Starting out, my charts. A success story

[cosmo]

The first few days was a mess but I stuck with it and gave it my all. A positive attitude and a good fitting mask are a must. This is a post for newbies to see that its not always difficult

I spent the first 10 days using a titration machine with a Mirage Quattro, Zest Nasal Mask and finally a Swift LT nasal pillow mask. The first handful of days were very tough due to leaks and adjustment period. I didn't give up and I logged acceptable hours.

Day 1
Mirage Quattro Full Face Mask
I woke up about 10 times and had large gaps where I was took off the mask and slept without. The mask was also leaking very bad. I still managed over 6 hours.


Day 2
Mirage Quattro Full Face Mask
Large gaps between awaking and many leaks still. Almost got 8 hours of use.


Day 3
Zest Nasal Mask
Different mask but still a lot of waking. I had ordered a Swift LT nasal pillow for next shipping.


Day 10
Returning of titration machine. Very sad day since I will now be without a machine until DME receives an RX and order process begins. 1-3 week time frame.

Day 13
I could no longer wait for the sleep doctor's RX/DME machine, so I asked my primary doctor to fill a prescription form for an auto machine. Ordered a Resmed S9 Autoset for next day shipping.

Day 14
Resmed S9 Autoset - Swift LT nasal pillows
First day with very own machine. Nasal pillows and chin straps made leaks easier to control. Can sleep for much longer periods of time.


Day 62
Current day with Swift LT nasal pillow. This was a very good day and most days are close to this. Leaks are due to a mouth opening and nasal congestion. 7 hours but I would get more if I went to bed earlier.


Compliance report.
I have been using my machine each night.


I wake up a lot but its not due to cpap machine or mask. Medical issues are the factor and have since been addressed with medicines and an exorcism.

I have not been fatigued since the first week of cpap usage. I had been fatigued every hour of every day for nearly 10 years. At 62 days, I'm still tired but not fatigued. I do believe I will get better with time. If not, the current energy level are acceptable.

Before being diagnosed with sleep apnea, I tried everything to stay awake. This was pulled from my amazon order history, a handful of things I tried throughout the years to keep myself awake. Most didn't help much except for a tiny boost. They were better than nothing, costly and overpriced....



Godspeed to all

[DoriC]

Great report! Congrats! I would have thought you'd do better with a little higher min but can't argue with success!

[2 B Sleeping Soundly]

Cosmo,

That was excellent that you took control so early on! It most certainly helped you to speed the process to the great therapy you are now experiencing. I also believe that it is good for newbies to see that it can work very quickly for some, but it is equally good for them to see that it doesn't work as quickly as well. It is a work in progress, a journey, and fortunately we have each other here to support, encourage, and fill in the gaps while we travel the hose head road.

John

[johnthomasmacdonald]

grumble grumble grumble grumble grumble 6 months on this stuff grumble grumble grumble grumble grumble ahi 9 last night grumble grumble grumble grumble THREE machines on the tables gurmble grumble grumble grumble grumble

but you are inspiring cosmo that it can eventually work

[LSAT]

grumble grumble grumble grumble grumble 6 months on this stuff grumble grumble grumble grumble grumble ahi 9 last night grumble grumble grumble grumble THREE machines on the tables gurmble grumble grumble grumble grumble

but you are inspiring cosmo that it can eventually work

There are hundreds on this board that can attest that it works!

[Denial Dave]

congrats..

At the risk of sounding nasty, getting a leak rate of 0 overnight is probably a walk in the park with pressures as low as his are.

I think my ramp level starts higher than that.

[RogerSC]

congrats..

At the risk of sounding nasty, getting a leak rate of 0 overnight is probably a walk in the park with pressures as low as his are.

I think my ramp level starts higher than that.

Keep in mind that with ResMed, the leak rates are supposed to be normalized to the mask type. So 0 doesn't mean no leakage, that's supposed to be the baseline leakage rate for that mask. The actual leakage is higher than is shown in these charts, I believe *smile*.

But still good records for leakage, I've done much worse myself from time to time *smile*.

[cosmo]

Leaks? What leaks?

I think the ResMed might be charting more leaks as the other machines never show as much leak as the ResMed machine. The leaks might be from my nose sniffling for a second or a tiny movement where a leak happens for a split second so they don't chart it.

[jweeks]

Before being diagnosed with sleep apnea, I tried everything to stay awake. This was pulled from my amazon order history, a handful of things I tried throughout the years to keep myself awake. Most didn't help much except for a tiny boost. They were better than nothing, costly and overpriced...

Cosmo,

That list of "things" from Amazon is pretty amazing. Before I got started, I used to have problems getting sleepy on long road trips. I found that if I ate ice cream, the lower core temperature would really help wake me up. At least for a little while. I was diagnosed with asthma and was on steroids, and already more than 100 lbs overweight, so my solution was to eat ice cream. Lot of good that did over the long haul.

-john-

[JohnO]

Great post -- very useful information. Thanks for taking the time to post your progress report.

I'm just about 6 months into Auto-CPAP. The first few nights were a bit rough. About one month in, I switched from a nasal mask to Aloha nasal pillows, and that really helped a lot by reducing annoying leaks into my eyes. Since then, I've been doing minor tweaks (pillows, etc.) and have had very good results overall (AHI below 1.0). I still toss and turn more than I would like during the night, but compared to pre-CPAP, I no longer wake up the neighborhood with my snoring, my blood oxygen level is no longer crashing regularly, and I don't get random morning headaches. I also have found the side benefit of my nasal passages staying open with the help of the humidified air.

John

[cosmo]

I would have thought you'd do better with a little higher min but can't argue with success!

I did bump the minimum up a little to 6cm yesterday. The results were fine. I don't even feel any pressure or discomfort at any of my settings. So having it lower was unnecessary. I'll try and continue to bump in 0.5 - 1 cm increments until I find a spot.

[4betterO2]

I would have thought you'd do better with a little higher min but can't argue with success!

I did bump the minimum up a little to 6cm yesterday. The results were fine. I don't even feel any pressure or discomfort at any of my settings. So having it lower was unnecessary. I'll try and continue to bump in 0.5 - 1 cm increments until I find a spot.

First, many thanks for all the graphs! Super!
I was told that an EPAP pressure of less than 4 would result in exhaled air being rebreathed, (though this would apply only to full-face masks I guess). Anyway, seems an EPAP pressure of 4 would be a safe min, better than 3.
Above 4, why would you want to increase your EPAP? or even the IPAP, if it works as it is? I would use the lowest IPAP setting that works.
The less we modify natural breathing, the better chance we have, of avoiding side-effects.
if you want to experiment for a better AHI, I would leave the EPAP at 4, and increase only the IPAP.

[patrissimo]

What are your average & stddev of REM & Deep sleep on CPAP? It looks like your light sleep may be a bit high. Doesn't really matter if you feel good, but something to watch out for. Not that I know how to fix that, but maybe someone does...

I'd love to see you graph AHI against your Zeo Deep sleep %, Zeo REM %, Zeo light sleep %, I'm curious if other people have the strong correspondence that I've found.

[cosmo]

if you want to experiment for a better AHI, I would leave the EPAP at 4, and increase only the IPAP.

I don't really know what to make of the EPAP, every few days, I'll change it to test and I still could hit low AHI on any

On this day I was having more nose congestion so I wanted more pressure to get through the nose. EPAP on 3 is the highest on my machine.

I'd love to see you graph AHI against your Zeo Deep sleep %, Zeo REM %, Zeo light sleep %, I'm curious if other people have the strong correspondence that I've found.

On the latest days chart, you can look at the flow rate timeline and match up events with my Zeo's timeline. Events always threw me into light sleep if I weren't already in there.

Before I got started, I used to have problems getting sleepy on long road trips.

First week after I got my own machine, I did a 400mile, 6-7 hour drive with no stops, not even gas or bathroom going home. I wasn't tired. On the drive there, I was more cautious and took more breaks because I didn't know how I would have felt. I also did a 4 mile/1,000ft elevation hike at Yosemite National Park. Something I haven't done in 10 years. I was able to complete the hike with minimal fatigue. It was a gradual uphill trek. I wasn't planning on completing most of the trail, just the first few parts and turn around but I kept on going and going further. I was not prepared and did not carry water but I still managed.

[Daisy004]

Cosmo...Im in awe, what can I say, Im six months in and still feel like s***. I still struggle with the mask, haul the dang thing off the bedside cabinet, get messy hair from it, forget to put in water and wake up in the middle of the night gasping for water, forget to clean it,, ( yes Im confessing it) and just downright hate the thing. Im so dumb I cant work out Sleepyhead, dont know how to take screen captures so I cant tell if its working or not, Im just not computer savvy like people on here. Im so happy that you have mastered the thing and its working for you, mabey one day it will sink in for me and possibly I will not feel as tired. I dream of winning the lottery and having a personal CPAP assistant to keep me right...lol meantime I pray to the CPAP gods that it is working and Im getting some relief. You go Cosmo...good for you.