My First Week of APAP Treatment

[stealth2600]

Your graphs look good but go ahead and leave the details on the left, they have a lot of useful info. You can turn off the calendar by clicking on the little triangle by the date. Also the pie graph doesn't really give alot of info so you can turn it off by going into the file- preferences- appearance and uncheck show event breakdown pie chart.

Hi OkyDoky,

Thanks again! I think I finally got the screenshot the way it needs to be. I greatly appreciate all of the information and help you have given to me! Thank god Sleepyhead stores this configuration so I don't have to do this again! =)

[Pugsy]

I agree with OkyDoky's suggestion of a little more minimum.
For how to show the images...the image below is what I like to see on the detailed page...and it includes the AHI breakdown on the left.
For mask lines...man, that's tough because some people just get lines easier than others. Part of it is simply the tension of the mask and part of it is maybe the person's own body's fluid retention thing....like me...if I have a wrinkle on my pillow case and lay my cheek on that wrinkle I will get a line where the wrinkle was.

I don't think they should be red lines though...that's too tight I think. A mask liner would probably help but there's also the chance that maybe you might do better with a different mask. You are new to this therapy...make use of any mask swapping allowances that your DME might offer during whatever period they offer mask swapping. You might do better with a different mask.

Here's sort of an example of how I like to look at the detailed reports...Calendar and Pie chart turned off on the left and that lets me see the data on the left and then the graphs on the right all on one image. I don't worry about flow limitation graph (ResMed machines only) unless I see a need for it based on the data on the left side or we are wondering about wide pressure swings and then I would maybe ask for FL graph separately.

[Pugsy]

Here's a little hint for using imgur and those large images...

Bring up the image you want to link to and look down at the bottom of the address for "Large thumbnail" and click on large thumbnail wording....that will change the address choices in all those address boxes.
Got to the last address choice (after you have clicked on large thumbnail) and copy that last address and paste it in the body of your text here ....then when you post your text the image will be a bit smaller and we can then click on the image to bring it to full size.
That's what I did with mine above.

[OkyDoky]

You are doing great. It took me a lot of time watching and learning and I still have a lot to learn. But my sleep and health has improved greatly so I want to help others also.

[stealth2600]

I agree with OkyDoky's suggestion of a little more minimum.
For how to show the images...the image below is what I like to see on the detailed page...and it includes the AHI breakdown on the left.
For mask lines...man, that's tough because some people just get lines easier than others. Part of it is simply the tension of the mask and part of it is maybe the person's own body's fluid retention thing....like me...if I have a wrinkle on my pillow case and lay my cheek on that wrinkle I will get a line where the wrinkle was.

I don't think they should be red lines though...that's too tight I think. A mask liner would probably help but there's also the chance that maybe you might do better with a different mask. You are new to this therapy...make use of any mask swapping allowances that your DME might offer during whatever period they offer mask swapping. You might do better with a different mask.

Here's sort of an example of how I like to look at the detailed reports...Calendar and Pie chart turned off on the left and that lets me see the data on the left and then the graphs on the right all on one image. I don't worry about flow limitation graph (ResMed machines only) unless I see a need for it based on the data on the left side or we are wondering about wide pressure swings and then I would maybe ask for FL graph separately.

Thanks Pugsy,

My DME told me I could do exchanges for the first month. I figured I'd try to stick it out with this mask for a full week (This coming Tuesday would be a week), and if the problem persists I'll see if my DME will let me try something else. Honestly, when the mask is on, it feels fairly comfortable and I do get red marks fairly easy. I do have facial hair though, and I've heard lots of folks with facial hair like nasal pillows better so I'd really like to give that a try eventually. I have updated my screen shot so its more in line with what you and OkyDoky have suggested, the next one I post I will follow your instructions for imgur. Thanks so much, it really helped to have two veterans of PAP treatment give me advice. I'll be honest, I was pretty clueless about all this stuff until you and OkyDoky started advising me, you two are awesome!

[Pugsy]

Do try the nasal pillow mask. I think you might be very pleasantly surprised. Hopefully your DME also has the Resmed nasal pillow masks and not just the Respironics nasal pillow masks....I think ResMed nasal pillow masks are superior to the Respironics nasal pillow masks but the Respironics Nuance nasal pillow mask is decent enough if that is what they have in stock.
With facial hair the nasal cushion masks aren't horrible to use but the nasal pillow mask will likely seal better with less tension and it's the tension of the straps that is causing the marks and while a little wrinkle is probably not a big deal, the red lines indicate too much pressure and are too inviting to potential skin abrasions which of course is totally unwanted.

If you do get a nasal pillow mask to try....also go to Walmart (or similar) and go to the baby aisle section where the nipples and bottles and pacifiers are...and get some Lansinoh lanolin ointment/cream and apply just a little bit to your nostrils at night.
Lansinoh is what breastfeeding mom's use to help with nipple discomfort and it will help alleviate any potential discomfort from the nasal pillows on the nostril area. It won't hurt the nasal pillows and does help alleviate discomfort. It's a bit pricey for the size of the tube you get but you only use a tiny bit and a tube will last for a long, long time even with daily use but most people tend to not need it after a few months.

[stealth2600]

Hey everyone,

I gave a min pressure of 7.0 a try last night and I found it works even better, so thank you so much for that tip! I tried to loosen my mask up a lot last night and it definitely shows in my Sleepyhead graphs. I did have a lot more leak than the previous night, I believe 7% of the time was in major leak (I was adjusting my mask a lot more, and had to take it off 3 times to use the restroom during the night). The positive news is that I didn't really get red lines to bad on my face. I think maybe just a tad tighter and I may have finally figured this out. As I stated before, if I don't have success by Tuesday (one week using this mask), I'm going to see if my DME will do an exchange for something else since I have one month to do so. Any tips or advice on mask fitting is greatly appreciated. I know several folks have suggested I try nasal pillows, so I might give that a shot. Anyways, without further delay, he's my results from last night. Please let me know your thoughts, especially with regards to mask leak. Thanks so much for the help, this community is amazing.

[stealth2600]

Last night felt like a pretty good sleep. I slept for about 7 hours uninterrupted. I also think I finally have my mask fit correct as the red lines I have been complaining about were barely visible this morning and faded away within a few hours. My mask leak also appeared to be much better last night. Here's a screen shot of my sleepyhead data from last night, please feel free to comment, I greatly appreciate everyone's advice and feedback!

[Pugsy]

Looks pretty darn good to me. Congratulations...and you slept good too.

[OkyDoky]

Great night. Looks like you are on the road to better health.

[stealth2600]

Thanks Pugsy and Okydoky, your help was instrumental in getting me there! Last night my sleep was about the same, I think I've got the hang of it! Its been a week now and I haven't had to many problems! As I said yesterday, I think I have my mask issues sorted out too. There's a very fine line between "snug" and "to tight" and I definitely struggled to find it. I still wake up with very light redlines (as I said before I have very sensitive skin), but they are mostly faded away within a couple of hours and its not painful. I think I'm going to stick with this mask. My insurance gives me new masks every 3 months, so I may pickup a nasal pillow with my first order. Here's my Sleepyhead data from last night, overall I think it was pretty good. I noticed that my AHI went up a bit and that my mask leak was slightly higher than the previous night.

[Pugsy]

Don't worry about minor changes in leaks or AHI...they are going to happen from time to time.
Last Sat my AHI was 3.7 something and both nights before and after it was around 0.4. We don't sleep the same each night and stuff will just vary and a 1 to 2 variance when the AHI is low doesn't mean much other than it might look more impressive than it really is.
Saturday night I had one time frame where things just went to hell and I had a very dense cluster of OAs for about 30 minutes. It was ugly but I slept right through it so I really don't worry about it. Not much I can do about it anyway and I wouldn't bother unless I saw it happening often.

Your leak is still well below large leak territory even at its worst. I wouldn't give it a second thought as long as you slept well.
I haven't looked at my data yet but I can pretty much guarantee you that your leak line is a whole lot better than mine.