CPAP not helping

I have been on my CPAP for about 3 months now. I originally first felt the effects of sleep apnea about 8 months ago. I could sleep 16 hours or more, and still wake up tired. However every 3 months or so I went through a week period, where I would wake up at 8 am, and for the first time in a long time, feel like i have gotten a good nights sleep.

Now 3 months into using the CPAP, i still feel like crap when I wake up. Normally I go to sleep at about 1am, and wake up on my own about noon. However I am more tired when I wake up then when I went to sleep.

I have tried the gel mask, plus the tubes that just go into your nose. However I still feel tired every time I wake up. Am I doing something wrong?

Not being a sleep doctor, I would say that maybe you are getting too much sleep. Most adults only need 7-8 hours sleep a night.

Another thing is your sleep patterns. To maximize your rest and sleep cycles, you should try going to bed and getting up around the same time everyday...yes, weekends too.

I usually get between 6 and 7 hours sleep a night (even on weekends) and I feel well rested most of the time. There may be an occasion on a Sunday afternoon where I will kick back and grab a few zzzz's, but only for 30-45 minutes.

Just some suggestions.

Later,
Tater

There are a number of things it might be.

You might be suffering REM rebound. A number of folks have talked about this on here before, and so perhaps that's the case.

In my case, I found I was unable to get to sleep with the machine on and the mask on my face. I was more tired when I "woke up" because I'd never really gotten to sleep.

It's also possible that your titrated pressure is wrong, and as a result you're either too high (and inducing central apneas) or too low (and thus, not successfully treating your apnea).

Good luck!

Liam, freshening your breathing...

concept, is there any chance treatment air might be leaking out through your mouth while you sleep? If you're using a heated humidifier, do you still ever wake up with a very dry mouth or throat? Also, do you notice any air leaks around the cushion of your mask?

What pressure were you prescribed?

I dont think I have leaks around the cushion anymore. I had leaks on the mask, but simply tightening the straps fixed that. My machine is set at 16

Sorry that was me, forgot to login.

concept, it could just be something else, i'm 4 months into cpap & at first i felt slightly better but nothing great, then this last couple of months i've been slideing downhill fast. i have had lots of problems, back to the hospital day after day, this test, that test then another. last night i was given yet more equipment to try, & go back again today for some very interesting results. it seems that i have central apnea as well as obstructive apnea, aparently the cpap as been giveing me just a small amount of benifit, but not all that it should be. so today i have been given a NIPPY ST, which is a totally differant conscept, it feels wierd compared to the cpap, but im told that my brain isnt telling my lungs/chest to breath, with this new machine when this happens then the machine will kind of, breath for me, or, make me breath. it is i am told quite possible for these two kinds of apnea's to run along together & i'm not saying it is with you, but its just possible this could account for how your feeling.
i don't quite know how i'm going to get on with this new machine tonight, but i'm realy praying that it works & i get some real quality sleep, i've certainly been without it for enough years, in the end desperation was not the word. give it some thought, i dont want to scare you or anything like that, & somebody else may well disagree with my thoughts regarding you, but well see... jean...

I started out on CPAP for about six months and it helped some, but not as much as I was hoping for. Most days I felt like I didn't get a good night's sleep. I then switched to an APAP about two weeks ago and it has worked really well. Not only has it ended a problem I was having with swallowing air, I am sleeping well every night and feeling great in the morning. For the first time in years I can go to bed at night knowing that I will get a good night's sleep. My initial sleep study showed an AHI of 52 per hour. I just got the report printed out from the card on my APAP and I am down to an AHI of 5. Ask your Doc if an APAP might work for you. Good luck.