getting to sleep with the CPAP

[SleeplessNearSeattle]

I did the sleep study, got results, now have the CPAP lowered at my bedside...only now I can't sleep. I picked it up this past friday and every night I have checked the water, checked the hose, fitted the mask(not too tight), turn on "ramp" feature and attempt to sleep, but I can't.
I notice I start breathing and after few minutes it seems I am breathing in deoxygenated air and I find myself tipping the mask to release old air and letting the mask flush fresher air in. I then find myself doing this alot! I am not sure how it works. Does the exhaled air get vented out, how? It doesnt seem like it does it to quick. Then Once in the middle of the night water leaked over my cheeks from the mask. That was a weird event... So each night I have noticed I struggle with all this and around 4-5 am I end up pulling it off so I can try to sleep without picking at everything. HELP! How do you get a good night sleep with the space mask on!!!!

[jules]

The water is called rainout. There are several ways to try to deal with it.

Wrap the hose with a cover - you can makeshift a cover out of old towel or socks and tape or cable tie the cover in place.

You can lower the cpap so it is lower than you and raise the hose over the headboard of the bed. This way the water in the hose (condensation) will drain back into the humidifier rather than draining on you .

You can get a heated hose.

You can lower the heat on your humidifier. If you are near Seattle, you are getting tons of rain right now and you don't need extra humidity in the air. There are flood warnings out I know with an inch an hour in some places so this isn't going to be a fun night I know.

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The mask will vent out the air through the exhaust vents.

Are you using ramp and feel you are not having enough O2 during ramp?

What mask, machine, pressure are you using?

[CollegeGirl]

Hey sleepless,

As usual, good advice from jules there. I have one more question for you - have you tried using the machine WITHOUT the ramp? All the ramp does is lower your pressure for a few minutes for your comfort, to help you get used to it. But if you feel you're not getting enough air, just try it without it.

And yes, your mask has exhalation ports. You should distinctly feel air coming from your mask somewhere.

[Guest]

When I first started treatment I found difficulty breating before I went to sleep. The minimun pressure on my APAP had been left at the default setting of 4. I felt that I couldn't breathe in easily, like I was fighting the machine. Raising the minimum pressure solved the problem, just 1 step at a time until it felt comfortable. Too high and it could cause difficulty breathing out.

[georgepds]

The heated hose helped me with my rainout problem

Stick with it, it took me 6 months before I stuck to it. Now I'm glad I did. The thing that most helped me was this group, more specifically, the encore pro software used to track my night's sleep. Once you start viewing it, it becomes a bit of a challenge to use it for 8 or 9 hours with no leaks and AI<1.

If your equipment supports a record feature, I recommend you use it. i used to pull the mask off when I woke up in the night. Now I note the time, turn back to the pillow, and vow to get through a couple of more hours to keep up the stats. It's weird, and from left field, but it is what helped me

--G

[Peaktagger]

I have found that getting into bed and ready for sleep works a lot better if first put on my FFM, then lay down, pull the blankets up, and chill out and calm down for several minutes while my respiration slows way down. Only then do I plug in my hose, and check out for the night.

Peace

[Pinhead]

I remember that feeling when I first started also, I too raised my ramp pressure so that it started at 6 then went to 9 as the lowest settinmg it helped me alot.

Also if turning the Humidifer down doesn't stop the rainout turn it off but keep water in the tank the air will pass over the water and pick up some humidity. I find that is enough for me most of the year.

Jack

[Ichabod]

I found that low heat and no ramp was the best way for me to start out. What equipment do you have? That information can help us help you.

[rubberchimp]

If you're fairly new to your mask, it would be worthwhile reading through the docs and ensuring that it's assembled correctly and everything is in place. My mask has a clip on the hose attachment which can be fiddly at times and if it's not quite engaged properly fresh air will be blown out of the mask, leaving me rebreathing mostly stale air . Breathing slowly and shallowly seems to have an impact on the amount of exhaled air that stays in my mask too, even when it's properly assembled. Also, the positioning can make a difference... a little higher or lower on the face can change how the air is flowing inside. If I wear my mask too high, the feeling of rebreathing stale air is increased - sliding it down a little relieves the problem. I'm using a Resmed Activa withe the funky inflating cushion things, so I don't really know if this is a factor/possibility with other masks.

[rubberchimp]

If you're a bit sensitive to your surroundings when sleeping, ramp and expiration relief settings can make a big difference. At my titration study, the sleep tech commented that I woke up every time she changed the pressure... I laughed at this, but found that I couldn't get to sleep easily until I turned off the ramp and the expiration relief. The sound of the CPAP's motor changing speed with my breathing was a bit of a distraction (It's quiet, but continually shifting between really quiet and somewhat quiet was disturbing )

[bigk]

I found I could not breathe with a minimum setting of less than 6 - I suggest increasing the minimum to at least that.

[rippersmom]

I remember that feeling when I first started also, I too raised my ramp pressure so that it started at 6 then went to 9 as the lowest settinmg it helped me alot.

Also if turning the Humidifer down doesn't stop the rainout turn it off but keep water in the tank the air will pass over the water and pick up some humidity. I find that is enough for me most of the year.

Jack

Just thought I'd share my experiences to show how we differ in our comfort levels with xpap/masks/hoses. I personally like my ramp at 4.0, epr at 1. I can get all comfy, situate my "custom made" cpap pillow so my mask hangs in the curve of the pillow and relax as the pressure increases.

One thing I did change was the epr 1 setting to be on during the set level of pressure as well as ramp. I think I slept better with that setting last night. Still testing this one.

Humidifier: I started with it set pretty high and found that I would start feeling "smothery" in the middle of the night and have to turn it way down or off to breathe easier. Now I turn the heater on, but leave the setting at 1 or 2, never higher than that, and it works fine for me. I have not had a rainout problem at all, happily.

So, just keep experimenting until you find what works for you. Don't give up, you'll figure it out and there is lots of help here from lots of good folks.

Nancy in AZ

[Debjax]

I notice I start breathing and after few minutes it seems I am breathing in deoxygenated air and I find myself tipping the mask to release old air and letting the mask flush fresher air in. I then find myself doing this alot! I am not sure how it works. Does the exhaled air get vented out, how? It doesnt seem like it does it to quick. Then Once in the middle of the night water leaked over my cheeks from the mask. That was a weird event... So each night I have noticed I struggle with all this and around 4-5 am I end up pulling it off so I can try to sleep without picking at everything. HELP! How do you get a good night sleep with the space mask on!!!!

What do you have the humidifer set on? I know that it took me a few nights to get used to the warmer air from the heated humidifier, since it felt like the "stale air" effect I would get if my head were under the covers. I turned my humidifier off to passover, so the air was cooler coming in, then turned it to 1, and found that I could handle it there. Now I"m used to it, and the rainout has stopped also.

Try it on passover for a night or two.

[Babette]

You're new. There's a lot of variables to overcome.

First, I would suggest playing with your humidifier heat settings, and possibly turn them down. It sounds like you don't like the warm air feeling in your mask, and you're having trouble with condensation in your mask - also known as rainout.

Second, I'd make sure you have a hose cover on your main hose. https://www.cpap.com sells the SnuggleHose (which I personally don't like), you can make your own, or your can find others for sale. My new favorite is the Resmed brand Zippered cover. CPAP.com doesn't sell it, but I got mine here in Lakewood at OptionCare, a Walgreen's subsidiary. $18. I've also made my own out of fleece. Very easy to do. Just sew up a rectangular tube of fleece, put it on, and secure the ends with a strip of Velcro One Wrap wrapped around the outside.

Next, contemplate trying a different mask. I had to go through 8 masks in 6 weeks before I found one that would let me sleep all night, every night. There are numerous Free Mask Test Drives going on - see the link in my signature block below.

Lastly, have you tried Pur Sleep yet? http://www.pur-sleep.com Many users report this was the key to helping them get compliant with their cpap therapy. It seems kinda woo-woo, but it does help.

Good luck!
Babs