Newbie (still in the bargaining stage) with typical newbie q

[oregondiver]

First and foremost...I am usually pretty agreeable. But this whole cpap business has me grouchy (not out loud, just internally grouchyness in my head kind of thing). So if I come across cranky with my questions, I sincerely apologize.

I am fairly healthy but got sucked into a sleep study by my GP after trying to resolve some excessive night sweat issues (this all started with work related anxiety issues, go figure). Removed all medication, sweats gone but she still wanted me to do the study. And lucky me, they had an opening that night. And even luckier, they stopped the sleep study in 2 hours to put me on a CPAP machine since I was "unsafe" remaining asleep. doh!

I always fall asleep within seconds. I always sleep well. It is my husband who disagrees. I didn't believe that I snored until I stayed with some friends on a scuba diving trip and they said I snore like an engineer So yea, guess my husband is right about the snoring. Haha. Until this past year, I would pop awake at 5am and read in bed until it was time to get up (or sometimes I do laundry, shampoo carpets, dishes or work out). Then work related stress hit early last year (and continues) and now I still fall asleep within seconds but wake up feeling sleepy, stay in bed sleeping as long as possible.

So maybe my sleeping issues started a year ago? I haven't found by research that stress helps exacerbate a sleep problem (apnea)...but does it sound reasonable?

I am still in the bargaining phase in that I go to sleep without it. Wake up at midnight. Wear it for 4 hours. Tear off around 4am. I am having a hard time starting since I feel like such a failure and like a high maintenence wife (first I sweat like a farm animal for 16months and now I wear a mask to bed). Don't get me wrong, my husband has offered to wear oneto show solidarity. I am just cranky about the whole thing. My little sister wants me to give it a full night, which I will be doing starting today (through the weekend) while my husband is out of town. haha. Is it normal to feel "good" from the get go so then you are motivitated to continue or is it more normal to take a few months to see a difference?

Thanks in advance for any funny stories or support

If it makes any difference, I am a lifetime swimmer with huge lungs. I scuba dive and hesitate breath (not saying I forget to breathe under water...I just dont' see a need to breath in an out so I do really good on my air consumption compared to otherw who Hoover their air). So wondering if my "hesitation" breathing is making it seem like I have sleep apea (yes, I ams ure this is just more "bargaining").

[123.Shawn T.W.]

Can't really answer your questions ... But ... Welcome!

I'm one of those "hoovers" when it comes to scuba ... I can suck a tank empty in 20 minutes!

[Xney]

Sleep apnea can cause stress, moreso than the other way around!

My suggestion would be to just wear the thing for 8 hours ASAP. The sooner you start the faster you get used to it.

[BlackSpinner]

I am having a hard time starting since I feel like such a failure and like a high maintenence wife

If it helps you - think of it this way, if you don't wear it you could become a super high maintenance wife requiring around the clock attendance (like I and my sister provide to my post stroke mother). If you do wear it you can become the fun and active wife instead. For men, using cpap, can blow the elephant in the room right out of the water, women, as usual, report a less exciting out come, however many of us feel a lot more playful.

Stop worrying about the cause, sometimes the slightest thing can push OSA over the edge. There is nothing you did wrong, except maybe choosing the wrong gene providers when you were born.

[kteague]

I think you said it yourself - this bargaining behavior is just a phase. This too shall pass. Maybe when you get tired of going through the hassle with only partial benefits you'll jump in with both feet. haha - Excuse the swimming illustration. Wasn't intentional, but hey it works so I'll leave it. As a swimmer and diver, I bet you roll your eyes at people who tip their toes in the water and take forever to commit to the experience. Can you find that aspect of your personality and apply to this experience? Oh, your hubby sounds like a jewel. I'm sure you in a mask is more attractive than you shaking the walls with your snoring. Do the guy a favor and just do it. And get on with living a less grouchy life.

[jzap]

When you get into bargaining mode
consider this...
...Come ON!!! You are a SCUBA DIVER!!!! You suck air through a hose FOR FUN!!! I bet you are so good at it you could do it IN YOUR SLEEP!!! ("humor ark ark")

[archangle]

Welcome.

Yeah, CPAP sucks, but it's a necessary as insulin for diabetics, casts for broken bones, etc.

Check in here and we can help you with the booby traps and minefields. Look in my signature line and fill in what type of equipment.

If you're on insurance, you need to worry about "compliance," which basically means 4 hours usage a night for something like 22 nights a month. Without that, insurance may not pay.

You need to do more than 4 hours each night. If you fill in your profile, we can probably tell you how to check your results and your compliance. Do it now, before you lose too many nights to get in "compliance."

As for hesitation breath, no, it's unlikely that happened, but if you get your sleep report from your sleep test, you can check and see if you've got "real" apnea. Be sure to get the "full" report. The reports are usually pretty darn conclusive. Also, healthy, thin people can get apnea. You won't stay healthy without treatment.

[JohnO]

Welcome to the forum. I'm pretty new at this myself. I started reading this forum back in late May, had my sleep study at the beginning of August, and just had my 30 day follow-up with my Sleep Doc earlier this week.

Your story is similar to mine in that I never felt that I was lacking sleep. Like you, I fell asleep easily, and woke up refreshed. I never felt sleepy during the day (OK - maybe rarely...) I -did- snore like a freight train, and have for years, but I don't think I was stopping breathing until this year. I got myself to accept there was a real issue by using a fingertip pulse oximeter to record my blood oxygen levels overnight for a number of weeks. The data was SCARY. Many of the issues caused by sleep apnea are cumulative. By addressing the problem now, you will be much better off down the road.

When I had my sleep study, I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, which meant I was having LOTS of events very frequently through the night until they put the mask on me.

Even though my wife was supportive, I still felt very self-conscious when I was ready to use my machine for the first time. It took me four nights to get over it.

Is it normal to feel "good" from the get go so then you are motivitated to continue or is it more normal to take a few months to see a difference?

I'd say most people do not feel good from the Get-Go. The first week in particular I needed a LOT of encouragement.

The fact that you are a SCUBA diver is helpful in that you can get over the physical issue of breathing off the hose without freaking out. I liken it to breathing through the regulator.

Hang around the forum. Ask lots of questions. Lots of good people here!

John

[apsews]

Maybe just a little encouragement here.... I have been a napper for as long as I can remember and have taken a nap pretty much everyday. I am happy to report that I started cpap last Friday,and yesterday and today have been the first days that I have not had to take a nap,I haven't even felt like I needed to. I am so extatic about it,it is a huge testimony for me. I can't stop telling my hubby and kids how happy I am that I have not had a nap in 2 days,woooohoooo for cpap(even though it is a pain in my butt still). Hang in there,you will see a difference soon too.

[kaiasgram]

So wondering if my "hesitation" breathing is making it seem like I have sleep apea (yes, I ams ure this is just more "bargaining").

Hi oregondiver, welcome to the forum. It seems very very unlikely that the techs at your sleep study would have come running in to put a mask on you just two hours into the study if you didn't have sleep apnea. But if you really want to bust out of the bargaining phase, get a copy of your sleep report and look at what was happening to your blood oxygen levels during those two hours. Chances are good you'll see some sobering O2 desaturations.

Sleep apnea that is not yet treated can cause stress, anxiety and grumpiness among other symptoms. My hope for you is that when you start sleeping all night with the machine and mask, you'll start feeling much better -- and yes, most people don't wake up after their first night on cpap and declare "It's a miracle!" It usually takes a little longer than that.

BTW, your hubby sounds like a special guy -- not all spouses would volunteer to mask up as a show of love and support.

Good luck, let us know how you're doing!

[zoocrewphoto]

Hi oregondiver, welcome to the forum. It seems very very unlikely that the techs at your sleep study would have come running in to put a mask on you just two hours into the study if you didn't have sleep apnea. But if you really want to bust out of the bargaining phase, get a copy of your sleep report and look at what was happening to your blood oxygen levels during those two hours. Chances are good you'll see some sobering O2 desaturations.

I agree. I was told I would have a split night study if I met the criteria early enough in the night. They don't actually tell you the criteria, not that you could intentionally fake it anyway. They woke me up after 2 hours and 15 minutes. My Oyxgen levels weren't as bad as some people here. They did go down to 84%, and my primary doctor cringed when she read the summary report. What was really severe was the 71 apneas and 127 hypopneas in that short 2 hours and 15 minutes. My ahi was 79.9. That means that I was struggling to breathe 79 times in an hour, more than once a minute. And during those 2 hours and 15 minutes, I didn't even reach REM sleep, which is when people are typically worse. If they had done a full night of diagnosis, I suspect that my ahi would have been even higher. But there was no point. Clearly, the data showed I was severe, and the treatment is the same regardless of how severe I am.

For me, it was really sobering to see that sleep summary report. I have known for years that I had sleep apnea, but in my mind, it was just about lack of sleep. I never bothered to look it up and see that it was really causing long term damage. I didn't let myself learn that this was why I had high blood pressure, and why my doctor was telling me (at age 39) that I was at high risk of stroke. I saw something on the news about sleep apnea and high blood pressure after 8 months of medications not helping much. I confessed, got the sleep study, and learned that I was far worse than I thought. The good news is that going from severe to an ahi of less than 2 most nights, means that I feel better overall, the damage I have done will heal, and sleep apnea was truly the cause of my high blood pressure. It is not completely normal as my sleep still goes up and down. I'm still new at this. But even with some bad nights here and there, I still feel better than before treatment started.

Not everybody feels great right away. I felt awesome after my sleep study. When I got my machine, I wasn't feeling instantly better. But I could tell within a few days that I felt more cheerful in general. I do not feel extremely energetic, but I did notice that I was rarely drinking energy drinks anymore. Every now and then, I have a truly awesome night, and I feel great the next day. It is rare, maybe once a month. I have more bad days than awesome days. Most days are in the okay to good range.

It really varies with each person. Part of it is how severe you are, how well your prescription fits your actual needs, how well you adjust to the mask and airflow, how quickly your brain is willing to trust it, how well your mask fits, etc. There are a ton of factors that make a difference in how fast you notice positive changes.

[sleeptimeinNY]

I went into the sleep study VERY reluctantly... and then waited 3 months before I scheduled the second titration. I never would have waited if I had found this forum earlier.
I HATED the mask and trying to get to sleep all night with it on my face... like a lot of people who start, I ripped it off at any time during the night "to get some real sleep'! lol!!
I did not even want to go to bed because I dreaded it.
Well, I subsequently convinced myself to change the attitude and now six months in, I can't wait to go to bed (getting to sleep some nights is still iffy) and I would not even think of not putting the mask on. I think my face and my brain just got used to it and it feels more normal now.

Just hang in there and it will get better and easier to accept. This takes a lot of patience.

Good luck!!

[oregondiver]

Thank you everyone!

I was a bit hesitant to post since there are some forums (obviously not this one) who mainly reply "search the forum before posting questions!"... So all these awesome replies was...well, awesome! Thank you.

And than you guys for the humor too! I have updated my machine info per the suggestion as well.

I finally used it for 3 nights straight (thurs-Sat) while my husband was out of town. 8 theraputic hours? AHI of 3.5? 90% pressure showed 5.5? No large leaks. I think this means I am doing OK (with cpap)? First full night I kept waking up (not releated to cpap). Second night I actually SLEPT! I am not saying I woke up refreshed...but I stayed asleep And well...had guests Saturday night, and plenty to drink...so I definitely slept like a rock on Saturday night.

I used it for a full night last night after my husband got home. Luckily he fell asleep before me but I was still self conscious and spent 10 minutes focusing on the noise of my breathing instead of dropping off to sleep. So an additional 8 theraputic hours...I didn't wake up feeling rested, but I dind't feel unrested either. But I DID wake up naturally before the alarm went off which has been happening infrequently in the past 18 months.

Next newbie question: why does my nose stay dry (drynose?) even though I have my humidifyer on? Is it just "getting used to" or? I ran the humidifyer up high one night...but all it did was leave my hose dripping water with my nose "dry"....

[oregondiver]

POssibly last question (from a newbie perspective?)....
What does second tritation mean? I have only had the sleep study (10 days ago). I will get to see/hear/read my results early October. So I have no idea what my "report" even says about me at this point....

[Sheriff Buford]

Oregon: your numbers look ok. Any AHI number under a 5.0 is considered good, but lower is more preferable. Make sure you are not posting any leak levels. Leaks can rob proper treatment. Yes, your nose can become dry. I noticed you are using a nasal mask and dryness is an issue. If it becomes uncomfortable, you might try raising your humidifier level. This will allow more moisture during the night and ease up on the dryness. Make sure you are not mouth-breathing. One way you can tell is by the dryness in your mouth. Mouth-breathing prevents the air from entering your body and it escapes thru your mouth and.... again... less therapy treatment.

In my opinion, your hubby will get used to you wearing a mask at night. It took my wife a while, but we worked around it. She calls my mask my "gas-mask". She sees how it has improved my health and decided it was well worth it.

The second titration (with means sleep study-test) is normally after the 1st sleep study data is reviewed by a sleep doctor. The second one is done with the cpap pressure set at a recogmended level. The techs will see if the treatment is sucessful at the second study.... then send you home with the proper settings.

Work ALL your issues here. The members that stick around are here to help!

Sheriff