young new user-wishes to hear tips from experts

[lilbean95]

Hi,
I'm a 16 year old female and has mild sleep apnea. My ENT believes that my tonsils and adenoids are causing the issue so my tonsillectomy is scheduled for August 8th. Anyway, he wants me to be on a CPAP machine until then so that I'll be less sleep deprived. I'm only going to be on the CPAP for less than two months. I had a sleep study with a CPAP machine and I could barely sleep because the mask prevented me from sleeping comfortably. In addition to that, when I woke up, I was severely bloated from aerophagia. I'm just curious as to whether the CPAP machine is actually going to help me or not. If anyone can reply back, that'd be great.

[tigrpal]

Everyone is different. Some people are helped right away. For some it takes weeks to get used to it. If you don't use it, it won't help at all. But if you want encouragement and help with problems, this forum is the most helpful. Usually you get answers to questions right away.

I encourage you to try it and stay with it.

[msradar65]

Go to the control panel and enter your equipment and mask as text. There is a ton of helpful people here. I'm sure they have tips for your mask and machine to help you adjust.

[BlackSpinner]

Hi,
I'm a 16 year old female and has mild sleep apnea. My ENT believes that my tonsils and adenoids are causing the issue so my tonsillectomy is scheduled for August 8th. Anyway, he wants me to be on a CPAP machine until then so that I'll be less sleep deprived. I'm only going to be on the CPAP for less than two months. I had a sleep study with a CPAP machine and I could barely sleep because the mask prevented me from sleeping comfortably. In addition to that, when I woke up, I was severely bloated from aerophagia. I'm just curious as to whether the CPAP machine is actually going to help me or not. If anyone can reply back, that'd be great.

It may take a week or so to learn to sleep with a mask. People will help you make it more comfortable if we know what mask you have.

Yes you should sleep with it. At the very least it will prevent you from doing more damage to your body then has already happened. It will make you stronger for the operation.
There is also the possibility that the operation may not help as much as you hope, in which case you will need a cpap machine so you may as well get used to it. Proper sleep and oxygen are essential if you are planning to have a life that requires more then washing floors and cleaning toilets because your brain needs O2 and sleep in order to learn.

[jilliansue]

Hi! I think that the aerophagia happens more frequently with a full face mask. I have only used nasal masks because I cannot get a full face one that will seal correctly - yet! I use a chinstrap to keep my mouth closed.

I started out with the Swift FX nasal pillows mask (it also comes in a "for her" version). It was more comfortable than I had expected. I eventually switched to a regular nasal mask because my pressure is fairly high and the air blowing direcly into the nostrils with the nasal pillows mask bothered me sometimes.

Everyone is different and we each have our own preferences and different masks fit each of us a bit differently.

I have found the Resmed Softgel nasal mask to be very comfortable. The Activa uses the same frame as the Softgel, but with a different cushion -- silicone rather than gel. Both very comfortable masks.

There is also the Sleepweaver, which is a cloth, nasal mask. That is the next one I want to try.

Good luck to you and I hope your tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy solves your problem.

Jill

[Janknitz]

Hi, we really can help you, if you will fill out your user profile and tell us as specifically as you can what problems you are having. Everyone here sleeps with a CPAP machine and mask, and we've all been through it, so we can help.

Hopefully, your surgeries will eliminate the need for CPAP, but in the meantime, getting the best treatment possible will insure that you will be very healthy and have the best possible outcomes from surgical intervention.

[jlklinko]

Hi there
1) Ditto to what everyone has said.
2) You need your health placed first and formost!
3) If you need CPAP for a little while it is well worth the try.

[lilbean95]

Thank you to everyone that has replied! I have yet to even have my CPAP machine delivered and set up but when I do, I'll make sure to include it in my profile.

[chunkyfrog]

Then you need to make sure you get the right equipment.
For two months, you will probably have a rental machine, but the humidifier may be an outright purchase.
Make sure you don't get struck with an obsolete machine. Read our Wiki about the good vs bad machines.
Mask fit is very important--the sleep labs rarely get it right--often they just do not try.
The ordeal of a poorly fitted mask during a sleep study probably discourages more people from even trying CPAP.

[Julie]

And sometimes the aerophagia is due to a relatively high pressure setting which, if your doctor agrees to a try, is often helped by just lowering it by one number or so.

[BostonGal]

I'm a newbie too. I had the gas thing for a couple of days, sore nose, etc, but now I hardly notice it. So don't be too freaked out about stuff that happens the first few days...give it some time.

I would also suggest you try a nasal pillow mask (check them out on the cpap.com website) if you haven't seen them yet. At my study...after a few hours with the nasal mask I said I really was having terrible trouble...the tech pulled out a nasal pillow. I had never heard of it before...and she made it sound like it was a last resort. Come to find out a lot of people on the forum use the pillows. You may like it...you may not...but at least you should ask to try it.

Best of luck!

[SleepingUgly]

I'm very surprised by your post. I wouldn't expect a sleep doc to put anyone on CPAP for only two months so that they don't go into a surgery "sleep deprived". Is the surgeon someone who does tonsillectomies for sleep apnea or a general ENT who does them for tonsillitis reasons? Ideally the former, so he might be aware of procedures that maximize the airway more than a traditional tonsillectomy does. Talk to him about whether he does the following procedure, but don't assume that if you use the term "lateral pharynoplasty", he'll be talking about the same thing the link is talking about (in other words, take the link's info and ask him if he does "this" and show it to him):

http://www.sleepapneasurgery.com/pharyngoplasty.html

[lilbean95]

He usually does surgeries for sleep apnea. The tonsillectomy is basically the first phase of a series of surgeries that might have to happen. After this surgery, I have to go for a post op sleep study and if I still have the apnea, then he's doing something called a UPPP. He said normally, for my case he'd just have the patient put on CPAP and that's it. But because I'm so young and by no means overweight, he'd rather do the surgery.

[chunkyfrog]

GET A SECOND OPINION. For goodness' sake! Please!
If you were my grandchild, I would be calling for second opinions tomorrow morning.
Surgeons are too often more interested in making money than curing people.

[rosacer]

Lilbean95

I agree 10000000% with Chunkyfrog, go for a second opinion. Also, read and inform yourself about the result of the surgeries he is proposing (the good and the bad). A very good idea of the procedures is given on youtube, very graphic.

The UPPP is a procedure some people her in the forum have had and they regret today. Some say they are not able to swallow liquids without having it going into the nostrils and that didn't fis the apnea problem, make a serious research.

Remember the business of surgeons is to make surgery to somebody and there are some surgeons that all what they want is $$$$$$$ no matter if the surgery will have a real benefit for the patient or not.

Ask questions here in the forum there is a lot of people whom have had all kind of surgeries to try to solve the OSA problem.

All the best!