Do you wake up feeling refreshed?

[Blackjackcat]

I don't remember the last time I have felt like that. I am early in my treatment for SA, but I have gone some full nights using the cpap(I have gone the last 5 nights in a row). I have yet to wake up "refreshed". Is that a pipe dream or is that something I may have in the future? I struggle with cpap treatment, and I figure if I would just wake up feeling good once, I may have a better chance of staying with this. I know this will be a ongoing battle, and I intend to stay with it, but just looking for a light at the end of the tunnel.

[Slartybartfast]

"Refreshed" is a relative word. "Compared to what?" is a reasonable question to ask.

I had a rather dramatic and immediate response to the Hose. I didn't feel so much refreshed as just not dragging-butt tired, feeling like I hadn't slept. Sitting on the edge of the bed trying to pry my eyes open. That all vanished on Morning #1. Now, the alarm goes off at 0530, I lie in bed thinking what I have to do today, then pull the mask off, get out of bed and get going. There's none of the stumbling around, feeling like I want to crawl back in bed and sleep some more. I'm up and ready to take on the day.

So if that's "feeling refreshed," then, yeah, I feel refreshed.

[OutaSync]

I haven't seen the light at the end of the tunnel, yet, either. But then, I can't ever remember waking up refreshed. Even as a child I had a hard time getting to sleep and a hard time waking up. My mother used to have to pull off my covers to wake me up when banging on my door didn't work. I heard it, I just couldn't wake up. Now the alarm has to be blaring for half an hour before I realize it's not a part of my dream, but time to wake up. And that is after waking up numerous times during the night with a tiny leak.

I know that my case is the exception. Lots, if not most, of the people here are getting good therapy from their machines and are sleeping well and waking refreshed.

[Janknitz]

I wake up not wanting to take the mask off, because I feel SO GOOD. Refreshed is probably how I feel, but what I recognize is feeling very peaceful and calm. No matter what battles I had with the mask and noise and cold air during the night, when I wake up the mask is comfortable, the cool air feels good or is at least not chilling me, and I can't even hear the sounds that bothered me so much at bedtime. And I feel so relaxed and calm!!!! It's like the best illicit drug in the world (dont' tell, or EVERYONE will want to be on CPAP )

With my untreated OSA I always woke in a great panic, full of negative thoughts about how awful the day was going to be, how awful the day before was, and how terrible I am. I'd leap out of bed because I had all these battles to fight, and I felt like dirt when I got up. This, I'm sure, is directly related to all the adrenalin my body was circulating during the night trying to keep me breathing. Now that is gone, and I wake up feeling so calm. I remember feeling this way when I was a very young child when I would wake up.

I want to stay in bed forever and savor the feeling, but gradually I become aware of stiffness, soreness, the need to use the restroom, etc. and I have to get up.

So hang in there. This is the reward for all the difficulty in getting used to CPAP--I actually look forward to going to bed at night now (I went through a period of dreading bedtime during my adjustment to CPAP) because I can't wait to feel like this again.

[jilliansue]

I can feel the difference. I do not spring out of bed upon awakening, but after I get up, I do feel more wide awake much more quickly than I used to. And I don't get that bone-deep fatigue during the day. Not a hugely dramatic improvement, but an improvement to be sure! I have been at it for 5 months. It took me quite awhile to be able to go all night with the mask and machine. Now, I routinely go all night. It can take awhile to find what works best for each of us individually, that is what I am finding. My health is worth it -- and so is your!

Jillian

[Blackjackcat]

I struggle to get out of bed and get the day going. I feel like I could sleep a few more hours, even on weekends when I get more sleep. I am hoping, with time, this gets better. I may have noticed a bit more energy during the day, but I am hoping it is not a placebo effect. I want to feel like others in this thread, but I feel more like outasync does.

[Uncle_Bob]

Actually i avoid asking myself that question each morning.

I judge my nights sleep and the END of the following day, including reading the AHI and downloading any data.

I try my hardest not to ask how i feel each morning as it tends to lead to unpleasant feelings including dissapointment and anxiety.

I find that works best for me, for now.

[BlackSpinner]

I struggle to get out of bed and get the day going. I feel like I could sleep a few more hours, even on weekends when I get more sleep.

That sounds like the rest of the family that does not have OSA. We don't do mornings gracefully. Even though I wake up early, I am like a bear fresh out of hibernation before breakfast. Always have been.

[robysue]

In my sleep log for the insomnia I have written that I have woken up feeling "almost refreshed" more than once now. I know what I mean. I also know what I mean by "refreshed." I'm not quite there yet. But on my best days, I can tell what refreshed is supposed to mean and I can tell that I am genuinely almost there. I think that if/when I can ever get the distrupting awakenings eliminated (as opposed to the merely annoying ones), then I really will wake up refreshed again.

And I do remember the feeling from when I was younger---and even (at least occasionally) from as recent as four or five years ago. It's a great feeling: waking up ready to face the world on it's own terms rather than having to hope against hope (day after day) that you'll be able to muddle through in one piece.

[Debjax]

I'm not sure what "refreshed" is to me...but....

For most of my life, morning was NOT something I was good at. Would have two alarm clocks, because waking up was just so darn hard. If left to my own devices, I would wake up "on my own" generally somewhere between 10:00 am and noon. That was IF I got to bed before midnight.

Then I went on CPAP. Half the time I don't even bother setting an alarm clock any longer, since I generally wake up on my own between 6:30 and 7:00 am. My family wants to know who I am and what I did with their sister/mother/daughter. Hubby understands, he's on CPAP also. We definitely can tell the difference, we've been on it now for just over 2 years and have a 100% compliance rate. (Our sleep doc says that's better than his own compliance).

For hubby, the machine plus the combination of iron supplements and welbutrin in the evening to get rid of his RLS and arm movements at night have made all the difference in the world. We love it and won't sleep without it.

[Blackjackcat]

I can't wait to get to where some of you are(if I ever get there). I have had the cpap for around 7 months, my longest I have used it for is 5 days straight(recently). I had gone a month without touching it. I hope to been on streak where it is natural to be using it.

[Wulfman...]

I can't wait to get to where some of you are(if I ever get there). I have had the cpap for around 7 months, my longest I have used it for is 5 days straight(recently). I had gone a month without touching it. I hope to been on streak where it is natural to be using it.

Good grief! You can't just use it once in awhile or hit and miss and expect good results. You have to use it every night and for at least six to seven hours each night (at the minimum). It can take weeks and months of continuous use to start to feel the benefits.

It could also be that your machine is not configured properly and/or that you're leaking air out your mouth. I would suggest editing your profile and putting in your pressure settings and other options in the machine setup. If you don't have software to monitor your therapy, I would strongly suggest getting it. Also, if you suspect that you're leaking air out your mouth (ever have dry mouth when you wake up?), you need to plug the "pie hole".

This therapy is "baby steps". Hang in there and stick with it.


Den

[Blackjackcat]

I can't wait to get to where some of you are(if I ever get there). I have had the cpap for around 7 months, my longest I have used it for is 5 days straight(recently). I had gone a month without touching it. I hope to been on streak where it is natural to be using it.

Good grief! You can't just use it once in awhile or hit and miss and expect good results. You have to use it every night and for at least six to seven hours each night (at the minimum). It can take weeks and months of continuous use to start to feel the benefits.

It could also be that your machine is not configured properly and/or that you're leaking air out your mouth. I would suggest editing your profile and putting in your pressure settings and other options in the machine setup. If you don't have software to monitor your therapy, I would strongly suggest getting it. Also, if you suspect that you're leaking air out your mouth (ever have dry mouth when you wake up?), you need to plug the "pie hole".

This therapy is "baby steps". Hang in there and stick with it.


Den

I wasn't expecting to great results right off the bat, but I figured I might feel a little different after starting cpap(I have never felt any different). I know I need to be consistant, in my therapy, to see long term results. I need to get the software so I can get the data downloaded.

[robysue]

I can't wait to get to where some of you are(if I ever get there). I have had the cpap for around 7 months, my longest I have used it for is 5 days straight(recently). I had gone a month without touching it. I hope to been on streak where it is natural to be using it(emphasis added).

Blackjackcat,

Hoping to "be on a streak where it [CPAP] is natural to use" just ain't gonna happen. As Wulfman said, to actually feel a real benefit from CPAP you need to use it every night, all night long---not just now and then. And for most of us, the first five days was not enough to tell much of a difference.

To get to where CPAP is "natural" to use? I'm not sure I'll ever really get to where I think CPAP is natural to use. But i'm already getting to where CPAP is a habit. It's part of my bedtime ritual whether I like it or not, whether I want to do it or not on any given night. Kind of like brushing my teeth---I don't always want to brush them either (still have a bit of a kid in me), but I do it anyway. And when I get into my bed, I put my mask on, turn the BiPAP on. Out of habit. And out of the knowledge that it is good for me. And while CPAP is several orders of magnitude more difficult than brushing my teeth, it's benefits are also several orders of magnitude greater than brushing my teeth on a night-by-night basis.

And I am NOT yet fully adjusted to the dang thing even though I've been using it every single night, all night long for the last four months.

And how have I made it a habit? By simply making the decision (each and every night) that tonight I will put the hose on one more time. I'm stubborn I guess. But I'm not going to let the sleep apnea (and the insomnia) win.

[Blackjackcat]

I hope to make it a habit I can work with then. : ) Looks like some users have felt great, right away, after the first use. I wish it was that way for me.

I can't wait to get to where some of you are(if I ever get there). I have had the cpap for around 7 months, my longest I have used it for is 5 days straight(recently). I had gone a month without touching it. I hope to been on streak where it is natural to be using it(emphasis added).

Blackjackcat,

Hoping to "be on a streak where it [CPAP] is natural to use" just ain't gonna happen. As Wulfman said, to actually feel a real benefit from CPAP you need to use it every night, all night long---not just now and then. And for most of us, the first five days was not enough to tell much of a difference.

To get to where CPAP is "natural" to use? I'm not sure I'll ever really get to where I think CPAP is natural to use. But i'm already getting to where CPAP is a habit. It's part of my bedtime ritual whether I like it or not, whether I want to do it or not on any given night. Kind of like brushing my teeth---I don't always want to brush them either (still have a bit of a kid in me), but I do it anyway. And when I get into my bed, I put my mask on, turn the BiPAP on. Out of habit. And out of the knowledge that it is good for me. And while CPAP is several orders of magnitude more difficult than brushing my teeth, it's benefits are also several orders of magnitude greater than brushing my teeth on a night-by-night basis.

And I am NOT yet fully adjusted to the dang thing even though I've been using it every single night, all night long for the last four months.

And how have I made it a habit? By simply making the decision (each and every night) that tonight I will put the hose on one more time. I'm stubborn I guess. But I'm not going to let the sleep apnea (and the insomnia) win.