Sleep Apnea Bed

[federaldam]

I have had sleep apnea for about 10 years and never could tolerate any CPAP mask. I even had my uvula removed because they said it had a 50% chance of curing me. That did not work. I have terrible nasal drainage at night and the air pressure of the mask forces mucus into my throat causing me to gag. Anyway, I saw a new doctor recently and she told me to prop up one side of my bed and sleep on my side. I started with about 5 inches of bed elevation and it felt really strange. The first night I started dreaming, which I have not done in years! I raised the bed more every few nights until I got to about 8-9 inches and that is where I seem to do the best. I used books to prop up the bed and it was not very stable. Also my foot rest was the bedroom wall. So finally I found an adjustable inclined bed frame that is sturdy and has a built in foot rest. My new bed is like a medical miracle!!! I cannot believe it took this long for someone to tell me about this solution.

[PaulKTF]

So what happens when you have to sleep in a different bed, or your bed breaks, or the power goes out?

[cpap626]

I have one of the adjustable beds, I love it! I usually try to sleep propped up about 4 or 5 inches. Anything more than that, my back hurts the next day cuz i am a side sleeper. It works alot better than stacking pillows.

[Okie bipap]

We have an adjustable bed for several years. When we treat, I take two wedge pillows with me to use at night.

[PaulKTF]

I might use one in conjunction with a XPAP machine, but never in place of one.

[LSAT]

I might use one in conjunction with a XPAP machine, but never in place of one.

Your Quote..."So what happens when you have to sleep in a different bed, or your bed breaks, or the power goes out?"

[PaulKTF]

I might use one in conjunction with a XPAP machine, but never in place of one.

Your Quote..."So what happens when you have to sleep in a different bed, or your bed breaks, or the power goes out?"

Correct.

[QueSera]

Or sleep in a recliner.

[zoocrewphoto]

Unfortunately, some of us can have apnea episodes while sleeping upright.

I know I snore like crazy when I fall asleep in the recliner in the living room (and I don't recline it). Or on the couch, sitting up.

My mom sleeps in a recliner every night (reclined), and without the cpap, she is severe.

[Sheriff Buford]

So what happens when you have to sleep in a different bed, or your bed breaks, or the power goes out?

I sleep on a Temper-pedic adjustable bed. It is equipped with a 9 volt battery. If the power goes out, you can raise or lower the bed via the battery. I don't ever recall using it without electrical power, but the instructions say raising or lowering the bed once will drain the battery. My wife sleeps with the bed slightly raised.

Sheriff

[D.H.]

The OP has not replied yet.

I'm not sure if (s)he uses this bed in addition to CPAP ir instead of it.

Either way, I'm glad it's working for him (or her).

[chunkyfrog]

If, indeed, it is working for the apnea, and not just the psyche.

[lucas7bm]

So what happens when you have to sleep in a different bed, or your bed breaks, or the power goes out?

Well, pretty weak arguments. The OP's books under the bed won't need power, you know. And the two last problems also apply to XPAP therapy. If the power goes out or if our machines break, we're screwed too

***********

It is not new that posture interferes with obstructive sleep apnea, but changing the sleep posture won't be the gold standard therapy. It is common to find references supporting that sleeping on your side is better than on supine position. However, the upright position (probably because it's not that comfortable) isn't remembered much.

Nonetheless, there are some articles about it. This one, for example, says on the abstract:

"In the upright posture, the frequency of obstructive apnea was decreased (lying, 48.9 ± 5.4/h; sitting, 19.6 ± 6.9/h; p < 0.0005) [...] In approximately half the patients studied, obstructive sleep apnea was essentially abolished by the postural intervention."

Article Link: https://goo.gl/RGLG1X

I got the article using Sci-Hub and took a look. It's very interesting and suggests that the upright position could be an alternative. However, the XPAP therapy won't lose it's golden throne. In the conclusion, it says:

"In summary, it has been shown that the adoption of a sitting sleep posture reduces occlusive apnea and improves gas exchange in patients with moderately severe OSAS. The effect is most pronounced in patients with marked obesity and hypoxemia. This simple intervention might therefore prove useful in the treatment of this disorder: it requires no special equipment or expertise and could be easily instituted in hospital or at home. However, before it could be recommended as an alternative to the other established treatment modalities, additional studies are needed to establish its long-term efficacy and the degree of patient compliance."