Wake up around 3:00 or 4:00 AM

[Spiritus]

Very misleading comment. My response was not to his suggestion, but rather to his admonition that "I should have figured things out by now". I'm already frustrated that I haven't been able to figure things out by now.

In any case, here are my machine particulars:

Settling - off
Mask - standard ( my mask is a Soyola)
tube length - 2M (I have the aussie heated tube)
Humidaire 2i
smartstart off
leak alert on
OPTIONS
auto appear on

CLINICAL MENU
-------------------
mode autoset
min press 7.6
max press 15
max settling 20
mask standard
tube length 2m
Humidaire 2i
smart start off
leak alert on
Menu type adv

SMART DATA
Mask fit on
pressure on
usage on
auto appear on

my average results

EFICACY DATA
-----------------
Press 12.0
Leak 0.16
AHI 12.0
AI 2
HI 10

Thank you,

Rob

HOW is your machine configured? Please list all of your settings in the machine......if you want to get this figured out.

In response, spirtus wrote"

So what if you'd thought I'd have had my "therapy working by now"? What should I do, give up because it's been a long time?

Den gave you a clear suggestion about you could do in order to get more help from the forum:

HOW is your machine configured? Please list all of your settings in the machine......if you want to get this figured out.

O.

[Hurricane]

Time to reprogram the brain, try rebooting, and set it for eight hours, I have a similar pattern of sleep, I go to bed at 11.30 wake up at 3.00 look at the clock, roll over and try thinking of sleep, rather than why I'm awake and somehow fall asleep in a few minutes, still in the reprogram cycle but gaining.
Ed

[Wulfman...]

OK......that's better.
I'm not terribly knowledgeable about the Autoset machine you have, but see a few things I would change or try.....if it were me.
I'm sure if others want to contradict me or if they see something that I don't, that'll be fine.

Den



n any case, here are my machine particulars:

Settling - off (I would turn this ON for about the time it takes to go to sleep)
Mask - standard ( my mask is a Soyola) (I'm not sure about this one)
tube length - 2M (I have the aussie heated tube)
Humidaire 2i
smartstart off (I think I would turn this ON)
leak alert on (your preference.....I don't have MINE turned on)
OPTIONS
auto appear on

CLINICAL MENU
-------------------
mode autoset
min press 7.6 (Since your pressure is making its way up to 12, I think this should be raised to 10) (either gradually or all at once)
max press 15
max settling 20
mask standard
tube length 2m
Humidaire 2i
smart start off
leak alert on
Menu type adv

SMART DATA
Mask fit on
pressure on
usage on
auto appear on

my average results

EFICACY DATA
-----------------
Press 12.0
Leak 0.16
AHI 12.0
AI 2
HI 10

Your apnea number isn't that terribly high, but I think by raising your bottom pressure may bring both numbers down (apneas & hypopneas).

Another alternative to using the pressure range in Auto mode would be to try single pressure. I would try starting at 12 (since your data is showing that' s where it's going).....and see what that produces. You would also be able to use EPR in single-pressure (CPAP) mode. One thought along with this is that if your pressure is rising at about the time you're waking up, it might be the pressure increases that are waking you up. With single-pressure, that will eliminate THAT part of it......this would also narrow the list of "the usual suspects" as to why you're waking up at that time.

There are still nights that I wake up after 3, 4 or 5 hours of sleep and feel rested enough to actually get up, but there's usually too many hours left in the night and I know I will NEED more sleep than that.....so I do whatever it takes to go back to sleep.

Your situation is not THAT unusual.....it's just that it's been going on too long for you and you NEED to find "successful" therapy.

Not trying to beat up on you......just trying a little "tough love" to help you out.

Best wishes,

Den

[Spiritus]

OK......that's better.

Not trying to beat up on you......just trying a little "tough love" to help you out.

Best wishes,

Den

Thanks for the "tough love", and sorry for my earlier testiness.

Putting the Autoset on standard CPAP might be a good idea, as the changes in pressure (and the changes in the sound of the machine) might be waking me up. I'm just concerned about setting a single pressure without a current titration study. When I told my doc I was using the Autoset, he decided I didn't need titration.


Rob

[ozij]

I would also take the path suggested by Den, for the reasons he mentions, and I wouldn't worry about the lack of titration. The machine is giving you a nightly equivatlent of a titration study. Frequently when autos are used for titration at home the RTs afterwards may take the auto's recommended pressure and set it on straight pap.


O.

_________________

CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): Titration, auto

[Spiritus]

I would also take the path suggested by Den, for the reasons he mentions, and I wouldn't worry about the lack of titration. The machine is giving you a nightly equivatlent of a titration study. Frequently when autos are used for titration at home the RTs afterwards may take the auto's recommended pressure and set it on straight pap.

I'll give it a try tonight.

[Ms Piggy]

Hi, I also wake up a lot around 4 a.m., which doesn't allow much sleep if you do not go to bed fairly early, as tonight!,
I sometimes find that putting an eye mask on to completely block out any light helps me to go back to sleep. good luck, it's all very frustrating, especially when feeling sleep deprived and "foggy"

[speer]

My problem is some time during the night I take the mask off and have no memory of doing so. I want to wear the mask all night but for some reason I pull it off. I even pulled it off during my sleep study with it.

[Spiritus]

My problem is some time during the night I take the mask off and have no memory of doing so. I want to wear the mask all night but for some reason I pull it off. I even pulled it off during my sleep study with it.

That's what happens with me as well.

I set the machine to cpap at 12, and woke up at 4 as usual last night. Tonight I'm going to put it back on autoset mode, but raise the minimum to 9. So it will be min 9 and max 12.

Rob

[ozij]

Did you wake up with the mask or without it?
Did you put the mask back on?

O.

[Spiritus]

Did you wake up with the mask or without it?
Did you put the mask back on?

O.

When I woke up, I seem to recall the mask leaking. I tried adjusting it, but got so frustrated, I removed it and went to the bathroom, thinking I'd put it back on when I got back. But for some reason, although I never have trouble falling asleep with the mask on when I go to bed, when I got back to bed, and put the mask on, I was unable to sleep. I then removed the mask, and must have fallen asleep very quickly.

It's almost like I need to "reset" my brain after waking up at 4 am, so that I can somehow get back in the mode I was in when I first went to bed. It's never hard falling asleep with the mask when I first go to bed.

Rob

[ozij]

Try wipe your face and mask with non-oily baby wipes - I've been using something for newborns that seem to even make the mask cling to my notstrils better.

I know this sound almost undoable - but if you can't fall asleep with the mask on - get out of bed; Tell yourself that sleeping without the mask is unacceptable behavior.

You really have to teach your unconcious brain that there will be no such thing as sleeping without the mask. It won't happen without your concious involvement.

O.

[Spiritus]

You really have to teach your unconcious brain that there will be no such thing as sleeping without the mask. It won't happen without your concious involvement.

I will try the above suggestions tonight.

Rob

[Nodzy]

I've been very diligent with my CPAP compliance, but I find that almost every night, I wake up quite early (well before sunrise) and fall back to sleep without my mask on. I've mentioned it to my sleep doctor three times now, but he seems to not want to address the issue. He told me that if I wake up at 4 pm, I've already derived most of the benefit from CPAP. To me this doesn't make much sense, since I go to bed around 11 or 12, and fall asleep somewhere around 1 AM.

What do you folks thing about this situation?

Spiritus,

I suspicion that your doctor suffers from a non-contagious, but rarely curable, Cranio-Rectalitis condition.

As some have stated above, three (3) hours of quality PAP therapy per night is not enough. It helps, but falls far short of optimum. It’s like having a large faucet leak and working on it and managing to trim the leak down by 40%, but still having a substantial 60% leak. That continuing leak will cost you.

I similarly suffer from the wake-for-no-apparent-reason syndrome. If I manage to get six hours of sleep, even in two or three portions, it’s a good night. If I manage to get seven to eight hours of sleep, even in portions, it’s a great night. Usually, I have to force myself to try to sleep longer with the mask on. Sometimes I manage to, and other times the attempts are unsuccessful.

As for pulling the mask off without any recall of having done it – I found that adding aroma therapy started resolving that problem. Switching to the Hybrid FF mask also greatly helped to keep the mask from hopping off of my face.

Since switching masks and adding aroma to the regimen I have far fewer unintended mask-off episodes and shorter ones when they do occur. And, generally, get more hours per night of theraputic sleep with the mask on.

Nodzy

[Wulfman...]

My problem is some time during the night I take the mask off and have no memory of doing so. I want to wear the mask all night but for some reason I pull it off. I even pulled it off during my sleep study with it.

That's what happens with me as well.

I set the machine to cpap at 12, and woke up at 4 as usual last night. Tonight I'm going to put it back on autoset mode, but raise the minimum to 9. So it will be min 9 and max 12.

Rob

Don't necessarily expect overnight results. Too many changes too quickly won't help your system adapt.

What kind of "numbers" did you see on your machine for last night?

Den