New to all of this

[bighorn1]

Hello everybody.Iam green to cpap as well as computers,so this is going to take me a while,good thing im up.I am having lots of difficulty adjusting to my new lifestyle.I cant seem to fall asleep with my gear on.On a good night i keep my mask on for 2 to 3 hours before i take it off.I am using the resmeds9 at a setting of 9 ,humidity at around 1 with a quattro full mask.Its been a month since i started treatment and staying positive isnt always that easy.I feel some comfort in finding this site and any suggestions ,thoughts or ideas would be appreciated by my wife and myself.Thanks for letting me vent a little,looking forward to reading any responses

[kteague]

Welcome! You are in a good place to talk thru any problems and hear what has helped others. Don't worry about being new to computers too. Just learn those things that are necessary for a while and you'll pick up more things as you get more familar. There is an area at the top with lots of information for new CPAP users. Good reading.

As you think about getting so little sleep with the mask on, can you elaborate on why? Mask leaks? Mask discomfort? Trouble getting used to the air? Can't fall asleep - for how long? Can't stay asleep - how long? If you can get real specific you'll get more targeted replies. Others who have used the Quattro will jump in once you explain what is going wrong (if you can).

I was one who had difficulties early in my treatment. Even quit a while. Am so very glad I resumed, and 5 years later, I'm just grateful those days are behind me. It's hard to be positive when you're getting so little sleep and not seeing how this is going to turn around. Hope it helps to know others have been there and are offering support, and hopefully you'll soon be on the other side too!

[Emilia]

Hi and welcome! The first thing you want to do is to go up to the top left , just under the search and click User Control Panel. Then....

1. Go to Profile
2. Choose Edit Equipment on the left
3. From the pull down menus, choose your gear
4. When done, choose to show your choices in TEXT, not pictures
5. Submit/Save and now your gear will show up at the bottom of each post your write as mine does below in blue.

Folks with the same machine and/or mask will be able to see you have the same stuff and can give you detailed information and help. Most folks will discover the root of their issues are either mask related or pressure related. So... details in explaining what is going on is imperative.

Good luck.... and keep reading the forum and learning!

[bighorn1]

Hello everybody.Iam green to cpap as well as computers,so this is going to take me a while,good thing im up.I am having lots of difficulty adjusting to my new lifestyle.I cant seem to fall asleep with my gear on.On a good night i keep my mask on for 2 to 3 hours before i take it off.I am using the resmeds9 at a setting of 9 ,humidity at around 1 with a quattro full mask.Its been a month since i started treatment and staying positive isnt always that easy.I feel some comfort in finding this site and any suggestions ,thoughts or ideas would be appreciated by my wife and myself.Thanks for letting me vent a little,looking forward to reading any responses

I dont know why i cant fall asleep.Ive used the ramp from 45 min to not using it at all.Thinking about trying it without humidifer.The washroom visits dont seem to be helping either.Hoping its just a comfort issue that i will get used to because mask doesnt seem to be leaking

[lbw]

Welcome! you have come to the right place for support,
If you find your mask claustrophobic feeling at night some find it helpful to wear your mask/machine while you are awake relaxing (while watching TV) to get used to it.

Dont give up. You will feel better

[Mary Z]

Hang in there, you're in the right place. Wearing the mask and using the machine does take some getting used to. Some people find a mild sedative, or some tylenol PM will help them get over the initial adjustment period. I find that cuddling with my partner and not putting my mask on until I'm good and sleepy helps. When I turn over to go to sleep I just mask up and I'm asleep usually in a matter of minutes. Checking your numbers in the morning makes each night an adventure. Plus hopefully you'll find you have more energy after a few weeks on the machine (if that was a problem before). Anyway, welcome to the forum. Keep asking questions.

[hannahF]

Hi - - i was just fitted 3 weeks ago with the exact same equipment as you. I was unconsiously taking the mask off , getting sores, feeling claustophobic etc. But now, three weeks later, I am feeling so much better.

I can wear the mask and it finally stays on all night. I am no longer waking 3 -5 times in the night to get up - i stay down the whole night through with a few exceptions. I just have a couple of issues with the Resmed s9 equipment:

1. If I do get up and take my mask off briefly, the machine seems to detect that - and turns off. I didnt realize this the first couple of times, and when I reapplied the mask less than two minutes later - I felt the air pressure so I thought I was 'all set'. This air pressure turned out to be the "cool down" mode. So I was wearing that mask with no benefit. I woke up a few hours later dazed as to what was going on. There needs to be some feature to temporarily pause this machine.

2. The quattro is comfy - but I had a sore on my nose for a couple of weeks. it seems to be better now that I purchased the "comfort gel pad". My only other issue - I cant read books easily - which I like to do to relax and unwind while trying to fall asleep. I may try the hybrid next time to compare the two....

My last few tricks - I purchsed the CPAP pillow which is very nice, and the aromatherapy oils to put behind the filter - these really helped the adjustment period....

Lastly - I am finally awake all day without feeling terribly drowsy, wow - what a difference....I still have a hard time getting up in the morning, but once I do, I am no longer slogged with immense needs to take a nap.

Hope this helps - keep with it....

[robysue]

I am having lots of difficulty adjusting to my new lifestyle.I cant seem to fall asleep with my gear on.On a good night i keep my mask on for 2 to 3 hours before i take it off.

bighorn1, I bid you a sad welcome to my "CPAP-induced insomnia club."

I think that you may need to work on the insomnia as well as work on getting desensitized to to the CPAP mask and machine. So here's my two cents worth of advice on the insomnia:

1) Do NOT lie in bed for hours on end when you are WIDE AWAKE and CAN'T FALL ASLEEP. This will just make the insomnia worse. Put off going to bed until you are so sleepy that you can't keep your eyes open. And note that feeling sleepy is not the same as feeling tired, relaxed or exhausted. If you wake up during the night and CAN'T GET BACK TO SLEEP for a reasonable amount of time (say maybe 30 minutes at most) then consider getting up out of bed and going into a DIFFERENT room to do something very quiet and non-stimulating. That means---don't start watching tv or reading or web browsing while you're lying in your bed since those things are likely to make your brain MORE ALERT and LESS SLEEPY. Listening to very quiet music in a semi-dark room is what I have to do when my bedtime insomnia starts to act up.

2) Get ALL the CPAP stuff ready well before bedtime so that the only thing you need to do is put the mask on and turn the machine on. Hopefully you can even try to "prefit" the mask where all you'll need to do is fiddle slightly with the adjustments.

3) Think about all the other things that affect your sleep hygiene. For me, that means no caffeine after noon. It also means nothing to eat after 6:00 or 7:00pm---except sometimes I can handle a small whole-grain snack a couple of hours before I go to sleep.

4) To help get used to the feeling of the mask as well as help you learn how to get the mask adjusted, you might try this---but do it VERY FAR AWAY FROM BEDTIME. In the middle of the afternoon or very, very early evening, put the mask on when you are sitting in a comfortable chair in a room OTHER THAN your bedroom. And run the machine for a couple of hours while you do something to take your mind off the fact that you have a hose attached to your nose. Do this everyday until you really aren't dreading the feeling of having the mask on your face. And of course, continue to try to sleep with the mask at bedtime.

5) Try to remember that you need your body and mind to start associating putting the CPAP mask on with TIME TO GO TO SLEEP instead of TIME TO WAKE UP. That will be most easily accomplished if you help your mind and body firmly associate lying in bed with GOING TO SLEEP. And as long as you're lying in bed wide awake for hours at a time, you are undermining that very important association. Other things you might need to avoid are reading in bed, watching tv in bed, and browsing the internet in bed. You might want to try to avoid doing anything in your bedroom except for sleep and sex for at least a while until you learn to fall asleep with the mask on.

6) Don't be too hard on your self if you are taking your mask off in your sleep. If you wake up and the mask is not on, then simply and calmly put it back on WITHOUT FUSSING AT YOURSELF. If you are consciously taking the mask off, try making yourself GET OUT OF BED if you want the mask off. You want to get your brain and body to both accept that "IN BED" means "MASK ON".

Good luck and learn to manage the insomnia before it starts creating serious problems of its own in addition to those you have from the apnea.