What to expect in the beginning

[NaomiTa]

I'm new. What am I to expect the first week of using a cpap. Miracle restful get up and dance kinda of sleep the first day??? I haven't slept in years, I think. That's why I'm here.

[katcw]

Don't we all wish that were true!! But for most of us, it is a gradual process that can take anywhere from days to months I've been working on this for nearly a month, and while I am feeling better, I'm not up and dancing yet. I'm still napping on weekends, but not dozing off while driving home from work or in front of the TV.

[RipVW]

Hello & Welcome, NaomiTa! Glad you found this forum—SO much useful info and everyone here is so willing to help!

You're lucky to have found this forum as you begin CPAP--took me almost year before I found this place and, with the help of folks here, got my CPAP therapy working as it should. It does take time to get everything tweaked and working at its best, so patience is key as one begins CPAP. Some feel better & more rested almost immediately, but for most of us it takes longer to feel the positive effects.

Here's some helpful advice from one of the forum's knowledgeable users--

Knowledge is power, so get busy

Watching this will help -
http://www.resmed.com/en-au/clinicians/ ... 40x380.swf

Start at the Yellow Lite bulb - Our Collective Wisdom found at the top of the page at http://www.cpaptalk.com
our-collective-cpap-wisdom.php
new-cpap-user.php

If you've been reading - do you have your PSG? Use the software?

Watching this will help -
http://www.resmed.com/en-au/clinicians/ ... 40x380.swf
http://www.resmed.com/en-us/patients/un ... 40x380.swf
http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/ ... -2/742141/

take a breath, put on your reading glasses and get comfy
there is NO wisdom pill
and one size does NOT fit ALL
Faces are like fingerprints

Reading this will help -
For Acronyms & Definitions
http://www.sleepnet.com/definition.html

Where A CPAP Newbie Should Start
viewtopic/t35702/Where-A-CPAP-Newbie-Should-Start.html

READ cpaptalk.com FAQ
faq.php


Learn to search
use Google & the syntax "search words" site:http://www.cpaptalk.com
or the Advanced Search at the top of each page.
or here - viewtopic/t35702/search.php

This is the Yellow Lite bulb you'll hear people mention aka "Our Collective Wisdom" -
our-collective-cpap-wisdom.php


Read some more.
Good Luck,
GumbyCT

"You are getting sleepy . . ."

[NaomiTa]

It is about how you feel in the morning after the first few nights on Cpap. Tired, but not sleepy, dizzy, confused the first couple of hours after waking? Are headaches common? The "sleep debt" may be expensive. During the last sleep study on the cpap, I actually felt pretty good that day with the above symptoms. I haven't had my consultation with my dr. yet about my test results. I just want to sleep, and feel that I have.

[plr66]

I have been using my cpap 100% of every night since starting out at the first of last September. I think that I've had undiagnosed OSA since about 1987 or so. At least that's when my sleep partner first complained of being unable to sleep without earplugs due to my snoring....and that's when the night-drooling started, I think. It has been over the past 5 years that my symptoms accelerated exponentially and frighteningly.

I have yet to be able to say that I feel "refreshed" upon getting up. But I do feel SO much better!! And from the first week, I have been ready to get out of bed every morning after 8-9 hours sleep, rather than dragging my body to an upright position, but feeling dizzy, nauseous, drunk, unable to hold my eyes open, totally unable to think, and fighting with myself to stagger to the shower. Within the first 1-3 weeks I remember being amazed that my bathroom trips went from 3-5 per night, to once per night. And I was astounded at how quickly I fell asleep from my very first night on cpap. Used to take me an hour or more to quit thrashing around before I could get to a fitful, and still-thrashing-semi-sleep--and in my first cpap week I was asleep in 15-20 minutes. I also clearly remember that right from the start, I have only moved from one side to the other because I get sore from lying so still! This is all good!

The other changes have been very slow for me, despite my data being remarkably & consistently good (AHI below 2.5 from the start, and below 1.0 for the past 8 months--leak rate below mfg. recommended level). I try not to focus on the wished-for, but yet-unattained improvements. Attitude is everything.

I guess I would recommend that you just approach this adventure with no expectations aside from your own diligence to patiently get your mask, your sleep hygiene, and your cpap therapy optimized--and with a big sense of curiosity and apprecation for every little positive change you experience. Your body will dictate how your recovery progresses and at what pace. I am grateful for this forum in helping me to get it right, every time I have a new challenge.

[Sleepyheadgirl]

Hello I am new. Found this forum tonight. Wow I am so grateful to have landed here. Already I have been encouraged and learned a lot. I especially appreciate the above comments re: how long it takes to feel the benefits (have been using my machine 2 days). I have read so many testimonials and heard people say how they felt amazingly better right away, so was really hoping for that, but so far no big change, but I will be patient. I never knew how many people had this condition. It is great to not feel all alone. I am really hoping to FINALLY deal with symptoms that I have had for years; been treated for depression and adrenal fatigue, unable to lose weight, just so darn TIRED OF BEING TIRED! I'm sure most people think it is all in my head, but truly I would not wish how I have felt for so long on anyone.

[plr66]

Hello I am new. Found this forum tonight. Wow I am so grateful to have landed here. Already I have been encouraged and learned a lot. I especially appreciate the above comments re: how long it takes to feel the benefits (have been using my machine 2 days). I have read so many testimonials and heard people say how they felt amazingly better right away, so was really hoping for that, but so far no big change, but I will be patient. I never knew how many people had this condition. It is great to not feel all alone. I am really hoping to FINALLY deal with symptoms that I have had for years; been treated for depression and adrenal fatigue, unable to lose weight, just so darn TIRED OF BEING TIRED! I'm sure most people think it is all in my head, but truly I would not wish how I have felt for so long on anyone.

Welcome, Sleepyheadgirl! Yes this forum is truly a great place to be. Please go to the User Control Panel and register your equipment and any other info you can, so that all of us can be more specifically helpful to you.

[Juliebove]

My first week was no fun. I would lay in bed trying to breathe. For some reason, my breathing pattern does not seem to fit that of the machine. It was quite unsettling. Took me next to forever to get to sleep. It wasn't at all a refreshing sleep and I would awake exhausted. Could not wait to get back to sleep without the machine on.

Been at it now for about 4 months. Am a little more used to the machine now. Still don't feel refreshed and still usually go back to sleep without the mask on.

For the last several days I haven't used the machine at all. First it was stomach problems and feeling the need to leap from bed to throw up...although that never happened... And then it was the heat. When it is hot like this, my mask slides all over my face and it's annoying. I found myself leaning towards the machine and for some reason wanting to put the mask on. But I never did.

I feel no more rested nor less rested if I use the machine or don't. I just don't see a difference. But I seem to sleep more comfortably without it.

[kteague]

As you can see, the experiences vary greatly. Expect the best, prepare for the worst - you'll hit somewhere along that spectrum, right? What you can know is that you are headed in the right direction and have every reason to be hopeful about feeling better. I read your post in another thread and my heart went out to you - I have been at that place where it felt as if I was slipping helplessly into oblivion and was beginning to wonder if anyone or anything was going to be able to stop my descent.

Unfortunately my early experience was with a doctor who was not helpful and I had not yet found this site. One thing you will read about is machines that capture treatment data rather than just usage (compliance) data. If I had one word of advice to a newbie it would be to start off with a data capable machine. Having one in the early stages could have made my adjustment more methodical instead of flying blind and playing guessing games that resulted in wrong conclusions by those supposedly helping me in my care.

Once I did get a data capable machine and figured out my treatment needed tweaked and implemented helpful hints from here, I began to see improvement. If your treatment is effective and mask is working okay for you, I recommend you work harder than I did at maximizing the time spent on the machine. It's so easy to dismiss a few hours here and a few hours there, when it's really only in getting consistent and adequate hours of treatment that will bring you the results you desire. Those of us dealing with other sleep disorders and health issues may have more trouble accomplishing that. Don't let us scare you. Keep in mind that forums like this tend to draw those with problems, as that is their purpose. There's probably a gazillion happy cpap users out there restfully sleeping away their nights and enjoying their days. And plenty here doing the same.

Assume you will be doing the same with minimal adjustments, and will be feeling better in record time.

Kathy

[karessamom]

Hello I am new. Found this forum tonight. Wow I am so grateful to have landed here. Already I have been encouraged and learned a lot. I especially appreciate the above comments re: how long it takes to feel the benefits (have been using my machine 2 days). I have read so many testimonials and heard people say how they felt amazingly better right away, so was really hoping for that, but so far no big change, but I will be patient. I never knew how many people had this condition. It is great to not feel all alone. I am really hoping to FINALLY deal with symptoms that I have had for years; been treated for depression and adrenal fatigue, unable to lose weight, just so darn TIRED OF BEING TIRED! I'm sure most people think it is all in my head, but truly I would not wish how I have felt for so long on anyone.

Welcome! I am waiting for my first sleep study on Saturday! Hopeing to find out why i'm so tired all the time too and why i don't sleep well at night. Stick around the forums and come to chat in the evnings if you can--you will learn lots! I found this forum and chat when my husband was dxed last year with SA. I have learned much to help him. He's doing great on CPAP now and has since about the first day. From what I hear from the forum is sometimes it takes awhile to catch up with the sleep debt that you've had for so long. Give it some time. My dr. actually told me that SA is a very UNDERdiagnosed condition and there's alot of people who go around not knowing they have it.

[Mike_Snodgrass]

This forum is VERY useful. I've been using the CPAP equipment only 20 days and am having mixed results. The mask will wake me up in the middle of the night with small leaks and is then very problematic in getting a good fit. I do feel more calm in the morning, but am not getting consistent sleep. Couple of questions:

1. Do the CPAP machines actually measure Apneas or just if there are leaks in the mask? I took my smart card in and then just told me it had good data - not any real leaks.
2. Should I expect to have to wake up 2-3 times per night and adjust the mask? Seems if I wake up at 2am I cannot get it adjusted again correctly and I spend a lot of time getting it to fit right and also holding myself in a perfectly still position and trying to sleep uncomfortably like that.

Thx!

[Pugsy]

1. Do the CPAP machines actually measure Apneas or just if there are leaks in the mask? I took my smart card in and then just told me it had good data - not any real leaks.
2. Should I expect to have to wake up 2-3 times per night and adjust the mask? Seems if I wake up at 2am I cannot get it adjusted again correctly and I spend a lot of time getting it to fit right and also holding myself in a perfectly still position and trying to sleep uncomfortably like that.

If your machine is the one you have in your profile, Respironics M series Plus, you don't have data capabilities and thus no way to even monitor leaks. It only shows hours of use or in other words, compliance use only. So taking the card in to the DME doesn't show anything and how they could tell you "not any real leaks" was a big fat lie.
Please confirm which machine you do have and if it is indeed the "Plus" you need to see if it is possible to get the data capable version of the Respironics M Series CPAP machine which is the "Pro" to be able to see the data that these machines offer which includes Apnea events, Hypopnea (and the AHI total) events, leak rates, flow limitations and snores if you have the software. From the LCD screen you see AHI totals and leak rate for 7 and 30 day average but you can clear the averages daily thus getting daily data and not averages.

Edit: Did I read the information correctly about this particular "Plus" machine with the smart card module and it will give more than compliance data?

The M Series Plus with C-Flex and SmartCard Module gives patients and doctors the convenience of remotely monitoring therapy effectiveness. The M Series Plus with SmartCard Module allows users to take the SmartCard to a doctor with Encore Software, where they can make changes to (pressure, ramp, and other features) from the office without actually having the machine present.

[Mike_Snodgrass]

If your machine is the one you have in your profile, Respironics M series Plus, you don't have data capabilities and thus no way to even monitor leaks. It only shows hours of use or in other words, compliance use only. So taking the card in to the DME doesn't show anything and how they could tell you "not any real leaks" was a big fat lie.
Please confirm which machine you do have and if it is indeed the "Plus" you need to see if it is possible to get the data capable version of the Respironics M Series CPAP machine which is the "Pro" to be able to see the data that these machines offer which includes Apnea events, Hypopnea (and the AHI total) events, leak rates, flow limitations and snores if you have the software. From the LCD screen you see AHI totals and leak rate for 7 and 30 day average but you can clear the averages daily thus getting daily data and not averages.

Edit: Did I read the information correctly about this particular "Plus" machine with the smart card module and it will give more than compliance data?

Excellent - will verify. Thank you.