Any Success Stories Out There?

I'm wondering if there are some of you who were on XPAP a good length of time before you felt your treatment was successful. If it took you a while before you felt good about your treatment, what do consider was/were the "break-through(s)" for you?

Example: I thought I would never get my AHI down below a 5.0.........

Example: I was on XPAP for X years before I started to feel better from the treatment, etc.......

Could have been a method you discovered through trial and error or could be you found a magic mask that solved most of your problems.

Some folks probably take to it readily and recovery was swift for them - - but I'd bet they would be in the minority of OSA patients. I think a lot of us could really learn from your break-through experiences - especially newbies like myself.

Thanks Jim

There's a dedicated thread to this subject up in the "Announcements" section.


Den

I have not posted in the Success stories sticky thread that Den mentions. Since you asked I will offer a short version of what I experienced.

Started therapy end of May 09, took about 2 months to get pressure tweaked and AHI reduced to where I felt somewhat better and on paper it was quite acceptable. Night time pee breaks ceased. Morning headaches were reduced but still would occur. General fatigue continued, maybe a bit less but I still felt the need to nap during the day.

Early on I realized that despite the good reports I was still waking frequently and I knew this was a problem because I wasn't getting enough continuous restorative sleep. Main issue for me.. back and neck pain. Bad arthritis.
For 18 months I tried any number of things to improve my overall sleep quality. Kept whittling away at things, had minor improvements but nothing huge. Still needed to nap and even if I forced myself to not nap, I still couldn't feel rested. Though at least the 8 AM nap disappeared (I normally wake up around 6 AM).

Finally in Dec 2010 I got a new bed (sleep number) and it has given me the relief from the bulk of the back pain so that I finally sleep better, feel well rested and the need for daytime naps went away the very first day after I used the new bed for the first time. Immediately, poof the need for naps ceased. I am 58 yrs old. I don't have the energy that I did 20 years ago, can't expect it but I finally can see improvement in my overall energy levels.
Now I can see the cumulative effects of proper cpap therapy and compliance.

I never really had any "Aha" mornings relating to cpap use. With the exception of the nocturia, I honestly never really felt the good numbers I was seeing until last Dec. BTW, I have been 100 % compliant from day one. I would tell myself that I am preventing further damage to my body.

Cpap only treats sleep apnea. While effective treatment may help us deal with other issues better, it isn't a magic wand to cure all that we would like to blame on OSA. I have always been a more than a little envious of those users who had immediate marked improvement...