How improve my CPAP therapy settings

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
crazyplantlady
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2025 7:42 am

How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by crazyplantlady » Wed Jan 29, 2025 8:09 am

Hi,

I recently got an APAP because my ENT said I have a redundant soft palate which collapses while I'm sleeping on my back and side. The first two nights with the machine I woke up feeling so refreshed. But then I had to go on a trip and didn't have the machine/didn't sleep much. Since returning, I've been struggling to achieve that great sleep again. I realize that I may be rebounding from a lack of sleep, so I'm being patient, but in the meantime, I wanted to see if there were any suggestions for optimizing my settings.

I've included a screenshot of the good night sleep (Jan 23) and the "poor" night's sleep (Jan 28). Since the good night's sleep, I made a few adjustments: I changed the minimum to 7 because it felt hard to breathe, turned off ramp, and changed the max to 12. (On my good nights, I didn't go above 12. On my bad nights, when I went above 12, I would wake up feeling like I was suffocating and end therapy.)

I would appreciate any advice you might have. I've been trying to figure this out myself, but I'm a bit overwhelmed by all the information out there!

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Screen Shot 2025-01-29 at 9.06.09 AM.png
January 23
Screen Shot 2025-01-29 at 9.06.09 AM.png (219.93 KiB) Viewed 2008 times
Screen Shot 2025-01-29 at 9.05.56 AM.png
January 28
Screen Shot 2025-01-29 at 9.05.56 AM.png (214.76 KiB) Viewed 2008 times

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Julie
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Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2006 12:58 pm

Re: How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by Julie » Wed Jan 29, 2025 9:19 am

Everything looks pretty good, so I'm not sure if you really want to change anything, but if I'm missing something please say so.

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Miss Emerita
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Joined: Sun Nov 04, 2018 8:07 pm

Re: How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by Miss Emerita » Wed Jan 29, 2025 12:21 pm

You have a fairly busy flow-limitation graph, so you might want to increase your EPR to 3.

Is your nose stuffy?

On the worse night, you had more obstructive events, and there was a bit of clustering. I wonder whether you slept on your back for part of the night -- do you know?
Oscar software is available at https://www.sleepfiles.com/OSCAR/

crazyplantlady
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2025 7:42 am

Re: How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by crazyplantlady » Wed Jan 29, 2025 1:43 pm

Thanks for taking a look at my data. My nose is usually stuffy (it’s something I’m figuring out with my ENT) but it hasn’t been noticeably different lately.

I’ll see if an EPR of 3 helps.

I tend to sleep on my back and I’m trying to break that habit but it’s hard! Have you found anything that helps you stay on your side throughout the night?

Thanks again for these tips!

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Julie
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Re: How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by Julie » Wed Jan 29, 2025 8:19 pm

Pillows behind you?

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Miss Emerita
Posts: 3732
Joined: Sun Nov 04, 2018 8:07 pm

Re: How improve my CPAP therapy settings

Post by Miss Emerita » Thu Jan 30, 2025 12:35 pm

I second Julie's suggestion. If that doesn't help, you can try wearing a pocket t-shirt to bed, turning it backward and putting something like a tennis ball in the pocket. On Amazon, you can also see similar things if you search using "side sleep trainer."
Oscar software is available at https://www.sleepfiles.com/OSCAR/