So tired after 3 months. What now?

jamestoronto · Post by **jamestoronto** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:00 pm

Hi,

I was initially diagnosed with severe sleep apnea (stop breathing about 45 times an hour but my oxygen levels were ok). I was given a CPAP to use and after a lot of hell and now after 3 months I am able to sleep with it all night.

I never felt better using the CPAP but have actually progressively felt more and more tired. I am now at the point I cannot go to work because I feel so tired. I can't deal with the level of fatigue anymore.

I went for another sleep study with the CPAP and my mask and they said my level is only 6 and that there are no leaks and I don't open my mouth at night.

I had told my doctor that I feel worse using CPAP and found no benefits and he seems not to know what to do.

At this point I am thinking of stopping using the CPAP (I did for a couple nights and it seems I am better). I also am thinking that if I lost all my extra weight (20 pounds) that this might eliminate or reduce my apnea.

I am actually even wondering if I have sleep apnea seeing I feel worse using the CPAP and nothing has changed in my life except the use of CPAP. If I have severe sleep apnea and the CPAP is controlling it why on earth would I not feel better after 3 months. It does not make sense.

Also, seeing my oxygen levels are fine I am wondering if my apnea is such a problem?

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:18 pm

Sounds like you are looking for a way out of treating your condition. Have you researched the effects of untreated OSA on health? There are a few threads re: OSA and dibetes and OSA and cardiovascular disease that may help.

Good luck with whichever path you may take.

feeling_better · Post by **feeling_better** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:19 pm

Hi,

Your might be an unusual case! The fact that the second sleep study with the mask showed very low apnea confirms it had reduced from 45 to almost acceptable 6 AHI.

Long shots: Did they use your cpap machine during the second study? There may be problems with your machine. Does your machine give you AHI numbers every night? Please tell us which machine your are using.

If you have to consider going off therapy even for short periods, consider a number of other possible partial solutions during that time. If you have nasal obstruction/allergy, try claritin + pseudafed + prescription Fluticasone Propionate nasal spray. Try to find one of those dental inserts, which hold your lower jaw forward which could reduce obstruction in the throat area. You can also try (this my own idea), one of those soft form neck braces at night, which tends to keep your chin a little bit away from your chest, which in trun reduces obstruction.

I think if you current doc cannot find the cause of your possible special situation, it is worth finding another Sleep Specialist or a Research doc in this area.

CUatX · Post by **CUatX** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:45 pm

Another thought: if you are on hypertension meds and the CPAP is doing its job, your blood pressure just might be dropping too low.

Julie · Post by **Julie** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:33 pm

Maybe a long shot here, but have you had blood tests and others lately, unrelated to OSA? There may be other things going on that have little to do with OSA and need to be looked at.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:27 pm

post your PSG online somewhere so we can look at it. It won't be the first time someone finds something on the PSG your doctor has no clue or overlooked.

You want to go over it yourself very carefully, look for items that were found to interrupt your sleep architecture like PLMD limb movements, spontaneous and other micro arousals.

Most sleep doctors only address the "obstructive" sleep apnea part, they don't do anything about the other events that may interrupt your sleep, that is they ONLY address the hypopnea and apnea seen and do nothing about those other parasomnias that may interrupt your sleep and leave you with the fatigue.

You should also have a "before" and "after" of your sleep architecture showing an improvement in the latter on the machine. You should also have a titration table where it shows how they found the 6cm pressure was adequate for you.

Other causes for fatigue can be many, muscle-skeletal pains, medication such as statin drugs etc.

Your doctor should send you to a Hematologist for a complete blood panel and you should be screened carefully for any signs of tumors as those can also contribute to fatigue.

m1k2s3 · Post by **m1k2s3** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:46 pm

There's a great article on this web site you should definitely read. Look under "Our collective wisdom", then "Help for new and struggling CPAP users". The article is called "Seven stages of CPAP and what is feeling good"

This helped me enormously. It helped me realize that CPAP is a "therapy" for sleep apnea and like any therapy, it takes time to really see results. Remember your body has learned to function on less sleep. You have to give yourself and your body some time to adjust to your new sleeping patterns.

I've been on CPAP for over a year now and like many other people here, I've wanted to quit a million times. My sleep study showed 35 apneas - borderline severe sleep apnea - hardly worth strapping myself to a machine every night! Atleast that's what I told myself - I was in complete denial. But over time, you become more accepting of this therapy and you really do start to feel better.

Hang in there - you've come to the right place. There's a wealth of information on this site and tons of people who know what your going through.

Gregg · Post by **Gregg** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:48 pm

Thanks so much for that tip!

Here's a link to that article-

cpaptalk-articles/CPAP-stages-feeling-good.html

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Jul 01, 2008 9:58 am

I was like you - however I reached that stage MUCH FASTER.

I went through 8 masks in 6 weeks before I could find one that actually IMPROVED my therapy rather than made me feel worse.

viewtopic/t23207/Babettes-Nasal-Aire-II-Tip-Sheet.html

(BTW - I run a Test Drive for the Nasal Aire II - If you are unable to obtain one and would like to try it, PM me.)

I had to go on Provigil for 4 months so I could keep my day job and not kill people.

I'm at just over a year of therapy and while some things have improved, I'm still lazy, fat and unmotivated in many other areas. Mostly it's work stuff that's improved - I'm thinking clearer, problem solving better, overall getting better at my job. I still don't believe that I was born to cook or clean, and I justify my weed-infested yard by pointing at my neighbor to the West who cares even less about HER yard.

However, I do have a small ray of hope. I keep it lit here amongst friends.

Good luck, keep trying different things, and keep us posted!
Babette

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jul 02, 2008 8:14 am

The exact same thing happened to me. Turned out I was also depressed, but after getting some meds I feel great. Go ask your doctor if something else is wrong with you. Tell him about any other symptoms: can't concentrate, headaches whatever.

shinyhaid · Post by **shinyhaid** » Wed Jul 02, 2008 1:26 pm

Hey James,

I'm in the same boat. Let me know if anything ever helps. I know OSA is deadly but who the heck wants to live like in this zombie state forever AND be strapped to a machine?

Humidifier

Additional Comments: My machine is a ResMed S9 Elite - Pressure is 11

Mask