Adjustment period is what again?

i fall asleep fine. I'm lucky I suspose my mask doesn't bother me. It's a nose or snorkel i guess. So I've been on for over a week now, and this morning i am dead tired. I read other post, but just needed a little confidence. Is the adjustment period inclusive of both the hardware, and actually keeping the mask on in order to obtain the ever elusive Good Nights Rest?

Is it normal to pull the mask off at first? I wake up in the morning with it on the floor or worse yet at the foot of my bed [I guess I threw it off in my "sleep'].

thanks in advance

Hi namelessben,

(Who's not really nameless if his name is ben... )
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Following is an edit to my post:
Ben, I did a disservice when I referred you to that link. So much so, that I am removing it!

Please click on this link instead: Taking the mask off
for some helpful suggestions.

I apologize! (Thanks rg!)

Awesome thanks. I'm gonna call my doc today see what she says.

Hi Ben,

I just now looked at #17 in the cpap FAQ, and I don't really agree with the suggestion that a higher pressure than the titrated pressure would probably solve the problem of taking a mask off without realizing it. In fact, I think that could be counter-productive -- possibly causing more problems with the mask due to more chance of leaks with higher pressures.

Lack of enough pressure could certainly enter into the equation if a person is using "ramp" and the starting pressure for the ramp is set too low. Many DMEs set the ramp at the lowest pressure possible - "4". Such low pressure can make a person feel stifled for air inside a mask. I keep ramp turned off on my machine - I want my treatment pressure right from the get-go, but many people do like to use the ramp feature. A starting ramp pressure of 6 might be more comfortable to more people.

True, as the FAQ said, it could be that obstructions are still happening, due to a titrated pressure being too low. Rather unlikely, imho. If anything, titrated pressure is actually too high during most of the night for many people. People who have switched from straight cpap set at, say 12, to an autopap set at a range of 8 - 14 often report that the pressure used by their autopap all night never even has to get close to the titrated single pressure of 12, or at most hits it for very brief times during the night.

I very much disagree with this statement in the FAQ:

The mask is rarely the reason for this complaint.

I think the mask is most often the reason for removing it during the night without realizing it.

It's a very strange feeling to have "something on the face" when we are trying to go to sleep, especially when a person first begins using CPAP. As the FAQ stated, it's a natural reaction to reach up to get whatever is on the face...off. For whatever the reason.

An uncomfortable mask that digs into the nose or cheeks, a mask that causes sores on the bridge of the nose, a mask that leaks, headgear that slips, straps uncomfortably tight -- any of those things could make a sleeping person arouse just enough to reach up and "get that thing off my face." Waking up just enough to do that, but not staying awake long enough to remember doing it.

Mask leaks that shoot jets of air (or even just little puffs) against the face, especially up toward the eye area can be very disturbing to sleep and would make some people try to bat the thing away.

I truly believe the key to getting along with this kind of treatment is the MASK.

Aside from removing the mask without realizing it, this is important to think about: It can take time to get used to sleeping in such a strange new way - mask, machine, new sounds. There can be many disruptions to sleep just from the equipment itself especially during the first weeks.

Even when people keep the mask on all night, many report feeling worse for a few weeks before they start feeling better. Sleep disruptions are sleep disruptions, whether the disruption is due to apneas/hypopneas, or are disruptions due to using all this equipment stuff.

Anyway, what you are doing - removing the mask without realizing it - is common. I'd look to the comfort and leakproofness of the mask first. But even with a very comfy mask, it's still a natural reaction to sleepily want to get "that thing off my face" sometime during the night.

Some people have reported success by positive thinking - talking to themselves while they are waiting to go to sleep... repeating something like:

"This mask is saving my life. I will not remove it. I will wear it all night."

Just my two cents. I'm not a doctor or health care professional.
Just a many-different-kinds-of-mask-wearin' happy autopap user!

I see your point. I feel quite comfortable in the mask. Being a Newb to the whole idea of sleeping better is nice, I guess I was just looking for instant results. I made an appointment with my doctor today...hopefully she'll help.

Thanks, rested gal, for saving me the trouble of typing a post!

It's ridiculous not to think that the mask could be the problem. Who can sleep with a plastic mask on your face???

Oh, wait... we do.

But it can certainly take some getting used to!

I, too, fall asleep easily with my mask on. For the first week or so I was waking up in the morning finding the mask on the floor - and not knowing why. After a while I became aware of taking it off, or fiddling with it in my sleep to pull it away from my face - always 2-3 hours after falling asleep. It's obvious to me that the mask is causing some discomfort. I've done a lot of reading here to get ideas on how to keep it on, and I've even purhcased a second mask - a different type so I can alternate.

You'll figure it out too. Hang in there!