New user falling asleep with CPAP (alcohol, nose discomfort, etc)

[HealthNutty]

Finally have my CPAP and I've been using it for 2 weeks now. I felt a lot better even after the first night, but now two weeks in I still feel tired. My AHI scores recently have been around 3 (untreated was 22 overall, 50 during REM). I know part of the problem is I'm using alcohol (2 drinks) to help fall asleep. I'm hoping to ween off the alcohol once I get used to the mask/cpap. If I try to fall asleep without it, I just lay there for several hours and can't fall asleep. I have the nasal mask, which was comfortable at first but then started feeling some discomfort like it has been rubbed raw when you use too many tissues. That feeling peaked 4 days ago and is getting better every night.

Based on m sleep study my Dr. has me on a constant pressure of 9. I downloaded sleepyhead and have two nights of detailed data.

[ChicagoGranny]

Welcome and please fill out your equipment profile - https://www.cpaptalk.com/ucp.php?i=prof ... pment_info

I have the nasal mask, which was comfortable at first but then started feeling some discomfort like it has been rubbed raw when you use too many tissues. That feeling peaked 4 days ago and is getting better every night.

If you continue to have problems, please ask and you will get help.

I'm hoping to ween off the alcohol once I get used to the mask/cpap.

Good idea. You probably know that alcohol is not good for healthy sleep architecture. You might want to try one drink at dinner and one at bedtime until you can taper off entirely at bedtime. A drink or two at dinner is fine if you leave three or four hours until bedtime.

[chunkyfrog]

Since diabetes often exists along with OSA, a little warning:
Alcohol, especially in the evening, can be quite dangerous for diabetics.
Just a safety note . . .