new to cpap

[dtotire1]

new to cpap. started on apr 13. at the sleep lab, I slept 5 hours before waking, but didn't feel rested. Now, I have 1 or 2 wakeful periods during the night. I only get 4 or so hours sleep. Is this normal? Your thoughts.
I have a Respironics REMstar PRO C-flex, with a Fisher& Paykel Zest nasal Mask.

[robysue]

Welcome to the forum!

It would help us out if you would take the time to log in and go to the user control panel in the upper left hand corner and fill in your equipment (choose TEXT) so that it shows up in all your posts. That way you don't have to keep telling folks what you are using and we won't keep asking the same question.

You ask:

I slept 5 hours before waking, but didn't feel rested. Now, I have 1 or 2 wakeful periods during the night. I only get 4 or so hours sleep. Is this normal? Your thoughts.

Lots of people have pretty bad nights at the lab during the titration study and either don't get much sleep or don't feel very rested or both.

As for your current sleep pattern of 1 or 2 wakeful periods during the night and only 4 hours or so of sleep: Well, sleeping with a six foot hose attached to your face is not exactly natural. And it's no surprise that lots of people have some trouble getting to sleep and staying asleep at the start of their xPAP therapy. After all, there's a lot to get used to:

• sensory overload triggered by the air blowing into your nose; the noise the machine makes; the sensation of the mask on your face; possible leaks waking you up, aerophagia; a dry mouth; a dry nose; skin problems triggered by the mask; a sore nose and/or sore nostrils; headaches caused by a mask being over tightened; an over awareness of your own breathing, etc. etc. etc.
  
  mask issues including properly tightening the mask (is it too tight? is it too loose?); mask leaks blowing into your eyes or onto your lips; exhaust flow from the mask bouncing off the covers and back into your eyes or onto your chest; removing the mask in your sleep; wanting to remove the mask so that you can get to sleep; worrying about leaks so much that you are not able to properly relax to get to sleep; and worrying about dislodging the mask to the point of feeling like you can't move around in bed as much as you'd like.
  
  pressure issues including a feeling that your breathing is so abnormal that you can't relax enough to fall asleep; difficulties with exhaling against the pressure; difficulties with feeling like you can't properly inhale or can't get enough air through the mask---particularly during the ramp period (if you use the ramp); feeling like the machine is rushing you to inhale when the exhale relief system is turned on; too much air in your mouth, swallowing air, aerophagia, etc.
  
  humidifier issues including rainout; congestion caused by too little or too much humidity; air feeling too warm, too wet, too cold, too dry; worrying that the humidifier may run dry.
  
  hose issues including getting tangled in the hose when you want to turn over; disliking the feel of the hose when your arms or chest bump up against it; weight of hose pulling the mask out of position; feeling tethered or trapped by the hose, etc.

And as this lengthy list makes clear: Some of us face a pretty step learning curve for learning to sleep and sleep well with a mask on our faces.

For most new CPAPers, it's only a matter of time before the problems with getting to sleep and staying asleep start to resolve themselves. And sleep begins to return to normal---in the sense of falling asleep in a timely fashion after going to bed at a decent bedtime; having few or no awakenings in the middle of the night; having no problems getting back to sleep quickly after these awakenings; sleeping through until morning and waking up feeling more rested and more refreshed than when you went to bed.

But for a few new CPAPers, instead of slowly beginning to resolve themselves within the first month o therapy, these problems grow worse and worse. Eventually they may cascade into full fledged CPAP-induced (or CPAP-enhanced) insomnia: And this causes additional problems with sleep fragmentation and sleep deprivation. And that's what happened to me.

So---if you are still NOT sleeping more than four hours each night in another week or two, you will need to start considering whether CPAP-induced insomnia is part of the problem. Or if you find that you simply cannot function with any degree of normality with the sleep you are getting, you need to start working on the insomnia. Or if those wakes at night start to get so long that you feel like you're fighting the mask for hours at a time, you'll need to work on the insomnia.

But for now, unless you already feel like something the cat threw up every morning, I'd say that your sleep patterns are probably just part of adjusting to the hose and learning to sleep with it on your nose at night.

Wishing you a short adjustment period and many restful and refreshing nights sleep in the not too distant future.

[CPAPorElse?]

CPAP takes AT LEAST 30 DAYS, usually 60 days. Many of you have not had real REM sleep for years. You will have dreams, for 2-3 months. Don't sweat it if you take it off after 4 hrs, don't whine until you use it 30 days. Try and use it on weekends during the day, lock out the kids. Move to the spare bedroom. Sleep is the most important thing, oxygen in the bloodstream. It's better to use it 4 hrs and go back to sleep than to fight it all night. As my sleep tech said in 2006, " after a month we won't be having this conversation" Well, I wish that for everyone, that you get to a place where you don't even think about it or feel it while wearing it.

[slojuggler]

Also, check out the book: http://www.amazon.com/Good-Night-Doctor ... 974&sr=1-6

It's offering me great tips on identifying where I could improve my sleep.

I'm fairly new as well. The first night at the sleep study was crummy. They should call it the no-sleep study. The second night, the first half was the same, as it was to ensure my baseline (no CPAP) is the same (i.e. life is crummy). The second half, they tried CPAP, and I had the best sleep in years.

If you're having problems now, try a different mask. Depending on your DME (Durable Medical Equipment) supplier, you might be able to try different gear until you get a good fit. Work with someone locally if possible.

Let us know if you're encountering specific issues or problems. Maybe have a good friend or partner check you out while you sleep to see if you're having mouth leakage (e.g. air escaping). It could be a sign you need a chinstrap to keep your pressure consistent throughout the night.

I had an issue with waking up in the middle of the night because of a cold hose. I ordered online the Respironics hose cover. It's money well spent

http://www.amazon.com/Silver-Fleece-Tub ... 428&sr=8-1

[dtotire1]

I looked at the upper left hand corner to enter my equipment. I didn't find any icon that bears the word "text". Maybe it's the search engine. can someone help me out?

[Pugsy]

I looked at the upper left hand corner to enter my equipment. I didn't find any icon that bears the word "text". Maybe it's the search engine. can someone help me out?

You are not formally registered at the forum. Look at my sign in name on left and look at yours.
Once you formally register it shows up and then you can go to the User Access Panel and get to your profile and the equipment page, then you can see "text" as a choice.