Newbie here, just want to some help and encouragement

[Brounmoney]

So I received my Dreamstation 3 weeks ago yesterday with the ResMed AirFit F20. My pressure is set to 13 with no ramp on. I use 4 setting for the humidifier. The first week was a real struggle. I averaged about 3 or 4 hours of some kind of sleep, but was awakened to air leaks every couple of hours on the F20. I watched tons of videos on how to fit it better, and week 2 was no better. I have been doing a lot of research trying to find a new mask that could potentially fit better. I came across the Airtouch attachment for the F20, so I ordered that and used it last night for most of the night, but kept waking up to it being beside me in the bed. At some point I was taking it off in the night. I started out the night last with the Dreamwear full face mask with the med size. I watched a video that said some air leaks are ok, so I went with that, but was woken up with big air leaks. I am going to try the large size tonight, and watched a few more videos to see if I can get the fit right. Seems like a very popular FFM, and I love the design, so I would really like it to work. My doctor is set on that the F20 should work and I am just fitting it wrong.

Any advice or help would be great! Really discouraged and super tired. I thought the CPAP was going to be the answer to good sleep.

[caroldo]

I have used a CPAP for 7 years. I still have 4 minute ramp. In the beginning the ramp was 15 minutes. I am claustrophobic so cannot use a full face mask, but use the Dream Wear under nose cushion mask. I notice some leakage but not bad and Ahi is good, so Doc says the leakage isn't hurting anything. I probably wore the mask only 4 to 5 hours a night for at least a month, just had a difficult time getting used to it. Now it is great. I thought it w ould be a couple week transition but it takes time. The ramp helped me get to sleep. Good Luck

[Brounmoney]

I have used a CPAP for 7 years. I still have 4 minute ramp. In the beginning the ramp was 15 minutes. I am claustrophobic so cannot use a full face mask, but use the Dream Wear under nose cushion mask. I notice some leakage but not bad and Ahi is good, so Doc says the leakage isn't hurting anything. I probably wore the mask only 4 to 5 hours a night for at least a month, just had a difficult time getting used to it. Now it is great. I thought it w ould be a couple week transition but it takes time. The ramp helped me get to sleep. Good Luck

Thank you so much for the encouragement! I ok with the leak as long as it doesn’t wake me up, but current leaks have been. I am currently working on the mask to see if I can get the kinks out. Can’t wait for a full nights sleep. May try the ramp tonight. Thanks again!

[ragtopcircus]

Most of my leaks with the Airfit F20 are “mask farts” that are hard to sleep through. The Airtouch version didn’t work for me at all. Padacheek liners may help - they are on my list to try.

I have better luck with the P30i. The F30 also works well for me, but it is difficult to get the straps just right. A Sharpie helps.

[Miss Emerita]

Finding the mask that works for you can be one of the hardest parts of getting your therapy to work for you. So you are doing exactly the right thing by thinking about this, trying different options, and watching fitting videos. That, plus coming to this forum, put you way ahead of the game, I think.

I wish I could offer some tips, but I'm not familiar with the masks you are trying. One idea I can pass along, though. I've read this in other people's posts.

If you take your mask off in your sleep, try putting a piece of (skin-friendly) adhesive tape across a strap and onto your face. This will wake you up before you fully remove the mask. People report that they quite quickly stop the pattern of mask removal and don't need to keep using the tape for very long. Other ideas I've seen mentioned in one place or another include using hats or straps placed over the headgear.

More generally, while some people seem to take to the machine quite easily, most of us have an early period of solving problems and adjusting to the strange new experience. All I can say is that it will truly get better. While improvement in how well you sleep and how rested you feel may come gradually, it will come.

[Brounmoney]

Most of my leaks with the Airfit F20 are “mask farts” that are hard to sleep through. The Airtouch version didn’t work for me at all. Padacheek liners may help - they are on my list to try.

I have better luck with the P30i. The F30 also works well for me, but it is difficult to get the straps just right. A Sharpie helps.

I have heard good things about the F30, but at this point all of these are coming out of my pocket as my doc is dead set on me liking the F20. I like the Dreamwear FFM way better, so I am going to keep trying it. Last night was a disaster, but at 2am I finally got the Dreamwear comfortable, so will try that again. Maybe F30 in the future. Did you ever try the Dreamwear?

[Brounmoney]

Finding the mask that works for you can be one of the hardest parts of getting your therapy to work for you. So you are doing exactly the right thing by thinking about this, trying different options, and watching fitting videos. That, plus coming to this forum, put you way ahead of the game, I think.

I wish I could offer some tips, but I'm not familiar with the masks you are trying. One idea I can pass along, though. I've read this in other people's posts.

If you take your mask off in your sleep, try putting a piece of (skin-friendly) adhesive tape across a strap and onto your face. This will wake you up before you fully remove the mask. People report that they quite quickly stop the pattern of mask removal and don't need to keep using the tape for very long. Other ideas I've seen mentioned in one place or another include using hats or straps placed over the headgear.

More generally, while some people seem to take to the machine quite easily, most of us have an early period of solving problems and adjusting to the strange new experience. All I can say is that it will truly get better. While improvement in how well you sleep and how rested you feel may come gradually, it will come.

Thank you so much!! I am just so exhausted. Last night was rough, but promising by nights end. Hoping tonight is the night I fall in love with the Dreamwear mask. I wish I could wear the nose pillows, but I am mouth breather, so I need to stick with the ffm. Again thank you for the encouragement!

I am working on getting the OSCAR data (I think that’s what it’s called), but I have a new MacBook that only has USBc ports. Should have that fixed and uploaded later today.

[ragtopcircus]

Most of my leaks with the Airfit F20 are “mask farts” that are hard to sleep through. The Airtouch version didn’t work for me at all. Padacheek liners may help - they are on my list to try.

I have better luck with the P30i. The F30 also works well for me, but it is difficult to get the straps just right. A Sharpie helps.

I have heard good things about the F30, but at this point all of these are coming out of my pocket as my doc is dead set on me liking the F20. I like the Dreamwear FFM way better, so I am going to keep trying it. Last night was a disaster, but at 2am I finally got the Dreamwear comfortable, so will try that again. Maybe F30 in the future. Did you ever try the Dreamwear?

I tried the Dreamwear and Dreamwear FFM at the DME. The under-nose version squeezed my nose in slightly if it was tight enough to avoid leaking. My large-but-narrow nasal passages are very sensitive to that. We couldn’t get the FFM to stay sealed on my chin.

[Brounmoney]

Most of my leaks with the Airfit F20 are “mask farts” that are hard to sleep through. The Airtouch version didn’t work for me at all. Padacheek liners may help - they are on my list to try.

I have better luck with the P30i. The F30 also works well for me, but it is difficult to get the straps just right. A Sharpie helps.

I have heard good things about the F30, but at this point all of these are coming out of my pocket as my doc is dead set on me liking the F20. I like the Dreamwear FFM way better, so I am going to keep trying it. Last night was a disaster, but at 2am I finally got the Dreamwear comfortable, so will try that again. Maybe F30 in the future. Did you ever try the Dreamwear?

I tried the Dreamwear and Dreamwear FFM at the DME. The under-nose version squeezed my nose in slightly if it was tight enough to avoid leaking. My large-but-narrow nasal passages are very sensitive to that. We couldn’t get the FFM to stay sealed on my chin.

Oh ok got you! Well I am going to keep working on the FFM, and see if I can get some sleep. Last night after I got a decent fit, I went into deep sleep pretty fast per my app on my Apple Watch. Hoping I can get some results soon.

[Brounmoney]

So I have some data from the OSCAR app. Not completely sure what I am reading, so any help would be great. Is the lower the AHI number the better? So this is from last night and from one of the first nights I received the mask and machine. From what I am seeing, the early night was better than last night. I didn't feel like the first night was good. Felt like I woke up a lot.

[Pugsy]

Please review this thread for graph formatting.
viewtopic/t158560/How-to-post-images-for-review.html

Hide the calendar and turn off the pie chart so that the statistics on the left will move up into view.

Someone with a Mac...please tell OP how to turn off the annoying black background to make it easier to read the statistics. I don't have a Mac and I don't remember how it is done.

Yes...lower AHI is better but last night you had a lot of large leaks happening which probably disturbed your sleep.
We will take a little higher AHI over leaks waking us up any day of the weak.

Even if there hadn't been the leaks though...that small of a difference in AHI is really insignificant. We don't sleep the same each night and it is quite common for the AHI to vary a bit during the night.
I might have an AHI of 0.9 one night and 2.9 the next night. As long as the 2.9 nights are rare I just shrug my shoulders and move on.

Did the leaks wake you up much last night?

[Dog Slobber]

Someone with a Mac...please tell OP how to turn off the annoying black background to make it easier to read the statistics. I don't have a Mac and I don't remember how it is done.

This caused be "Dark Mode" or "Auto Mode" depending on the time. OSCAR doesn't play well with it. Allegedly this is fixed in future OSCAR versions.

To turn off Dark/Auto Mode:
System Preferences / General / Appearance
Then select the Light Icon

[Brounmoney]

Someone with a Mac...please tell OP how to turn off the annoying black background to make it easier to read the statistics. I don't have a Mac and I don't remember how it is done.

This caused be "Dark Mode" or "Auto Mode" depending on the time. OSCAR doesn't play well with it. Allegedly this is fixed in future OSCAR versions.

To turn off Dark/Auto Mode:
System Preferences / General / Appearance
Then select the Light Icon

Alright I will take dark mode off and get some more screen shots. Also how do I take the graph off? Pretty tech savvy, but not finding the setting for this.

[Pugsy]

Also how do I take the graph off?

Which graph?

[Dog Slobber]

Alright I will take dark mode off and get some more screen shots. Also how do I take the graph off? Pretty tech savvy, but not finding the setting for this.

If by graph, you mean pie chart?

Preferences / Appearance / uncheck - Show event breakdown pie chart