Introduction

[Omne]

Hi, this was originally plugged into one of the stickies so I thought I would move it.

I was recently diagnosed, a month ago, with apnea. I have had chronic insomnia for over 25 years, ever since my apartment was burned down during the night by my downstairs neighbor with a drinking problem., I barely made it out with my shirt and pants on. As a result I use a couple meds to sleep. I went in for a sleep study because my wife mentioned that I had periodic leg movement, every 30 seconds..she timed it. I'm not in any of the risk categories for apnea and my wife has never noticed any breathing problems. I have had fatigue problems for a fairly long time and I thought it might be the leg movement so I went in for the study and, with my meds, went right to sleep. Around 1:30am I awoke to the tech strapping a mask on me. I asked her why she was doing that and she said that I was having apnea events and my blood oxygen level was at 80%. Needless to say I was rather surprised. The next morning she told me that I was having leg movements but they were only at the beginning of the night and didn't cause any sleep interruptions for me. For my wife on the other hand, I see a king bed in our future....

So, go in for one thing and get diagnosed for something else. I got my Dreamstation APAP with the humidifier and a Wisp mask the next week. In the study the AHI was only around 10 but I think the time they lasted was fairly long. Of course I was expecting miracles and that I would be nice and alert right away. I was promptly disabused of that idea. They had a fixed pressure set and my AHI shot up to over 20 or so the first few nights and I felt more fatigued than usual, almost groggy during the day. I also noticed that my throat was dry each morning so after about a week I picked up a full face mask, an Air 10, and they also set the machine to auto mode. The pressure is averaging just under twice what they initially set it for and the AHI numbers dropped pretty quickly and are running around 6-8 lately. Hopefully they will continue to improve. I use Sleepyhead and check my card every morning. My major problem is with hypopneas although CA has actually gone up a few percent. I have noticed less fatigue so that's a plus.

My reaction to the change is probably atypical. I was surprised, not in shock, just surprised. I also felt relieved because it answered some questions and gave me some hope that the fatigue and morning headaches would get better. The mask has never bothered me and for some odd reason I actually find it sort of comforting. Maybe because I scuba dive or because I have congestion problems at night I like the air flow and positive pressure. When I put the mask on it's almost like curling up in a blanket. I guessing that the fact that I like to wear the mask puts me in a minority based on what I've read on here and other forums. It does make the whole thing a lot easier though...

So I apparently went pretty much straight to acceptance. Luckily my wife isn't bothered at all by the equipment, there's very little noise. She has mentioned it looks like I'm on life support though, kidding I hope.

I'm glad there are active forums available and I've gathered a lot of useful info on this one. There are some great members here and I'm looking forward to being part of it and learning from them.
I would especially like to thank the long time members that spend so much of their time helping out us beginners.

[Julie]

Thank you for putting into words how I've felt about wearing the mask, because most others seem to think I'm nuts . I hope you continue to do well and get any questions answered here.

Your congestion might be a result of a too-high humidifier setting - works that way for some - when not really needed by local climate, so feel free to turn it down or even off - it's not therapy in itself, just a facilitator. And if you're a back sleeper, see if your hypopneas drop when on your side (they often do), and your AHI just might come down more as it is on the high side right now, even if a lot better than your test results.

[Jodes]

It's funny I too reacted positively to needing CPAP as my snoring had affected my previous relationship significantly, although I just thought I was too young for sleep apnoea and my GP never suggested checking it out.
I also hope that with better quality sleep and feeling less tired will assist in stabilising my anxiety and depression, I'm very excited to see how it effects my life. I already find it easier to wake in the morning and have more energy after three months CPAP