Sleeping through the night

[jhill000]

Been a long time lurker, really love the site and the community. Knowing that there are other people out there going through the same stuff with OSA is reassuring somehow.

So here is what I'm dealing with, and any advice would be appreciated.

I've been using a Mirage Quattro hooked up to a Fisher & Paykel Sleepstyle 234. Aside from the dry skin on the forehead and the bridge of my nose, I was able to sleep well with the mask. Well, the mask wore out and I got a new one about a month ago and was having leak issues with it. Also, I had purchased a Mirage Liberty last year, but with the first generation nose pads, and I did not use the mask for more than a week. As I check the forums periodically here, I saw in a thread that the nose pads had been re-designed and purchased those with the new Quattro mask. When the Quattro wasn't working for me, I figured I'd give the Liberty a try again. With the new nose pads the Liberty was working a lot better, but would leak if I rolled over. Came here and found the "nylons fix" and that seemed to fix that. I really like the Liberty now as it isn't leaking and I'm not having any of the dry skin issues I was having with the Quattro. Also less mask on the face is pretty great. However, I can't seem to sleep more than 4 or 5 hours. I am able to get into bed most evening around 10, but find myself waking up around 3 or 4 in the morning. Today for example I've been up since 3:30 this morning, and I'm totally beat. I've tried relaxing, thinking positively I'll fall asleep, transcendental meditation, but now I'm getting so stressed about falling back asleep that it's just not happening. So I've got a mask I like, it seems to be working well, but just can't stay asleep, or fall back asleep. I'm leery of taking meds as I find sleeping pills make me really groggy for several hours in the AM after I wake up.

Any advice or tips on staying/going back to sleep?

Thanks in advance.

[Gerryk]

I originally had the same problem. I would finally just go back to sleep without the mask and I ended up feeling like crap anyway. I figured out I was trying too hard to fall asleep with the mask on and thinking about it too much. Just put it on and go to sleep don't think about it. I know that's hard to do but thinking about it is what kept me awake.

You need to find your own way of not thinking about it such as finding something else to think about, but not something that will keep you away.

Gerry

[gasp]

This may not be very helpful, but it may just take time. It may take time for you to stop noticing that there are new sensations such as how the mask feels on your face, and all the other sensations that are new. After two years I actually take comfort in putting on the mask and drifting off - but there was a time when I struggled and wanted to sling my mask across the room.

[Muse-Inc]

This is an issue that might resolve over time. Several hrs before dawn, our bodies begin to prepare for morning wakeup and activities by increasing certain hormones, one of which is cortisol. For many of us, these hormones cause us to wake up too early and we have trouble falling back to sleep. So far, I haven't seen any good suggestions for dealing with it. For me, this is mostly gone...when it does occur, it's usually when I've had a bad night of sleeping or been too stressed; the following night, I go to bed early so I can sleep longer and sorta makeup for the lost sleep. One thing I find helps a bit is to turn on my bedroom fan and cool my body...then, after I'm cooled, it's easier to fall asleep...doen't always work but it seems to help.

PS If it's constant and doesn't change, then a trial of 1-3 mgms of melatonin taken about an hr before maskup might help -- ask your sleep doc.

[DreamOn]

Been a long time lurker, really love the site and the community. Knowing that there are other people out there going through the same stuff with OSA is reassuring somehow.

So here is what I'm dealing with, and any advice would be appreciated.

I've been using a Mirage Quattro hooked up to a Fisher & Paykel Sleepstyle 234. Aside from the dry skin on the forehead and the bridge of my nose, I was able to sleep well with the mask. Well, the mask wore out and I got a new one about a month ago and was having leak issues with it. Also, I had purchased a Mirage Liberty last year, but with the first generation nose pads, and I did not use the mask for more than a week. As I check the forums periodically here, I saw in a thread that the nose pads had been re-designed and purchased those with the new Quattro mask. When the Quattro wasn't working for me, I figured I'd give the Liberty a try again. With the new nose pads the Liberty was working a lot better, but would leak if I rolled over. Came here and found the "nylons fix" and that seemed to fix that. I really like the Liberty now as it isn't leaking and I'm not having any of the dry skin issues I was having with the Quattro. Also less mask on the face is pretty great. However, I can't seem to sleep more than 4 or 5 hours. I am able to get into bed most evening around 10, but find myself waking up around 3 or 4 in the morning. Today for example I've been up since 3:30 this morning, and I'm totally beat. I've tried relaxing, thinking positively I'll fall asleep, transcendental meditation, but now I'm getting so stressed about falling back asleep that it's just not happening. So I've got a mask I like, it seems to be working well, but just can't stay asleep, or fall back asleep. I'm leery of taking meds as I find sleeping pills make me really groggy for several hours in the AM after I wake up.

Any advice or tips on staying/going back to sleep?

Thanks in advance.

Hello, jhill000. You mentioned that you purchased a Mirage Liberty last year. How long have you been using CPAP? If you've been using it for a long time, is the 4-5 hours of sleep a recent problem or a long-standing one? If this is a recent development, are there any daytime stresses/concerns in your life that you find yourself thinking about as soon as you wake up? Do the holidays stress you out? If I have a lot of things to do, I tend to sleep less and wake up earlier. It may help us to know how long you've been using CPAP and when this problem developed.

~ DreamOn

[Cavallo]

I've tried lots of things for sleep maintenance with varying degrees of success. I still haven't solved it completely, but it's much easier to deal with than it used to be. Getting back to sleep used to be hard. It' not so much anymore. Here's what I've found to be the most useful in my own body;

Magnesium glycinate
Glycine
Taurine
Theanine
Dairy avoidance

I find the mag helps me relax in general, taurine helps me sleep longer (6 hours rather than 4,) and glycine helps me fall asleep quickly, particularly when I wake prematurely. Theanine is useful in that regard as well, particularly if I've mistakenly overindulged in caffeine or related stimulants. Also, I find that if I ingest dairy products in the evening (particularly ice-cream for some reason) I'll lay there awake for hours with every square inch of my skin itching like mad. Seems like a food allergy to me, although I have no proof.

[jhill000]

Thanks all for the advice. I've really settled down now. I think it was a combination of switching from the full face to the hybrid, and the holidays with my sleep schedule getting thrown off. Used the full face for years and guess I just needed the time to adjust. Back to the normal routine and I've been really disciplined about my sleep times. I'm getting up maybe once a night now, and sleeping until the alarm.

[DreamOn]

Good to hear you're doing better now!!!

[macnore]

I am waking up to. I have been long time c-pap user (15 yrs.),I use a Res-med Micro (nose mask) on a Fisher&Paykel sleep-style 234. I too, am waking up after only 3.5 to 4.5 hours this has been going on for a few months and getting worse. I take zopiclone (10mg)to sleep. Sometime my mouth is very dry, like I have been mouth breathing for sometime; but the main problem is waking up with my heart bounding or racing. My blood pressure is well managed (105 to 115 over 50 to 60 pulse 48 to 55 (not bad for a 63 yr 290 lbs fat boy). I had the pressure reduced to 11 from 12 a couple of years ago when I lost some weight, but now I am finding the weight I lost (LOL).
I think what is happening is just when I am get into a deep sleep and could use the higher pressure my brain tells my heart pump more blood to it to make up for the lack of oxygen it is experiencing and this is why I am waking up. Is the pressure setting (11)too low? My heart bounding does not always happen, but I no longer sleep right through the night and am now finding myself very tired in the morning and during the day.
Hope I have giving enough info to help me decide on upping the pressure up to 11.5 to 12 or does anyone see something else?