Hi there...I have been on CPAP for a month now and I must say I dont really feel any better. In fact, I think my "moodiness" is even worse now! Maybe that is because I expected this great change overnight and it didnt happen?? My dr gave me a prescript for Ambien (20 pills) and I slept pretty good while taking those...pretty good meaning the first 4 hours or so. I ran out about a week ago and I am now back to waking every hour or so looking at the clock-pre CPAP behavior. I'm hesitant to call my dr for a refill because I am afraid of becoming dependant and frankly so is my husband. Maybe I should try an over the counter med or melatonin? Or should I call my dr or the lab dr to see if my settings need to be changed or something? I'm just at a loss and I am sick of feeling sad, angry, and tired and lashing out all the time at my husband and/or my kids. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Larissa
One month down-not feeling any better
14 posts
• Page 1 of 1
A couple of questions that might help us understand your problem better.
How many hours per night are you using the cpap? Have you controlled for any mask leaks?
A call to your doctor or sleep lab might be a good idea. They might want to raise your pressure a bit.
Moogy
How many hours per night are you using the cpap? Have you controlled for any mask leaks?
A call to your doctor or sleep lab might be a good idea. They might want to raise your pressure a bit.
Moogy
Moogy
started bipap therapy 3/8/2006
pre-treatment AHI 102.5;
Now on my third auto bipap machine, pressures 16-20.5
started bipap therapy 3/8/2006
pre-treatment AHI 102.5;
Now on my third auto bipap machine, pressures 16-20.5
When I was taking Ambien I would last at least 8 hrs with the mask on.....without it I am lucky to "make" myself last 5 or 6 hours with the mask-Leaks might be an issue because the headgear with the breeze is pretty flimsy so when I go from side to side I usually have to move the headgear and the nose piece. But I dont move around until I am already awake so fixing the headgear and such isnt what is waking me up.
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CollegeGirl
- Posts: 1038
- Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 6:49 pm
- Location: VA
Hi lfranek,
Even if they're not waking you up, leaks can be an issue if they're bad enough. They can keep you from getting the full benefit of your treatment, since you're not getting all the pressurized air your CPAP is providing. This is also true if you're mouth-breathing (or mouth-leaking, as some people like to call it). Is there any chance air is escaping through your mouth?
Additionally, if you're waking up that often and not feeling any improvement, I'd be concerned that you might still be having apneas. You could try raising your pressure a little bit and see if that helps. Since your machine doesn't have data capability, you'll just have to go by how you feel. Give it a week at your new pressure to see if it changes anything.
Keep us posted - I know what it's like to not see any improvement - it took me almost a year and a half to see any at all! Totally worth it, though! Keep at it!
Oh, and please note that I am not a doctor or medically trained in any way - just an experienced hosehead who has overcome more than one CPAP obstacle! Therefore, I must also recommend consulting your doctor before making any pressure changes, just for safety's sake. Good luck!
Even if they're not waking you up, leaks can be an issue if they're bad enough. They can keep you from getting the full benefit of your treatment, since you're not getting all the pressurized air your CPAP is providing. This is also true if you're mouth-breathing (or mouth-leaking, as some people like to call it). Is there any chance air is escaping through your mouth?
Additionally, if you're waking up that often and not feeling any improvement, I'd be concerned that you might still be having apneas. You could try raising your pressure a little bit and see if that helps. Since your machine doesn't have data capability, you'll just have to go by how you feel. Give it a week at your new pressure to see if it changes anything.
Keep us posted - I know what it's like to not see any improvement - it took me almost a year and a half to see any at all! Totally worth it, though! Keep at it!
Oh, and please note that I am not a doctor or medically trained in any way - just an experienced hosehead who has overcome more than one CPAP obstacle! Therefore, I must also recommend consulting your doctor before making any pressure changes, just for safety's sake. Good luck!
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Somnambulist
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Tue Oct 03, 2006 6:25 pm
Frequent Awakenings
Larissa,
Most of the struggles cpap users can face do have solutions, sometimes with ease but often not. I was reading thru your previous posts and you've indicated ongoing you've had problems with mask leaks and frequent awakenings. Stabilizing headgear to minimize leaks with movement is one where suggestions on here abound. Who knows, solving that may solve everything else. If not, and it is a pressure problem, that could be as simple as a setting or as involved as needing a different machine. Please don't suffer silently in frustration. Whoever is following you for your treatment, bug the dickens out of them till they help you just to get you out of their hair. If I had done that earlier on, maybe I would be farther along now. I somehow felt my inability to deal with the issues was my "fault" and didn't want to "bother" anyone. As far as your awakenings, along with mask leaks and possible pressure issues, you may need to look for non-apnea causes. For you to awaken every hour means you are falling back asleep in between, so it sounds causal and not due to insomnia. Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD) are two other causes of frequent awakenings. The fact that you toss and turn all night is suspect.
So sorry you're feeling disappointed in the results of your treatment thusfar. If this journey were a book, you've made it about thru the preface (your "why I'm here" mini-story), acknowledgements (dr/rt/dme interactions & test results), and introduction (Machines & Masks 101). Everyone's reading style is different. Some skip all the preliminaries and dive straight into the meat of a book. Others want to build a framework of familiarity and read every line and page. My style is to read the first chapter, and if it doesn't hold my interest, put it down deeming it not worth my time. One such book, for some reason I kept picking it back up. About the 3rd chapter the light came on for me and I "got it" and couldn't get enough of it. What a treasure I would have forfeited had I not persevered just a little longer.
The same "not worth the effort" approach in the past caused me to stop cpap treatment rather than go thru the maze of figuring out how to make it work for me. (I was too tired to deal with it and too tired not to!) It was in continuing to read here that I was challenged to accept the seriousness of the diagnosis, and convinced that perseverance is indeed worth my efforts. It was a hard sell, but my doc ordered a 2 week trial on an auto pap, and seeing the info each morning on my AI, HI, & leak rate helped me by having facts instead of wonderings, and in the end identified an ineffective cpap pressure setting. Reading all the creative things others here have done to work the quirks out of using a mask they found tolerable made me move beyond settling for misery and saying, "Okay, now what do I need to do to make this work for me?" Am I consistent and compliant? Not yet. But my mask time has improved in increments of minutes over months. I do feel better, and the lure of feeling proportionately better with increased mask time keeps me keeping on.
Don't lose heart. It will get better.
Kathy
Most of the struggles cpap users can face do have solutions, sometimes with ease but often not. I was reading thru your previous posts and you've indicated ongoing you've had problems with mask leaks and frequent awakenings. Stabilizing headgear to minimize leaks with movement is one where suggestions on here abound. Who knows, solving that may solve everything else. If not, and it is a pressure problem, that could be as simple as a setting or as involved as needing a different machine. Please don't suffer silently in frustration. Whoever is following you for your treatment, bug the dickens out of them till they help you just to get you out of their hair. If I had done that earlier on, maybe I would be farther along now. I somehow felt my inability to deal with the issues was my "fault" and didn't want to "bother" anyone. As far as your awakenings, along with mask leaks and possible pressure issues, you may need to look for non-apnea causes. For you to awaken every hour means you are falling back asleep in between, so it sounds causal and not due to insomnia. Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD) are two other causes of frequent awakenings. The fact that you toss and turn all night is suspect.
So sorry you're feeling disappointed in the results of your treatment thusfar. If this journey were a book, you've made it about thru the preface (your "why I'm here" mini-story), acknowledgements (dr/rt/dme interactions & test results), and introduction (Machines & Masks 101). Everyone's reading style is different. Some skip all the preliminaries and dive straight into the meat of a book. Others want to build a framework of familiarity and read every line and page. My style is to read the first chapter, and if it doesn't hold my interest, put it down deeming it not worth my time. One such book, for some reason I kept picking it back up. About the 3rd chapter the light came on for me and I "got it" and couldn't get enough of it. What a treasure I would have forfeited had I not persevered just a little longer.
The same "not worth the effort" approach in the past caused me to stop cpap treatment rather than go thru the maze of figuring out how to make it work for me. (I was too tired to deal with it and too tired not to!) It was in continuing to read here that I was challenged to accept the seriousness of the diagnosis, and convinced that perseverance is indeed worth my efforts. It was a hard sell, but my doc ordered a 2 week trial on an auto pap, and seeing the info each morning on my AI, HI, & leak rate helped me by having facts instead of wonderings, and in the end identified an ineffective cpap pressure setting. Reading all the creative things others here have done to work the quirks out of using a mask they found tolerable made me move beyond settling for misery and saying, "Okay, now what do I need to do to make this work for me?" Am I consistent and compliant? Not yet. But my mask time has improved in increments of minutes over months. I do feel better, and the lure of feeling proportionately better with increased mask time keeps me keeping on.
Don't lose heart. It will get better.
Kathy
_________________
| Mask: TAP PAP Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Improved Stability Mouthpiece |
| Humidifier: S9™ Series H5i™ Heated Humidifier with Climate Control |
| Additional Comments: Bleep/DreamPort for full nights, Tap Pap for shorter sessions |
Don't feel bad. I have been on CPAP since March 06 and still have had only a couple of what I consider restful nights. I have been compliant with therapy 100% of the time.
Gone through 3 nasal masks, a nasal pillow, and finally a Full Face (I breathe through my mouth) and 2 CPAP units.
Have had a complete Pulmonary Function Test, a Lung CAT scan and full blood work.
I have missed so much work I am surprised my employer has not fired me yet.
BUT I AM NOT GIVING UP!!!!!!!
Hang in there!
Gone through 3 nasal masks, a nasal pillow, and finally a Full Face (I breathe through my mouth) and 2 CPAP units.
Have had a complete Pulmonary Function Test, a Lung CAT scan and full blood work.
I have missed so much work I am surprised my employer has not fired me yet.
BUT I AM NOT GIVING UP!!!!!!!
Hang in there!
_________________
| Mask | |
 |
RLS was ruled out in my sleep study and I'm assuming that I dont have PLSD-it did mention chronic pain (fibromyalgia) so maybe that is what is waking me?? I do have some muscle relaxers and I recall my dr saying that is what they use to treat fibromyalgia...so maybe tonight I will try those...Also-the alarm feature on my CPAP...what is that for? if I turn that feature on will that signal when there is a leak? I am not a mouth breather so I dont think I have leaks that way......
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CollegeGirl
- Posts: 1038
- Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 6:49 pm
- Location: VA
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CollegeGirl
- Posts: 1038
- Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 6:49 pm
- Location: VA
You would wake up with a dry mouth, you'd probably (at least on occasion) wake with air escaping from your mouth (even if it's just a little bit). If it's not that (and it sounds now like it might not be), I'd be seriously looking at your pressure. Sounds like it might not be high enough. Either try upping your pressure yourself, or call your doc and tell him/her that you're still not seeing results, and you're still waking up periodically. Ask if you can try adjusting your pressure. When he/she gives you the go ahead, you can do it yourself, or have the dme do it for you, whichever you prefer.
Machine: M-Series Auto
Mask: Headrest
No humidifier
On the hose since 2005.
Mask: Headrest
No humidifier
On the hose since 2005.
That MIGHT be a little low to be clearing your apneas and hypopneas. It's "your call"......you can either try raising it on your own or consult with your doctor before doing so.lfranek wrote:Thanks for all your replies so far! I wasnt about to give up just feeling oh so frustrated!! My pressure is set at 8
Best wishes,
Den
(5) REMstar Autos w/C-Flex & (6) REMstar Pro 2 CPAPs w/C-Flex - Pressure Setting = 14 cm.
"Passover" Humidification - ResMed Ultra Mirage FF - Encore Pro w/Card Reader & MyEncore software - Chiroflow pillow
User since 05/14/05
"Passover" Humidification - ResMed Ultra Mirage FF - Encore Pro w/Card Reader & MyEncore software - Chiroflow pillow
User since 05/14/05
14 posts
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