cpap causing emotional issues

[Red Bug]

SOMEBODY PLEZ READ!! I started using my cpap in August. First week No Problems. After a week I started feeling stressed, fatigued, emotionally
flat line! Also bad nightmares! I stopped using it and within a 2-3 days I started feeling like myself! Went back to Dr who told me my body had to learn to sleep all over again and that it would take some time. I told him that I could not function feeling that way. He sent me to place where I got my machine. They had no explanation. Then they decided to try less pressure range on the SD card. They lowered the range and I put it in the cpap. Used it 2 ngts and started feeling the same way again!!! Now I am not using it bc I can't stand feeling fatigued, flat line again!!! Please tell me if you've ever heart of this side effect!! I need to wear it so my sleep apnea can get treated!!! Thanks for listening..

[chunkyfrog]

You are not alone. Many others have survived situations as bad as yours.
Please register, filling out your equipment (preferably text)
Others with the same mask/machine can help walk you through specific problems.
In the meantime, here's a {{{{HUG}}}}

[kteague]

It's very disheartening and scary when you have issues with the thing you are counting on to be your solution. Please know that some bumps in the road doesn't have to totally stall your progress. If you've been reading on here you've already figured out that step one is going to be making sure through machine data that your prescribed treatment is indeed effective. Could be that a tweak or two will get you going in the right direction. Hope it's as simple as that. If not, you'll likely get more advice than you ever wanted on how to move forward. To help others help you, can you in detail describe your usual sleep experience? Like how long it takes you to go to sleep, how often you remember waking, how long do you sleep before waking, if your sleep is restless or if it feels deep, etc. Sometimes clues are in the anecdotal evidence as well as in the data.

For instance, I had bad dreams before CPAP, that I believe were OSA triggered. But when I went on CPAP they became much more ominous and my well being took a nose dive. When I mentioned on here that I kept waking up just minutes after dozing off feeling like I was suffocating, someone asked if I was using the ramp feature. I was. Every time I woke up, I hit the ramp again to start over. That's what I'd been instructed to do. What I didn't understand was that this action condemned me to long nights at a pressure of 4. Not saying that's your problem, just saying how important a seemingly insignificant tidbit of info can be.

Good luck finding your way to feeling better.

[Sir NoddinOff]

I think your just having a bout of sleep anxiety due to all of your current life changes, therefore your sleep architecture is temporarily suffering. Your complaints also happened to me in the first few weeks of my therapy. There's no easy answer (hey, gimme a break, I'm not a sleep doctor) however I suggest you just ride it out and I think in a few days (or few weeks) you will gradually start to feel better. Good luck and let us know how things work out. Tip: Creative problem solving, IMO, is the real key to successful CPAP therapy (and life in general ) Anyway, that's the best I can do... I'm not Plato either.

[sleepy1235]

I have three ideas about this. Obviously speculative.

1. Check your CPAP is working. Perhaps it isn't and it is worsening your sleep. Does it have data recording? I should say that this is a very unlikely possibility, but it isn't impossible. In all manufacturing systems there is a finite possibility of a defective machine.

2. The first day I got a working machine, I was like released. I walked 90 blocks, rested, went out to clubs, and the next day I again did all sorts of things. It was great.

However, there were a lot of adjustments to get used to. For starters I had previously been able to fall asleep in a minute routinely. Suddenly I had to get used to taking 5 to 15 minutes to fall asleep and realize that I wasn't suffering from insomnia and this was normal.

Then sometimes I started to wake up early as my system is trying to stabilize. I was really tired for a few days and thought my CPAP was failing, but I just had the flu.

Also, I had to start disciplining myself to get to sleep on time, since I wasn't always so sleepy at 10 pm. A lot of little things to adjust to.

3. Science doesn't even know what sleep does or why we sleep. I read "Scientific American" and "Science" magazine of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The issue comes up, why do we sleep, and the answer is we don't know. There are theories, but we really don't know.

So I speculate that when you get your CPAP machine there must be all sorts of things happening as your mind gets back on track.

Just stick to the CPAP and give it a few weeks. I recommend exercise, seemed to help me, but this is totally unscientific.

Good luck.

[Captain_Midnight]

RG, your data memory card is your best friend, here.

If you can determine, what was your AHI each night with the xpap therapy? (info from the data card on your machine, you might need additional software and a card reader to determine on a daily basis.)

One suspects that it is possible that you have a non-therapeutic pressure setting.

Also from the data card, what are your leak readings?

You need a good amount of daily (actually, nightly) xpap therapy data feedback data in order to make an informed opinion, and also to request prudent changes to optimize the setup.

Good luck, and do stick with it.

Remember, the most prominent side effect of (optimized) xpap therapy is longevity.


.

[Red Bug]

I want to give some data from my cpap. BTW, my cpap is a PHILIPS RESPIRONICS, a REMstar Auto A-Flex.

My data from July 27 thru August 20, 2013 which totaled 24 Days: Auto CPAP Peak Average Pressure 8.5
Auto CPAP Mean Pressure 7.0
Avg Device Pressure <= 90% of time 9.1
Avg Time in Large Leak Per Day 2 mins. 58 secs
Avg AHI 3.1

After replacig with new card: Readings for 2 nights Sept show 0% on every reading??

On initial card the pressure was 5 - 20
Now they changed the card to have a 5 - 10 of pressure.
I have used the cpap for 2 nights after installing new data card. It registers 0 pressure. So I will call them Monday to correct the mistake!
DO I NEED TO ASK FOR A DIFFERENT BRAND OF CPAP??
THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR RESPONSES!!!!!

[zoocrewphoto]

A couple other people will probably post the links for the free software. If you post some graphs that will help.

In the meantime, do you feel like you are suffocating with not enough air? Your starting pressure is a bit low. A lot of people are uncomfortable at a pressure of 5.

Are you waking up a lot? It can take time to get use to the mask, pressure, changes in pressure,etc. So, we tend to wake up more and that can mess us up for awhile. That tends to get better with time and practice. But sometimes, it helps to minimize the pressure changes so that there are less variables to disturb you. It sounds like they reduced the pressure range from 5-20 to 5-10. I suspect it would be better to raise your minimum a little. Then see how it goes. But it would be best to see some data from your machine first to see what is going on.

[spotteddog]

Many of the people that have posted here have used CPAP for much longer than I have but being a new user (less than 4 weeks) I can say there is a definite adjustment period and it is different for each person. I adjusted quickly and easily but I find if I wake up an hour or 2 early I'm ready to go and had some trouble going back to sleep. Also, I have memorable dreams for the first time in at least 15 years and it's great... I instantly knew I was sleeping better when the first night with my CPAP and I remembered a part of a dream. My AHI was 35 in my sleep study - hard to dream when you wake up every 1.7 min all night long. Also in less than 4 weeks I have gotten used to the pressure to the point that I have to check to see if the machine is working if the pressure is less than 13 cmH2O I can't feel it and pull my mask off to hear it then put it back on. Your body has to learn new things and it can take awhile. I have found any many will agree the most important thing is finding a mask that fits COMFORTABLY and doesn't leak/cause sores/ etc. Then work on the other issues pressure/depression/etc. I'm very self deprecating and make a lot of fun of myself so image issuses don't affect me much but you might even be subconsciously be putting yourself down or thinking excessively about having to use a mask or something like that and affecting your treatment too. It's a process for your body/mind to accept the treatment but once you do it is a wonderful thing.. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

[zoocrewphoto]

Many of the people that have posted here have used CPAP for much longer than I have but being a new user (less than 4 weeks) I can say there is a definite adjustment period and it is different for each person. I adjusted quickly and easily but I find if I wake up an hour or 2 early I'm ready to go and had some trouble going back to sleep. Also, I have memorable dreams for the first time in at least 15 years and it's great... I instantly knew I was sleeping better when the first night with my CPAP and I remembered a part of a dream. My AHI was 35 in my sleep study - hard to dream when you wake up every 1.7 min all night long. Also in less than 4 weeks I have gotten used to the pressure to the point that I have to check to see if the machine is working if the pressure is less than 13 cmH2O I can't feel it and pull my mask off to hear it then put it back on. Your body has to learn new things and it can take awhile. I have found any many will agree the most important thing is finding a mask that fits COMFORTABLY and doesn't leak/cause sores/ etc. Then work on the other issues pressure/depression/etc. I'm very self deprecating and make a lot of fun of myself so image issuses don't affect me much but you might even be subconsciously be putting yourself down or thinking excessively about having to use a mask or something like that and affecting your treatment too. It's a process for your body/mind to accept the treatment but once you do it is a wonderful thing.. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

This is one of the great things about this forum. New people can offer lots of great advice and support too. I know when I started, I lots of other recently new people were there to encourage me, and I was able to pass that along to newer people. It is nice to get suggestions from people who lots of experience as well as those who just experienced the same problem a month ago.

[andy5805]

I got emotional issues too, and i'm just about to have another go.

I felt that last time the settings weren't right, and I panicked because I didn't want to lose my job/life on the motorways if the CPAP took away what little sleep I had - so I got surgery and it fixed me 50% of the time, but on a bad week, it's the same old exhaustion, feeling shattered angry and drained.

so I know a machine is my future. I only have to recall how many times in the last month I've been angry and cranky and shouted at loved ones, generally lost the plot, because I've been exhausted to be a believer even though I've not even succeeded myself yet.

So what I'm going to do is train up during weekends, then move it to a Friday, then a Thursday also. And get a machine that's set right. I'm nervous as anything but I know deep down it's the answer. Best of luck with your struggle with it. I've been there and know all about it. It's a strange emotion to have in itself because I know it's the answer, but I know I can't do it yet

Regards
Andy

[Pugsy]

After replacig with new card: Readings for 2 nights Sept show 0% on every reading??

On initial card the pressure was 5 - 20
Now they changed the card to have a 5 - 10 of pressure.
I have used the cpap for 2 nights after installing new data card. It registers 0 pressure. So I will call them Monday to correct the mistake!
DO I NEED TO ASK FOR A DIFFERENT BRAND OF CPAP??

Unsure why the machine is showing 0% for everything after the change in pressures via a new SD card.
I would suggest that you download SleepyHead software and look at your data via the software to make sure that things are being recorded on the SD card properly.
See my signature for links to how to install and use SleepyHead.

The PR System One Auto CPAP with Aflex is a great machine. The on screen data isn't updated until Noon GMT time but after 2 days I would think it should show something....
So when you say 0% for everything..the only thing that is a % is time in large leak.
Are you saying that hours of use is showing 0 also?

[hyperlexis]

This is a psychological problem and not one, I believe, is caused directly by CPAP itself. If CPAP is preventing apneas, then you should be having fewer severe nightmares than without it. About your emotionally flat affect that is a symptom of something far more severe. If you were a friend I would strongly making an appointment with a professional psychologist if these symptoms do not get better on their own over the next few days or if they are causing you worsening distress. Remember, all CPAP is is just a fancy air compressor that keeps your throat open and lets you breathe. That's all. So if its doing its job, and you are breathing, then you should be feeling better, not worse. So it likely is something else causing the issues.

Good luck!

[BlackSpinner]

I would strongly suggest that after supper you put something interesting on tv, fire up the machine and watch for an hour. Do this every night until you stop thinking about it. Get your mind used to the fact that this is a safe and beneficial action.

And raise your minimum pressure to 7 so you won't feel air starved, you are not, it just feels like that - most of the issues are in your mind so take your mind off the issues by watching something that captures your attention.

[M'ohms]

I am also having emotional problems on my therapy. I have been struggling with my situation since March, mostly depressed that things weren't going as well as I felt they should. After several pressure changes by my doc, in straight mode and auto mode, he moved me to bi-pap. Even though I love the machine, I still felt depressed because I wasn't sleeping well, felt lousy during the day, and wasn't happy with my AHI.

5 1/2 months later, and after learning many things on this forum, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I have changed my pressures from an original CPAP setting of 10 to my current bi-pap setting of 14/21. Two weeks ago I finally had a night's sleep that allowed me to feel good the next day. I was elated. (I am usually not an emotional person, and this feeling of absolute joy was weird for me.) The next night was not so good, and I was a basket-case once again. I don't like being this way!

I have stuck with daily efforts to improve my therapy. The most important thing that I do is read this forum daily. It has been a godsend. At present, I am more consistently sucsessful with my nights and am finally feeling better. I also feel like I am more in control of my life. My emotional roller coaster is leveling out. It has taken me 6 months to get to this .

If you don't feel better emotionally or physically within a few weeks (as I was all but guaranteed), don't feel like a failure. It may take longer, maybe a lot longer. But you will become your old self again! Just keep trying.