Newbie Questions

[nomoore]

Hi everyone. I'm Nick.
I finally had a sleep study performed and was diagnosed with sleep apnea about a month ago. The results said I didn't have any apneas but I had a bunch of hypopneas. I think it was 17AHI overall and 23AHI during REM. I just finished my second sleep study where they titrate you and am waiting for the results so they can prescribe my first cpap machine.

The thing I'm worried about is that for both studies I actually had been sleeping pretty good so I wonder if the prescribed pressure will be right when I sleep worse. I currently go through cycles of sleeping really bad for a couple of weeks or so and then sleeping pretty good (relatively) for a bit. I'm pretty sure that I have full blown apnea at times because I tend to forget to breathe during the day sometimes and that's when I sleep the worst. I also suffer from allergies sometimes which definitely messes with my sleep. I hate taking meds for the allergies and they usually don't work that well anyway. It just seems to me that I would need a different pressure some times. Does this sound right? When you guys don't use your cpap machine do you sleep consistently bad or do you go through cycles of good and bad sleep? Should I explain this to my Doc and request an Auto CPAP? I'm not sure how much my GP knows about sleep apnea equipment. I'm just waiting on those results and don't know what to expect. My insurance pays 80% on DME and I don't want to have to pay for a CPAP machine that won't work for me all the time and then have to pay more later for an Auto CPAP.

[Babette]

Do your best to get an AUTO up front. I'm really fond of my M Series APAP. I'm currently running it 11-14 Auto, Cflex of 3. I don't like Aflex. It just feels weird.

Anyway - YES. It's okay that they titrate you one thing, and you experience very different types of sleep. You will learn to set you own machine, and to tweak your therapy to accommodate variables.

You may also find that therapy will decrease "bad nights". Mine have decreased, though not entirely gone away. Had one last night. Pure anxiety attack. Woke up at 2 am pissed off about a work situation I had no control over. Watched the last half of a very sweet Greer Garson movie, leaked out a few maudlin tears, and fell back asleep.

Get an auto. Get an auto. Get an auto. We're Americans. We're a culture that worships Autos.

LOL,
Babette

[ckrams]

I am struggling with my cpap and suffer from allergies as well. I recently had corrective surgery that fixed my sinuses so that it isn't a problem anymore. You may need to see an ENT and see if surgery is for you. The week after the surgery is pretty bad, but now I am glad I did it.

[rested gal]

Welcome to the board, Nick.

I'd get the Respironics REMstar Auto with A-flex M series machine. I like A-Flex even more than C-Flex, but the nice thing about that particular Auto with A-flex is that it has both... A-flex and C-flex. So, you can use whichever suits you best. You can even turn both off if you don't like either. Very versatile machine.

[nomoore]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I've been researching CPAP machines for a couple of weeks now (since I got my diagnosis) and I have definitely been leaning towards the respironics M series machines, specifically the Pro and the Auto with A-flex. I think I'll insist on the Auto then. Is there a downside to using the Auto feature? Do some people do better on a regular CPAP?

Babette, I feel for you with the anxiety attacks. I used to have bad social and general anxiety but with the help of a good therapist have gotten rid of most of the mental symptoms. Now I usually only have the physical symptoms without the mental freaking out part. Hopefully I can get that to subside some when I finally get some quality sleep.

[echo]

Is there a downside to using the Auto feature? Do some people do better on a regular CPAP?

Yes there is. Some people cannot handle the changing pressure, and suffer from sleep disruptions because of it. So instead of waking up due to the OSA they wake up from the pressure change. For those people straight CPAP is sometimes better. On the other hand, I think the actual APAP settings are important too -- if the machine has to jump from e.g. 7 to 10 cm due to an event, then your body will probably notice it more than if it's jumping from 9 to 10 cm (which means that the APAP has to be set up right!).

That said, you can always run an APAP in CPAP mode.... but if you get a CPAP, it won't do APAP mode.

Note that it's still possible to do "home titration" with a CPAP - it might just take longer, but it might also be more effective if you're one of the people that doesn't do well on APAP.