OSA diagnosis and emotional acceptance

Gerald wrote:Pammie.......

It has long been my position....that a person's sub-conscious has to be in favor of CPAP therapy....or it's an incredibly tough row to hoe. The fact that you're working on the emotional aspects of this project means that you'll probably do just fine.

As I read your post, I thought of an "off the wall" way to encourage you.

If your life depended on being able to make an all-night trip through 20-miles of deep snow....in a snow storm.....it would be an almost impossible task if you didn't have a snowmobile. But with a good snowmobile, the trip would almost be a pleasure.

One of the great adventures of my life was an all-night snowmobile excursion through some mountains in upstate New York. It was a magical moonlit night.....and I was struck by the thought that the wonderful machine I was riding allowed me to conquer Nature in a way that would have been impossible 50-years earlier. I had experiences that night that I'll treasure till the end of my days....all because of some magnificient engineering that allowed me to ride on top of the snow.

Sleep Apnea is like a deep snowfall that can kill us....if we must make our way through it without mechanical help. A good CPAP machine is like a snowmobile that'll let us fly right through it....and laugh.

My M-Series Auto with AFLEX is like the Bombardier I rode that night....and that's how I look at it. My CPAP machine allows me to cheat the Grim Reaper......as I fly by....."flippin' the bird" as I go.

So, when you get a little discouraged at times, think of the wild guy from Louisiana (yes, LOUISIANA where snow is RARE) screaming by on a Bombardier....with his finger held high.

You can do it!

Gerald

Gerald,

Great Analogy!

Tonight will be my first night on A-PAP at home and I'll be thinking about you on that snowmobile with your finger held high!

Speaking of snow, I'm in Central Texas. We also rarely see snow, but many in our area saw some flurries early this morning. Snow is rare here, but before Christmas - almost unheard of!

In reply to pammieb, I am recently diagnosed and not feeling very good about it either. What thoughts are you having? I'm a strong person also and was not aware that I might have a real sleep problem. My doctor suggested a sleep study when I told him I sleep restlessly and for short periods - I also have a 'stout' neck (pretty!) which I was so glad to hear, but is a common
indicator of apnea.

I haven't gotten my machine yet and have mixed emotions about it. I am anxious to feel an improvement, but reluctant about the whole idea.

Someone mentioned asking for the data recording cpap. How do you request it - from the prescribing doctor or the home care company supplying it?

My husband (of 43 years) has made some 'funny' remarks that I do not appreciate. Any suggestions to shut him up?

Glad to find this site also - I've been looking for all the info I can find. Thanks for being there!

cpapsue wrote: . . . asking for the data recording cpap. How do you request it - from the prescribing doctor or the home care company supplying it? . . .

Hi, cpapsue. Welcome.

Your DME will get the same amount from your insurance company whether the machine the DME gives you is full-data or not. So your best bet is to get a list from your insurance of which DMEs you can deal with, so you have bargaining power to get what you need to be fully involved in your therapy. That way you can politely say, "Oh, I prefer a full-data machine, so I guess I may have to check with one of the other in-network DMEs," if the first DME you go to won't give you what you need.

Do your homework by searching this site to get the list of full-data machines, because all the ones your DME will offer will record compliance data, which is for their information, not yours. So you have to be sure the data it gives is efficacy data such as leak, AI, AHI. A ResMed may be a good choice if you want access to all that data from the screen and don't plan on doing the card, card-reader software thing. A Respironics may be a good choice if you are gonna do the software thing. Just an opinion.

If you can't find a DME that will cooperate, you can have your doc write on the prescription that you need a full-data machine, then the DME has no choice but to give you one.

cpapsue wrote: . . . My husband (of 43 years) has made some 'funny' remarks that I do not appreciate. Any suggestions to shut him up? . . .

Well, as a male of the species myself, let me just say that sometimes we try to be funny when we don't know what else to do. You may be able to cut him some slack. He may be as scared as you are and have no way of expressing that. He may be, in his own awkward clumsy way, trying to get you to laugh about it to help you deal with it. Or he may be a complete jerk who needs to be told what line he can't cross again without consequences. Most of us husbands are made up of some combination of all of the above, I think.

cpapsue wrote: . . . Glad to find this site also - I've been looking for all the info I can find. Thanks for being there! . . .

Good to have you. Do the full sign-up thing. Stick around. Learn all you can and teach what you know. And take all our goofing off and misbehaving with a grain of salt. We are all brain-damaged, grumpy, silly, sleep-deprived hose-heads here.

jeff

Jeff ...

You made me laugh for the first time about this stuff. The insight re my husband is probably right on. He probably doesn't know what to say - especially, since the 'thing' hasn't shown up yet.

Thanks for the info on the machine also. I'll call today - before it's too late!

I'll check out the sign up too. You're a big help.

Posts by "rested gal" and "Slinky" are particularly helpful to ones just starting out and dealing with machine choices, DMEs, insurance, etc. So be sure to search for their posts.

Wish you the best.

jeff

cpapsue wrote:Jeff ...

You made me laugh for the first time about this stuff.

jnk wrote: And take all our goofing off and misbehaving with a grain of salt. We are all brain-damaged, grumpy, silly, sleep-deprived hose-heads here.

jeff

cpapsue, jeff is right on.

....and you got'a laugh to keep from crying.

I liken it to a very strange cult.....a bunch of really
tired people trying to get some sleep.

You're going to meet c-flexers, a-flexers, straight-papers,
and bi-papers, people wearing panty hose on their heads,
lip gluers, mouth tapers, droolers, pillow slashers,
data junkies and voyagers on The Odyssey for THE mask.

Your mission, now, is to learn and identify what each of
these strange things are and which one you will become.

Welcome! to your new life.

Hopefully in the shortest amount of time, you will
understand what I mean by "your new life."

Pammieb,
I sometimes wonder if part of the problem for spouses is the fact we call it "sleep apnea" which tends to give people the feeling it's a quality of sleep problem. And then it may become an issue of "why should my sleep be disrupted by a machine that helps my spouse sleep"?

Your husband may be better able to accept your machine if he realizes it's a breathing problem your are struggling with: you are quite literally getting choked at the rate of so and so many times an hour - and your brain and body are most probably not getting the amount of oxygen they need.

It may help if instead of using acronyms and medical words, you start talking about your breathing problems; about having you breath cut off when you slip into sleep.
Here's a movie that might help explain the issue: Understanding Sleep Disordered Breathing. It takes some time to load - but it well worth the wait.

Welcome to the forum, and good luck!
O.