2nd night with CPAP and sneezing up a storm.

[sleepyleaf]

I am a newbie and have only used my cpap machine for two nights. The first night I was awake all night and in the morning felt awful as usual. The second night I slept much better, I roll over a lot so I would wake up to readjust my mask but seemed to go back to sleep. I have felt pretty good most of the day and wasn't falling asleep on my way into work which was my biggest problem. One thing I have noticed today was that I am sneezing a lot. Could this be normal. Other things I noticed were that when I first put the mask on and turned the machine on I felt like I was suffocating. My Dad who also has sleep apnea said I should probably forget about "ramping" up and just go straight to my prescribed pressure.

Any thoughts? I look forward to the support and the new friends I know I will get here. I am determined to make this thing work and to feel better and get my life back!!!!

Thanks
Sleepyleaf

[Hosehead4ever]

I'm still pretty new myself but as for the ramp, I stopped using that after a couple of nights because, like you said, I would feel like I was suffocating. It only takes less than a minute, I would guess, until I get used to the pressure of the machine.

As for sneezing, I too wonder about that. I've never had seasonal allergies, but since I've started CPAP therapy, it seems like on the worst allergy days, I am sneezing up a storm. Could be a coincidence, but since you brought it up, I'll be interested in what more experienced members have to say about it.

[Pugsy]

Humidifier use?? Settings on humidifier?
Sometimes a person might need a bit more moisture and some people might need a bit less moisture.
It is a personal choice and what works for one might not work for another.

Early on in my therapy I forgot to add water to the tank and it went dry. Major sneezing the next day along with some congestion and drainage. I needed the moisture. Others do better with less. So if the sneezing continues consider changing humidifier setting one way or the other.

[Bright Choice]

sleepyleaf and katydidagain -

Take a look at these videos about nasal breathing at SleepTreatment.com: http://sleeptreatment.com/allergy-video-series

They are extremely informative and this information has helped me a lot! I never thought that I had a nasal breathing issue, allergies or reflux, but implementing some of this information has made a huge difference for me.

Good luck!

[Mary Z]

sleepyleaf, good for you for the positive attitude. Doing away with the ramp feature might help with that feeling of suffocating- the ramp is really not necessary, but some folks like it. Can't speak to the sneezing. I used to have allergies, but they haven't bothered me for a long time and CPAP never made me prone to snnezing.

[Hosehead4ever]

Thanks Bright Choice!

[beckah]

I usually set my humidifier at 5 and it uses quite a bit of water. I lowered it to 2 on a whim. The next day I thought I was getting a cold....watery eyes, sneezing, lots of nasal drainage. I turned the humidifier back up to 5 and, viola!!!, back to normal.

Some Xpap users seem to be the opposite, they need lower humidity. Try out different setting until you find your sweet spot. The correct setting on your humidifier, anywhere between passover mode or as high as it will go, can make a difference in your sleep comfort levels, as well as how you feel the following day.

Sleep well!

edit: corrected spelling----brain fog.

[Otter]

Another vote for experimenting with the humidity. If I had to bet, I'd put my money on low humidity being the problem. But even with the humidity adjusted properly, you might have some symptoms until your body adapts to this rather unnatural arrangement. I didn't sneeze much, but my mucous membranes did feel off for the first two or three days.

If you have respiratory allergies, you should use the finest filter available for your machine. That's made a difference for me already, and I wonder if for some people, CPAP would be worth the hassle just to breathe filtered air all night. Often the machines come with filters that do little except to keep the bugs and larger dust bunnies from going up your nose. Get the ultra-fine, hypoallergenic, or super-duper-but-we-won't-tell-you-the-particle-efficiency filters if you don't have them already.

Is your machine new? With a used machine, there is the possibility that it's retained odors from a previous environment and those are bothering you. If it wasn't cleaned, there could even be put dander or something in there. I'm not sure how long that would take to blow out.

Everyone is different, but I think your dad is probably right about the ramp. I'm only about two weeks ahead of you, but I decided from the beginning not to use ramp, and I haven't had any problems. I am using the machine on auto mode, though, with the minimum set high enough to prevent most events, so I don't have to fall asleep with my max pressure unless I'm so clogged up that I wouldn't be able to get to sleep anyway. On auto mode with min and max set properly, my take on the ramp is that whatever pressure the machine chooses will probably be more comfortable for me than a lower ramp pressure anyway. If you do use ramp, set it short enough so that it's done ramping up before you usually fall asleep. What's the point of drifting off only to be awakened by your apnea because the ramp is keeping your machine from doing its job?

BTW, if you set your equipment info to text instead of images, that will save people from having to click on the links to find out what you're using. Sometimes four or five words are worth a lot more than a picture.

[Guest]

Thanks to all who responded I can tell this is going to be helpful.

Last night I did not use the ramp and that totally helped. I didn't change the humidity but I think I will tonight. It is set at 2 now. I am not sneezing today but if the humidity will help with comfort I need to tweek it. I slept pretty good last night (my 3rd night). I think my biggest complaint last night would be the nasal pillows bothering my nose. I am wondering now though if maybe it wasn't the nasal pillows and I just need to up the humidity. I will try that tonight.

I have a brand new machine and have never had any problems with allergies. And... a second day of not being sleepy on my 45 minute drive to work. THAT is a good thing!!!

Again thanks so much for the advice.

[sleepyleaf]

Sorry, the above reply was mine I forgot to log in. What an amateur!!!!

[Pugsy]

If you continue to do well with the Swift FX mask and decide its a keeper, keep this product in mind.
http://www.padacheek.com/PACSwiftII_Barrel_cozy.html

It is still very comfortable without the barrel cozy but adding the barrel cozy makes it super comfy against the nostrils.
I got it originally for condensation prevention in the nasal pillows themselves and discovered that the added comfort was so sweet.

Humidifier settings are all personal choice. I need more moisture and have to balance that need with rain out in winter's cold bedroom temps. Sometimes just a small change (1 up or down) makes a big difference.

Congratulations on having an easier night last night. I also found the lower pressures of ramp rather stifling and chose not to use that feature.

[dae3dae3]

I had to start using a nasal steroid every night because the pressure irritated my sinuses. It is kind of annoying to have to use it every day but I've never had better sinuses in my life. I guess I've had problems with them for years and never bothered to do anything about it. I went for years without being able to breathe through my nose very well but now I'm pretty decent. I had to try about four different kinds before I found one that worked well for me without annoying side effects.

Also, as everybody else has said you may need to experiment with the humidity. It makes a big difference for me. If I forget to refill the tank and it runs out of water it will actually wake me up.

Your ramp is probably set too low so it makes you feel like you are not getting enough air. Either figure out how to raise the starting pressure closer to your prescribed level or better yet just do without it. I used the ramp for a month or two and then just said the heck with it and started off full power and haven't looked back since. You really will get used to having the pressure over time.

[dae3dae3]

sleepyleaf and katydidagain -

Take a look at these videos about nasal breathing at SleepTreatment.com: http://sleeptreatment.com/allergy-video-series

They are extremely informative and this information has helped me a lot! I never thought that I had a nasal breathing issue, allergies or reflux, but implementing some of this information has made a huge difference for me.

Good luck!

Thank you so much for that link. The non-allergic rhinitus section answered some questions for me that I've been asking for years that nobody has been able to answer for me. Awesome information.

[CPAPARTY]

I have been Cpap for 6 years. Tried the full face never liked it. I live in The OC so the air is pretty dry here. I use no AC or Heat most of year. I tried the H5I humidifier and
it stuffed my nose up so I quit using it. I squirt some Ocean Nasal spray before I put the Nasal Cup on and that's enough. The whole reason I started using the Cpap was my family said I snored like a chain saw. My family thinks that the Machine is a MIRACLE!

[jdaynger]

I highly suggest taking a look at Dr. Barry krakow's Books - He is filled with knowledge pertaining to cpap, bilevel, etc. You can find his books on Amazon or at sleeptreatment.com