Tired of CPAP!!

[TushyGalore]

You sound so discouraged and I'm sure harsh comments aren't helping your mood any!

I just recently started using CPAP and right now I'm in the honeymoon phase where all I have to do is think about my machine and mask and my heart flutters in delight but I can certainly see myself in the future wanting to slack off and just not wear the hideous thing once in a while.

Every night when I "suit up" I think of myself as a space traveler who's got to put on the gear in order to blast off into the wonderful journey of deep sleep and better health. I know it's goofy but hey.... I'm a goofy person.

Something that excites me almost as much as my CPAP is the crazy-fast advancements in medicine and science. So many of the things that make life difficult for us now will have cures or just better solutions in 5-10 years. So what I'm thinking is that the more sleep apnea gets discussed and the more the public gets to know about it the faster these medical advancements will come along and surely before long science will be offering us less restrictive and cumbersome treatments for this.

I heard some mention recently that some doctors are performing a type of laser surgery to help with apnea... so keep your chin up and your gear on. Hopefully this isn't really going to be a lifelong aggravation!

-Elissa-

[tchavalas]

Try a Mirage Swift LT Nasal Pillow mask. It's not as cumbersome as most. It's easy to put on.

[El Pap]

Yeah, it's not so much the sleeping with the mask on...it's all the preparation. By the time I'm tired enough to fall asleep, just the putting the mask on part seems like quite a monumental task.

Perhaps my Breeze is a particularly easy mask to don, but I can do so more quickly and with less effort than pulling down the blanket. No need to turn on the machine, it does it automagically as soon as I start breathing through it. When I think of other people that have to deal with wheelchairs, canes, colostomy bags, etc., I really don't feel all that put out by my therapy.

[carbonman]

Wow...I'm just really regretting even posting this topic now.

bworthey, I have become very comfortable w/the mechanics of cpap thearpy.
I'm very interested and curious about the psychology of cpap therapy.
I'm very interested in how to help people accept this therapy.

Do the testimonials and experiences of the 'papers that have
responded to you make a difference to you?
Do they sway you either way?
How do they affect you?

[LinkC]

For a positive pressure device CPAP really sucks.

LOL! Nice one...

[nobody]

Yeah, it's not so much the sleeping with the mask on...it's all the preparation. By the time I'm tired enough to fall asleep, just the putting the mask on part seems like quite a monumental task.

Perhaps my Breeze is a particularly easy mask to don, but I can do so more quickly and with less effort than pulling down the blanket. No need to turn on the machine, it does it automagically as soon as I start breathing through it. When I think of other people that have to deal with wheelchairs, canes, colostomy bags, etc., I really don't feel all that put out by my therapy.

TBH, even turning down the blanket is an effort. When I'm ready to fall asleep I don't even want to move, just sleep.

[LinkC]

you are telling me you are happy and okay with the fact that for the rest of your life you will have to put on a mask over your face to go to sleep?!?!?

Sure! The mask is like a little cocoon of solitude. The rhythm of the machine lulls me to sleep. Snug as a bug! I don't think I could sleep WITHOUT a mask now that I'm used to it.

[bworthey]

Try a Mirage Swift LT Nasal Pillow mask. It's not as cumbersome as most. It's easy to put on.

Will have to check that out...but if my memory serves me correctly I've read way too much that says high pressures do not work well with the pillow masks like that one. My pressure is a 19. I had found one (don't remember what it was called now, but it simply covered the mouth and had the little pillows that went into your nose, I was swayed away from that one quickly because of my pressure!

[LSAT]

The CPAP and mask are not a concern of mine I adjusted relatively quickly. It take me only seconds to put on my mask. My problem is mouth leaks. I tried the FF mask and didn't like it. I tried taping....it sucked. Now I'm using a chinstrap which works, but is a pain to put on and adjust each night. (I think I'm going to give the FF mask more time). If it were just my nasal mask. it would be great, but the chinstrap hassle is my problem.

[bworthey]

Sure! The mask is like a little cocoon of solitude. The rhythm of the machine lulls me to sleep. Snug as a bug! I don't think I could sleep WITHOUT a mask now that I'm used to it.

I used to think like that...right now I think I'm just tired of it. I see my wife just hope in the bed, not making sure a mask is dry/clean, nothing in it, making sure there is water in the humidifier, and just laying her head on her pillow and going to sleep. Me, I'm over there doing all that other stuff and fighting to find a comfortable position with this stupid thing on my head. I'm beginning to think that my pressure is off and that it's not as effective as it once was. I don't have a machine that records any data so all I have to go on is how I feel and what I think.

[carbonman]

Wow...I'm just really regretting even posting this topic now.

bworthey,
Do the testimonials and experiences of the 'papers that have
responded to you make a difference to you?
Do they sway you either way?
How do they affect you?

[roster]

Try a Mirage Swift LT Nasal Pillow mask. It's not as cumbersome as most. It's easy to put on.

Will have to check that out...but if my memory serves me correctly I've read way too much that says high pressures do not work well with the pillow masks like that one. My pressure is a 19. I had found one (don't remember what it was called now, but it simply covered the mouth and had the little pillows that went into your nose, I was swayed away from that one quickly because of my pressure!

BWorthey,

Do you want help with your CPAP therapy from the forum or just solace?

There are a few here that like to give solace. You can read their posts and ignore the rest. If you take this route you may need more and more solace because OSA is a progressive condition and the damage to your mind and body is accumulating.

Take the solace if you like, but I recommend also getting technical help from the forum to improve your therapy. I would be willing to bet your therapy is ineffective. By ineffective, I mean you are still having some unhealthy combination of apneas, hypopneas, and snores, and not enough sleep.

There are technical ways to deal with these issues and if you want to deal with them, please do the following:

1. Quit worrying about the damn politics here and selfishly focus on improving your therapy. (You, as a youth minister, want to help others. You can help others best when you are healthy. A BWorthey, mentally and physically sick from sleep apnea, will not be much help to anyone.)
2.Find out the model names of the equipment you have and put them in your equipment profile.
3. Put your pressure settings in your profile.
4. Start a new thread telling us something about your CPAP therapy. Include items such as how long you have been using, what are your sleeping habits and CPAP use routines, what positions you sleep in, what are the bedroom conditions, what is your sleep hygiene practice, and how you set and use the humidifier.
5. Don't make the new post too long. Keep it simple and address one or two issues at a time.

You have told us enough that some can offer consolation, but you have not told us enough that we can help you with the therapy.

BTW, I would have loved to be using CPAP at the age of 32. I would have avoided three decades of pain and damage to mind and body.

Regards,

[BeanMeScot]

Not directed to the OP but I don't understand why anyone would wait until they are ready to go to bed to fix up their machine. Do it when you get home from work so it will be ready when you are. It only takes a second to put the mask on and turn on the machine when everything else is ready.

As for the OP and others, I don't really understand the CPAP hate. I highly doubt we will all be using one the rest of our lives. Medical technology moves forward at a fantastic pace. It is quite likely that medical science will come up with something else equally effective one day.

In the meantime, it is not a big deal. I don't snore at night so I can room with other people again. I sleep better, I have more energy. What's to hate? Lower blood pressure? Lower blood sugar? These are good things. I don't have cancer, I don't have heart disease, I don't have breathing problems, I don't need surgery, I don't have pain, I am not sick, I have all my limbs. Why is this so bad? In the realm of medical issues, this is NOTHING. And it will help prevent other medical issues. I saw my BP go down after starting CPAP and my SA was not all that bad. If this is the worst thing I ever have, I will have been VERY lucky.

[BlackSpinner]

I am so glad I have the thing - I have my life back. But I can understand the "cut off my nose to spite my face" thing. Now that the stress of survival is over you need to adjust the rest of your life and the issues that were un important before are surfacing for you to deal with. Lots more will come up, it is part of the "grieving" process of change. It has nothing to do with how "annoying" the therapy is. Lots of women who have hysterectomies are happy at first but a year later we grieve for our lost youth and fertility.

Preparing your CPAP is no time consuming then brushing your teeth, it is not the issue, grief is. Go and see a counselor or do some journaling to get in touch and deal with the real issues.

[sleepyprm]

b, I don't now if I can help, but I'm not one of those technical people who have helped me so much. I am more of a "human nature" person. I hate the CPAP machine too. For three years I have been fighting it. But after much struggle, anger, angst and denial, my perspective has changed a bit, sometimes. A few years ago, my dad was still alive and had advanced prostate cancer. He was 81, and because of his condition, he catheterized himself in order to relieve his bladder. Imagine, a man in his 80s doing that a few times a day. I'm not trying to diminish your pain, because I hear it. Pain is pain, and everyone's pain is his/her own. But if wearing a mask improves my health and prolongs my life, I'm willing to look at all those suggestions and try them. One by one. I also agree that we don't need to look at this as a life sentence, but a new lease on life for now, and who knows what other treatments will come along. I know that you are so sleep-deprived that all you want to do is fall in bed and go to sleep. But a few extra steps to help get to that are not so bad. Please do consider all the suggestions here - face the problems and ignore the personalities. Please hang in there through the anger and frustration.