3 day CPAP user and I AM AMAZED but do have a few questions

[sheila1232]

A little history --- I would snore so much and so loud that I could hear myself snore and wake myself up. I would toss and turn and clock watch all the time and almost always took a nap or multiple naps during the weekend. Unfortunately being single I didn't have anyone with me to tell me what all I was doing while I was "sleeping." Then my family stayed in a condo for the weekend and my sister told me that during a nap I was taking with my nephew, that I started gasping for air every couple of minutes. I am very overweight but just thinking of dieting and exercising made me exhausted.
Lacking medical insurance but knowing I had to do something or I was going to lose my mind, I bought a second hand Resmed M Series APAP with humidifier using the Swift FX Nasal Pillow Mask. Thursday I literally was nodding off at work and after just one day, I had so much energy at work and felt a lot less stressed out when we expectantly got really busy.
All 3 nights though I have slept for only a few hours. The first 2 nights I woke up after about 1 1/2 hours and it took me about an hour to fall back to sleep. I then slept for about 4 hours. Last night, I slept for about 5 hours and not willing to get up at 7:30 am on a weekend, I slept 2 more hours without the machine.
I primarily sleep on my left side and the "issue" I am having is that my hip starts hurting. I am assuming it is because I am not moving around anymore???
Another "issue" is that I feel anxious during the day and I have a hard time sitting still. I am thinking that probably having more awake time and energy is why.
I fear going to bed too early because I am afraid to wake up hours before I need to for work.
Last night, when I first turned the machine on...the nose piece was making "popping" noises. Is this caused because the nose piece is not in sealed in my nose all the way?? I do have a rather small nose so I did order me a small nose pillow because the one that it came with is a medium and am hoping that will eliminate that.
Any additional advice or tips would be much appreciated.

[chunkyfrog]

We had to get a new mattress after being on CPAP for a while.
I think the reason was we never laid still long enough to notice it was too old and saggy to do us any good.

[ozze_dollar]

Sounds like you are well on your way sheila. Keep using the CPAP but just a little advice losing some weight will help you in a lot of ways.

[Pugsy]

I primarily sleep on my left side and the "issue" I am having is that my hip starts hurting. I am assuming it is because I am not moving around anymore???

Yep, quite common "complaint". We sleep more soundly with less tossing and turning. Great because it means we are sleeping deeper and not moving so much. Not so great for those of us with some aches and pains and we need to move around a bit to "loosen" up.

Last night, when I first turned the machine on...the nose piece was making "popping" noises. Is this caused because the nose piece is not in sealed in my nose all the way?? I do have a rather small nose so I did order me a small nose pillow because the one that it came with is a medium and am hoping that will eliminate that.

It is possible that the seal isn't optimal. These masks can make some pretty weird sounds sometimes.
Only the little inner cones go into the nostril...the rim sits on the outer nostril area. Wonder if you have things too tight causing squishing of the pillows? Too tight is real easy to do with the nasal pillows and really counter productive.

Another "issue" is that I feel anxious during the day and I have a hard time sitting still. I am thinking that probably having more awake time and energy is why.

Very possible that your body is just saying it feels good and doesn't know what to do with itself with the new found energy.

Welcome to the forum. Your machine is a Respironics M Series machine (not ResMed). M Series machine was my first cpap machine. Please add your equipment to your profile just look for M Series in the drop down menu list. Please use text option because we can't see model name with images. wiki/index.php/Registering_Equipment_in_User_Profile

[sheila1232]

Thank you for your words of encouragement.
With this new found energy, I very much intend on losing weight. All ready this weekend, I have cleaned out closets, drawers, cabinets, etc. Of course only day 3 but it seems that I have eaten a lot less this weekend because I am not glued to the couch.
I did update my equipment, just hope I did it right
I have ordered a couple of new items - the hose cover, new small nose pillow and "strap softies." I so want this to be the start of a new life that I figured I would splurge and try different products to really make this a wonderful experience.
Luckily, I do have great mattresses but I am thinking the problem is that I am kinda afraid to move too much in fear that I am going to knock the mask off kilter or something. Still need to learn the limitations. I have the machine on the headboard above me but since writing my first post, I have read some of the previous posts that says that it shouldn't be above my head which totally makes sense. I have experienced the "rain out" and had a little bit of water in the nose piece which is why I slept the last 2 hours without it this morning beyond not wanting to wake up so early.
Thanks for making me feel welcomed. Sweet dreams!!

[Pugsy]

The M series machines used heat only in the humidifiers so rain out can be a problem.
You can do the usual like lower the machine below the mattress or reduce the humidifier setting (if reducing is comfortable) but most likely the moisture in the nasal pillows themselves is from our own exhaled breath. Something I have battled since I started therapy in 2009 during the winter months.
I like a cold bedroom...I have snorted a lot of water up my nose. Last year I got a barrel cozy and it helped a lot along with a hose cozy. http://www.padacheek.com/PACSwiftII_Barrel_cozy.html

Routing the hose over my head was not good for me. The condensation in the nasal pillows would run right back into my nose. Water can't run uphill.
This winter I bit the bullet and bought a heated hose. I still use the barrel cozy (it feels so good against my nostrils that I use it even in summer) but with the heated hose I no longer have to deal with the added weight of the hose cozy. Makes it easier to move around without any special effort.
If you want more information on the heated hose just let me know. It is a simple heated hose that will work with any cpap machine.

My nasal mucosa needs lots and lots of added moisture so reducing my settings was not a viable option. I was miserable when I tried reducing humidifier settings and it doesn't help at the nasal pillow level anyway.

It is a pure miracle how that so little moisture in the nasal pillows and the hose can cause so much noise and disrupt sleep..but it does, weird noises and snorting water up your nose does not bode well for a good nights sleep.

I highly recommend the barrel cozy as first thing to try and if you are handy you can make your own. I am long past that type of handy and prefer to save my time for something else...so I bought Padacheeks barrel cozy along with the side strap fleece covers. Well worth the money and saves my time.

Heated hose...around $80. Though one can make one with Reptile heater cable for much less but again, I am not handy along those lines and my time is of value to me. If you want to try some form of heated hose..let us know and we will point you to some information.

[jamiswolf]

Hi Sheila,
Congratulations on getting such a good start to cpap. Don't worry if you run into some issues later. Most everyone here has had some unique problems and are happy to share...that's why we're here. I don't use nasal pillows so I can't offer anything useful there.

But I did want to comment on my hose position. Mine is hooked via bungee to a nail in the wall above my head. I have a hose cozy knitted by a friend and no rainout issues. Having the hose that way makes it very easy to roll from one side to the other. I have the usual aches and pains that come from life's experiences so It's quite helpful to be able to roll easily. Pugsy said that doesn't work for her...but everyone's situation is different. She likes a cold bedroom increasing rainout. Experiment and see what works for you.
Cheers,
Jamis

[chunkyfrog]

Cheapest solution for rain-out: hose cozy (can be home-made or just cobbled up)
Expensive: heated hose--sometimes insurance will cover it.
It is good to have an alternate mask in case of a cold or 'face fatigue'.
I alternate between two full face masks and my Swift FX pilows.
Sometime my face just needs a change.
Others get sore in one place or another--gotta give the tender bits a rest.
Good luck, and welcome.