Will I lose my progress if I temporarily stop CPAP?

I have been on CPAP for about 5 weeks, I think I was just starting to see changes, I was feeling good some mornings, which would last until 2-3pm where I would crash. Unfortunately, I have to go off CPAP for 9–10 days for my work, I can't avoid it. I'm worried that after that, it might take 5 weeks or so again to start to feel better.
Do you lose much progress when you stop CPAP for a week or two? Because I might have to do this multiple times a year.

Why do you have to go off for work? Guess it depends what you do - but most people will pack up their machine and continue using it.

It’s life preserving equipment, would not recommend stopping it or anything. And once you’ve felt improvement you will almost certainly be miserable without it.

jdm5 wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 22, 2025 7:06 am

Why do you have to go off for work? Guess it depends what you do - but most people will pack up their machine and continue using it.

It’s life preserving equipment, would not recommend stopping it or anything. And once you’ve felt improvement, you will almost certainly be miserable without it.

Unfortunately, It's just the nature of my work, I'm in my countries military. I tried to get out of it, unsuccessfully. I can't feasibly bring the CPAP because I won't have electricity for at least some of the time, and It won't be a safe environment for the CPAP, which I can't risk breaking or having stolen.

It's ok, as long as I don't lose my progress, but if I have to start from the beginning again I will need to find some way around this.

Asparagus3430 wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 22, 2025 3:25 pm

jdm5 wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 22, 2025 7:06 am

Why do you have to go off for work? Guess it depends what you do - but most people will pack up their machine and continue using it.

It’s life preserving equipment, would not recommend stopping it or anything. And once you’ve felt improvement, you will almost certainly be miserable without it.

Unfortunately, It's just the nature of my work, I'm in my countries military. I tried to get out of it, unsuccessfully. I can't feasibly bring the CPAP because I won't have electricity for at least some of the time, and It won't be a safe environment for the CPAP, which I can't risk breaking or having stolen.

It's ok, as long as I don't lose my progress, but if I have to start from the beginning again I will need to find some way around this.

I'm not quite sure what to tell you. When you get back, you should be able to start using your CPAP again. Depending on the severity of your sleep apnea, you might be unfit for military service. I do believe that the US military does allow CPAP usage, even number combat conditions. Electricity is considered a miliary necessity anyhow, so it's available.

Furthermore, I don't know which county;s militaty is involved, how severe your sleep apnea is, or even your gender (though I can take an educated guess on the last one).

I'm not quite sure what to tell you. When you get back, you should be able to start using your CPAP again. Depending on the severity of your sleep apnea, you might be unfit for military service. I do believe that the US military does allow CPAP usage, even number combat conditions. Electricity is considered a miliary necessity anyhow, so it's available.

Furthermore, I don't know which county;s militaty is involved, how severe your sleep apnea is, or even your gender (though I can take an educated guess on the last one).

That's OK, I thought maybe I could get a gauge on how far this will set me back, but yeah you're right it's surely an individual matter, so I guess I'll just see what happens. Thanks.

Can you talk to your commanding officer or a medical officer about this?
There are portable battery power packs that can either be plugged in to an electrical source during the daytime to store enough battery for CPAP use at night or solar power can store power for them--they can also be charged via vehicle battery. If it's possible to use something like that, CPAP is doable under nearly any condition. And while you are training or defending your country, it seems like the military would want you wide awake and healthy rather than not.

For future reference if this is going to come up periodically it might be helpful to have a mouthpiece made. It may not give as good of results as your machine, but could mitigate your events enough to be meaningful. Talk to your sleep doc about it if your CPAP cannot be factored in on these trips. As far as trying to make the best of a bad situation, here's a few efforts you could make.

1. Try not to back sleep. Back sleeping makes the tongue more prone to relaxing backward and blocking or partially blocking the airway. A friend with dangerously severe OSA was told by his sleep doc that his stomach sleeping was likely the only thing that saved his life before diagnosis 2. Sleep with your upper body on a slight incline. That is generally better accomplished without extra pillows under your head because pillows can shift or cause the chin to tuck which can compromise the airway. A most portable solution is a folded blanket under the mattress across the head of the bed. Then the upper body is on the incline, not just the head. 3. Side sleeping on a flat firm pillow helps prevent the jaw going slack and mouth breathing. This position helps you to not have to fight the pull of gravity on your jaw in your sleep. 4. Practice keeping your tongue slightly suction sealed to the roof off your mouth forward to right behind your teeth. I made a point to keep my tongue like this every minute I was awake. Might have been foolish but I felt if it was a habit it would be more likely to retain the position when asleep. And to help with that... 5. Generally if one side sleeps at the very edge of their pillow, the edge will compress a little bit. If you push the front of your face over the edge it will tilt a bit downward toward the mattress. This will allow gravity to help keep the tongue forward and hopefully maintain the seal.

Of course when you fall asleep all bets are off. Even if your positioning only holds parts of the night, that period of time just might have fewer events. That would be a win. That said, I do all those things to give my CPAP it's best chance of being optimally effective. I am too chicken to lay down to sleep without it. But theoretically those things should be helpful in general with breathing because they just make sense. Good luck working things out.

Asparagus3430 wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 21, 2025 11:13 pm

Because I might have to do this multiple times a year.

Before you go on maneuvers again, try going without CPAP* for a night or two in your usual sleeping quarters. That should give you an idea of what it might feel like on maneuvers.

*Follow kteague's advice when sleeping without the machine.