my experience so far

[Ricci]

I'm a Newb
sleep study done on 9-1-15
diagnosis ? was suppose to get a paper saying (what ever) but was dying to get out (panic attack) so they forgot to give it to me
BUT i know i have what they call SEVERE obstructive sleep apnea

got my cpap machine (AirSense™ 10 AutoSet) on the 3rd (9-3-15)
with heated tube and Mirage™ FX Nasal CPAP Mask

pressure range 5-15
they never did the complete study to find the exact number to open my airway .
i have anxiety disorder and had to leave before they could get the pressure number pined down
said they will review the results of this setting and adjust if needed

good experiences so far
none

bad experiences
1) i turned my temp down to 60 some odd degrees and woke up so COLD i swear i was cryogenically frozen
and was shivering SO bad took almost all the hot water in my water heater to feel human again, and to stop shivering
scary that it could do this so be careful
PS: i keep my room temp at 68 degrees and this does not have the same affect as forcing cold air into my lungs

2) the second night i wet the bed i'm 46 year old. i have not wet the bed for 40+ years (go figure)

3) last night didn't wet the bed BUT i find myself now taking the mask off and going back to sleep
i think i'm going to have to stop that, if i want Medicare to pay for my machine and supply's
they have some x hours in 90 days thing you have to do to show compliance or some-such


bought CMS 50D+ Blue Finger Pulse Oximeter with USB and Software
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B8L ... ailpages00
to compliment cpap machine and sleepyhead software
fast shipping on that. i get it the 8th (9-8-15)

so I'm thinking things can only go up from here

[kteague]

Hello. Sounds like doing this in the comfort of your own home is best for you. Sounds like you have good tools to help this work for you. The removing of the mask is not uncommon. I used to put a piece of medical tape or a bandaid across the strap of mine onto my cheek so the discomfort of removing it would wake me enough to stop the behavior. Once it becomes your new normal your sleeping brain won't see it as a foreign object to be removed. Also, once your pressure needs are determined and refined, you may be less likely to remove the mask. Keep in contact with the doctor who prescribes your anxiety meds as you go through this if anything feels off. You may find you need a dosage change over time. Once your body and brain has one less thing - breathing - to worry about and you're not getting bombarded all night with stress hormones, you may be pleasantly surprised and a bit less anxious. Good luck.

[Sheriff Buford]

Besides taking the mask off, you are doing good. Good advise on the tape and bandaid. That will help you get used to the mask and keep it on thru the night. Looks as your body is sayin' "what the heck are you doing?"... wearing the mask all night... but trust me... you get used to it. You have a top-of-the-line machine. It offers all sorts of data. Educate yourself here so you know what the data means. How are your mask leak rates (the machine will tell you)? The key to success is keeping the leak rates down. This will increase therapy levels. How are you feeling in the morning? Do you feel better? You can tell what your therapy "number" is by seeing what pressure the machine goes up to treat the apnea event (on average). Your lower pressure of 5 seems a little low. Some folks find it a little uncomfortable at that low pressure. Keep up the good work!

Sheriff

[Tdub210]

I was a mess at your stage. I'm in week 4 and sleep with it through the night quite well. Took me about 5 days to really settle into it. Even then, the first couple weeks I woke up several times. I'm down to maybe once or twice now, usually when I shift positions. I think in the first couple of weeks the pressure changes might have been waking me up. Stick with it, you'll soon get to a point where you look forward to putting it on and falling asleep. I barely even feel mine now and it's a FFM.

[RogerSC]

It might help to use your cpap while you're not sleeping, but sedentary doing stuff that you enjoy, like reading or watcing TV, to help get your body used to wearing the mask and breathing with it. I didn't personally experience removing my mask at night, but I could see that it might be that you're just not used to wearing it yet. The idea of using a piece of tape or band-aid, so that you wake up when you go to take it off also seems like a good idea.

Just a thought...mostly, give it time, stay with it, and you'll get there. I used a sleep aid for my first week of cpap, which helped me get used to wearing the mask and the noise, and so on. After that week, it was fine.

[Peaceful sleeper]

Ricci,
It's only been a few days for you. Things will get better bit by bit. I'm in my 5th week. I was prescribed a fixed pressure of 9 and used that for 3 weeks before I changed it to 8-12. I also turned off the ramp and set my starting pressure to 8 which seems just right for me. Lower than 8 makes it a struggle to breathe even when awake. Maybe your 5 is too low?

At this point I have 3-4 good nights in a week which is better than in the beginning. This coming week I will hopefully make it to 5 (or more) restful nights. Still monkeying with the humidity and temp. CPAP success is a process which takes time. Keep at it! Best wishes!

[gasp]

You seem to have a really good awareness of your experience. Great feedback so far. I agree with all if it. And kteague's note on how your anxiety may lessen so good. When you're body isn't experiencing being jolted awake by life saving adrenaline to start breathing again multiple times a night, the calming effect to the brain could very well follow. Sometimes we get used to being anxious and find it difficult to relax our vigilance.