallowing, and I had an s9 escape, so he gave me a range to try to get by with until I had my birthday. ) and it turns out the menu is the same buttons. But I also have learned a bit over time just how much I can push, and when the insurance company is deciding whether or not to pay for the machine is not that time.

Passed my compliance with flying colors though. Once I got my autoset my AHI was down to <.4 nearly every night, and about 1/3 the time were 0.0

[SleepyToo2]

I haven't told my sleep doc I changed my pressure - I increased it for a while, then decreased it when I felt uncomfortable at the higher pressure. It is now back to the prescribed pressure (2 cm higher than my titrated pressure at docs suggestion). The prescribed increase was from 8 to 10 cm, in one go, which surprised me! The doc does know I read my data because I gave him a copy of my SleepyHead report minus the pressure chart. He said keep doing what I was doing because the AHI was really low - and is generally lower now! New visit due in November. Big waste of time, really. However, I think this time I will ask him for a script for an APAP so that if I do have a problem with my current machine I can get a new one. I will make sure that it reads for 8-12 cm range, because I think that is probably where I would end up most of the time. I would not have a problem with tweaking those pressures if needed, though!

The ability to read the data is enormously valuable - it tells me that stress, and lack of exercise, are big causes of variations in my AHI. Also, irregular sleeping hours. I need to take care of all of those better. I have lost 20lb or so since starting this journey, but I still need to do more of the exercise to be truly fit. Anyone have any suggestions how to get a rescue dog let me take her for a walk

[LSAT]

I haven't had a "sleep doctor" since I started with CPAP almost 6 years ago. My PCP knows I'm on CPAP and when I have my annual physical he just asks if I'm having any problems. He doesn't know my pressure and really doesn't care. When I wanted a new machine he wrote a prescription just the way I asked him to. I have been with him long enough that he knows that I would ask him if I had any problems. His mother uses a CPAP and he does understand sleep apnea and CPAPs.

[ShelaghDB]

I stopped dealing with Doctors when mine refused to write a script for an auto set or even explain honestly why he could not and became nasty.

i bought myself an auto set and although still struggling with it, i know the doctor could not have helped.
only i can figure out with the help of those before me who spend time on these boards offering advice......
so personally i could care less what anyone thinks about anything i do let alone a doctor I haven't any time for...

I am finding that the DME he sent me to ( his own company I believe) has been very difficult to return emails to me etc although they receive full funding for anything I want......so about to change to a different DME to get what i need, when i need it without their attitude

I did screw up the settings when I adjusted it and was miserable for a long time until I figured it out.

How did you screw it up?

In my case the DME screwed it up when they gave me an Escape and set it at 10 rather than the 13 it was supposed to be at.

I put my SD card in both a macbook pro and a samsung with Win 7 on it without locking it and its never changed on me (who in their right mind uses Windows 8 unless technically unable to go back to Win 7?)......that said, its likely a good idea to lock it to avoid any potential future problems

[ShelaghDB]

I haven't had a "sleep doctor" since I started with CPAP almost 6 years ago. My PCP knows I'm on CPAP and when I have my annual physical he just asks if I'm having any problems. He doesn't know my pressure and really doesn't care. When I wanted a new machine he wrote a prescription just the way I asked him to. I have been with him long enough that he knows that I would ask him if I had any problems. His mother uses a CPAP and he does understand sleep apnea and CPAPs.

Curious, with a S9 Autoset or not though, how can you be sure you are at the right pressure for yourself?

[49er]

One sleep doctor thought it was very impressive that I knew how to change the pressure but unfortunately wasn't helpful in other areas. Another sleep doctor acted like I had cracked a top secret code that I shouldn't have access to.

49er

[ChicagoGranny]

Curious, with a S9 Autoset or not though, how can you be sure you are at the right pressure for yourself?

It's best to download the ResMed software and track your daily charts until you feel you have your settings optimized. Also, keep at least a mental note of how you feel each day and what your settings are.

[Stevoreno_55]

Negative.

[jencat824]

The DME I got the machine from is no longer in the picture. My sleep Dr. is also my neurologist for several other conditions & all he does is check compliance for CPAP. He is usually occupied with other aspects of my medical conditions. Mainly how In the heck am I maintaining my 'no flairs' with my MS & 'no seizure' status during chemo for Lymphoma. He really doesn't pay attention to my CPAP stats & he should, but since other issues are his primary concern, I take care of my PAP #'s. Maybe he knows that & doesn't comment on it, but I've never brought it up in conversation with him.