New user, can't sleep with the machine sound - help

[adksleepygal]

I am new to this forum and also to using cpap. Please forgive my ignorance. I have a Remstar Auto A-Flex machine with a humidifier attached which says System One. I can hear this machine and it sounds like it is breathing - like there is a person next to me and it is freaking me out and I cannot get to sleep. I am so frustrated as I supposedly really need this thing - was diagnosed as severe from the sleep study with apnea lasting over 37 seconds. But so far I cannot use this and wonder if there is a way to make it quiet. I live in a very peaceful area - no sounds at all - the rain last night kept me awake as the window was open - very light sleeper. Any suggestions would be great - it feels like I am choking when this is on and it makes me feel nauseous - I cannot stand anything on my face or holding me down and this feels just like torture. I have an Optilife with nasal cushion - could not use the pillow thing as I cannot stand the feeling of anything in my nose. Thanks for any help at all - I am ready to throw this out or take the bridge I am so depressed about having this problem. Thank you sincerely.

[Emilia]

Is the machine or your breathing in the mask that you're hearing? If it is truly the machine.... try ear plugs. My machine is whisper quiet, but I do hear my breathing sounds with the mask....I find it rhythmic and soothing so I slip off to sleep very quickly. I am sorry you are having this problem. I am sure others who are familiar with your machine may be by shortly to offer advice. Good luck!

[KAZ]

Welcome! You are among fellow travelers, and making the step to ask for assistance is a good one. I came here in 2007 with a new machine,mask,hose. I had to change out my first machine(base no data), and my first mask, I kept only the hose LOL, and soon found out how to make this treatment work as it is not an option. Try holding your breath for 37 seconds. One thing is to go to sleep when you are really sleepy, and see if you can come up with something(soft music) to mask the sound. None of us started out pleased about the treatment process, but I promise that once you get things sorted out it will become natural to you. I'm in my forth year, and now I 'm not sure that I could sleep without my machine running softly in the background, and the payoff in a quality life full of energy is worth the journey. It will get better! Regards

[Bons]

Is it a Darth Vader kind of sound? That's your breathing, not the machine itself. There are a couple of things you can try until you get used to it (believe it or not, if I take a nap in the afternoon I can't fall asleep without the BiPAP now because I actually miss what used to drive me nuts a few weeks ago). My clock radio has a sleep timer, so I can use that to distract me. Another thing to try is what Christians call "breath prayer" but other religions and meditative groups use a similar technique - it's a repetitive reciting in your head of one phrase as you inhale and another as you exhale. My prayer group uses verses of Psalms, and I've found it very helpful when I'm concentrating on my breathing or in any situation when I need to distract or calm myself.
Hang in there, because it does get better.

[resistance]

+1

Use earplugs or better some relaxing music in the background etc. I had some hard time like you in the beginning, but now I love my CPAP machine and don't want to sleep without it.

Naturally it may feel unusual at the beginning, but believe me you'll get used to it shortly. You just need some time:)

[Janknitz]

It IS hard to get used to this! You didn't say how long you've been trying, but DON'T GIVE UP.

The sound you hear is not the machine, it is the conducted sound of your breathing in your mask and the short tube connected to it. If you try earplugs, you may be surprised to find that the sound is even louder, because it is actually conducted in your head (no, I'm not trying to say it's all in your head ).

A few things might help:
The sound can be masked by white noise like a fan in the room (doesn't have to be blowing on you), a sound machine, or soothing music (I have a tiny iPod shuffle and I put the earphone in just one ear).

Covering the short hose helps a little. Padacheek is a member here and she can make you a hose cover if she doesn't already carry one for the Optilife. Or you can make your own if you sew or are handy with scissors and microfleece.

Make sure that short hose is not against your pillow. The pillow will conduct the sound as well.

Do things to help yourself relax before bed (warm bath, warm milk, reading, relaxation techniques) and when you get into bed try some relaxation techniques.

Eventually, most people get tired enough that they finally sleep, and wake up feeling pretty good--then they finally see the beneft. But if it's just not happening for you, ask your doctor for a very short course of something like Ambien to help you get over the hump.

[Stormynights]

I put some audio books on my MP3 player to help me cope with my husbands snoring years ago and I still like it. I can still enjoy a bedtime story.

[carbonman]

I can hear this machine and it sounds like it is breathing - like there is a person next to meI
very light sleeper.
Optilife with nasal cushion - I am ready to throw this out or take the bridge I am so depressed about having this problem. Thank you sincerely.

'sleepygal, your story is my story.
Hate any noise, light sleeper, started w/Optilife.....hated it.

Cpap is going to force you out of your comfort zones,
it is going to force you to evaluate your frustration threshold,
it is going to change your life in ways you can't even imagine right now,
it is going to give you a new life.

I posted this in Aug. '08. My transformation was just getting started.

So, as I was enjoying this new body that CPAP has brought to me,
I thought about the mask and the machine and how it is almost a living thing.
......so it needs a name.

Grace, as in amazing grace.

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That sav’d a wretch like me!
How precious did that grace appear,
The hour I first believ’d!"


It is the sweet sound of the mask and machine that is
saving me, and it did appear about the fourth day
when I stopped fighting the mask and believ'd.

You got'a believe.

It's your life.
It's my life.

[Muse-Inc]

...I can hear this machine and it sounds like it is breathing - like there is a person next to me and it is freaking me out and I cannot get to sleep...

Yup, pretty freaky is exactly right! You have a noisier machine than I have...the ResMed machines are rated as the quietest on the market. A suggestion: put your machine on a single-step library stool, they sell 'em in grocery stores sometimes for about $10 -- this will put it below the mattress and your ear level. The noise conducted via the hose is a challenge to deal with: try enclosing the hose in a fleece cover, a thick one. If the hose sits on the pillow, the noise might be increased...I am not sure how the pillow might transmit sound but somehow it does.

...very light sleeper...

When you start getting restful sleep, you will likely sleep deeper. I went from extremely light sleeper to pardon the accurate pun to the sleep of the dead, then got diagnosed and became a more normal sleeper in regards to been hyper-sensitive to noise, light, movement (fan), scents, etc.

...it feels like I am choking when this is on and it makes me feel nauseous...

If it's too much air, Increase the ramp time so that you will be asleep when it hits full pressure. Or, if it's not enough air, turn off the ramp entirely; if that doesn't work, you might need more air pressure.

...I cannot stand anything on my face or holding me down and this feels just like torture...

You might try wearing it while reading or watching TV to get used to the feel of it. I loved my OptiLife pillow mask, shame it's so uncomfortable for you...we're all different.

Wish ya good luck in getting acclimated to CPAP therapy. Most of us struggle a bit in the beginning, some horrendously so. My first 4 nights were from hell (only slept during my 45 min ramp times, woke up every time it hit full pressure), then on night 5 I slept 9 hrs straight! The one wonderful thing that happened occurred on night 1: I stopped peeing my usual 8-10 times/night...I was thrilled that habit disappeared and hasn't recurred.

[AThom10731]

I also have been struggling with getting used to the noise for almost two years. Tried a sleep machine with ocean sounds, ear plugs, radio, and podcasts. I connect two hoses and listen to talk radio, investing info, and music on my Ipod. I have my bad nights and my good nights. The bad nights are usually when my mask leaks. Advil PM is also helpful especially if I am experiencing any pain. Good luck to you.

[Julie]

It's easy - turn off the EPR (c-flex) feature - that's what makes the noise on those machines (been there...). But if you need c-flex, then I don't have another answer.

[Mimmie]

I run a fan, a sound machine, and an air conditioner 24/7. Hearing my machine doesn't bother me. But when all this first started I could hear it, breathing, but I adapted quickly and then didn't notice it anymore at all. The sounds from my breathing lull me right off to sleep. Whish is where I am heading now. Good luck to you. Stick with it. Nite all. Off to sleep peacefully tonight.

[Mammal]

I sleep with cotton balls in my ears. It cuts out the noise about 80%.

[elena88]

I had that machine for a month and returned it due to a noise it was making like an accutron watch, drove me insane.

your sound is different, yes probably that A flex..

I thought that machine had a very, very pleasant algarithm though.. quite soothing..


did you try the swift fx nasal pillow mask? those dont go in your nose, but simply rest against it..

those are way easier to wear than having a full face mask strapped to you..

how many masks were you offered, and were they fitted by someone who knew what they were doing?

nothing worse than having a nasal pillow mask put on you one notch too tight..

the pillow masks are really quite comfortable for a lot of folks who cant tolerate a full face mask.

It feels weird for a bout a week with the pillows, then you cant even feel them anymore.. but the full face mask. OMG..

how long have you been at this?

[Astrophytum]

Hi,

today I will make some photos from my S9, where the machine is standing to reduce the noise.

I will start an extra thread, so I hope some other users will tell us, how they bring there machines quiter.

Regards,
Astrophytum