Questions about apnea

Hi everyone.

I'm a newbie. I was diagnosed with OSA around 2 weeks ago and am having the cpap fitted in a few days. I had 16 disruptions per hour he said but i reckon it's normally worse.

The past week has been awful for me. I had worked out (after years of suffering) that sleeping propped up helped me get a better nights sleep but that isn't working anymore cos my pillows are slipping out from underneath me during the night.

one night i woke and breathing was painful. I felt like i greatly lacked oxygen and if i tried to not worry about catching up, then I'd hardly be breathing. the air going into my lungs actually hurt. What does this mean?

How do you know if you are at a higher risk of heart attack or stroke? the strange thing is i normally have low blood pressure so what does that mean? i've had widespread body pain for 2 years from the apnea. how concerned should i really be about either of these events occurring? is there any way of knowing when you're at more risk?

Can you drink alcohol when on the cpap? will it effect it in any way (it's effectiveness i mean).

on days i wake with a headache that turns into an all day migraine, is that a sign of something more sinister like my brain lacking something important from the night before?

I hope i am making some kind of sense. i am worried about how long i have gone untreated. i can trace symptoms back for a long time. am kicking myself for not looking at it sooner.

all advice is helpful. thank you

Get a good machine that collects data and make sure you can get the software to view and analyze it. You being a newby, they (local DME)are going to rip you off. Id say get a bipap machine first it will save you money and they are easier to breathe with. They will give you some kind of dumb excuse that you should just do a simple cpap machine. Use an online supplier of machines. You will want to monitor your own usage data to see how you are dealing with the cpap. Get an O2 monitoring device with data collection and alarms as well. Figure on doing your own troubleshooting.

I will assume your going without air too much. The body doesnt' like that.

If you have breathing problems you don't want to do alcohol or any other drugs that put you to sleep. When things don't work right you want to use the bodies mechanisms to wake you but up as quick as possible. Drink to much or use other drugs that make you sleep and you might not wake up when you quit breathing.

I have no answers for you because i'm a newbie too. Just wanted to say welcome!

Thanks borgready.

I was more wondering about a glass of wine at dinner. would that have such a big effect? does everyone on here go alcohol free?

What is DME? Diagnostic Medical Examiner?? I am in Australia. Not sure where you are from but it's possible that things are different here. What is the difference between a CPAP and a bipap?

Will make notes before my sleep study with the info you have given me as I suspect they are going to talk machines there? I'm not sure.

Does anyone know where I can find information about the effects on the body if you don't get enough air during sleep?

Thanks borgready. you've been a big help.

hi resister

Hi - DME means "durable medical equipment" - in other words, a 'dealer' in cpap and related items...

Alcohol's a depressant and not a great idea to have before bed, but if you just have a glass at dinner and then don't sleep for hours I doubt if it would be a huge factor either way... you certainly wouldn't be alone.

What is your pressure range set at? If it's too low and you're having to try too hard to breathe, then you're not getting enough air and probably could get aches and pains from it all...

Fibromyalgia though often does go along with OSA, so that's something else to consider.

Your 'migraines' may be from OSA, especially if you have them first thing in the a.m. and they're not so much migraines, but possibly indicating higher blood pressure (from lack of proper therapy), so again, you need to get a better handle on what you are getting from Cpap.

And don't worry about bipap now - your test results would have been quite different I think if it was something you would need.

Welcome to another Australian.
What machine you get is personal but ResMed is probably the most common. Make sure though that you get a fully data capable machine, with ResMed this means either the top of the line APAP machine, the S9 AutoSet, or the fixed pressure CPAP machine, the S9 Elite. Other machines don't have full data capability. Unless your eligible for a machine on health care you will be paying most of the cost yourself. Most users here prefer APAP machines. BiPap machines are very expensive and not normally required.
By far the most important item is the mask, take time during your 1 month trial period to make sure you get the most suitable, preferably a nasal or nasal pillows, and not a full face unless really required.
To me alcohol within reason has no effect on my treatment.

Thanks greg-g

As you are an Australian, can you give me a rough idea of price range? i literally have zero idea of what this could be. hungreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands.

I hardly ever breathe through my nose so i reckon i'd need a full face one but yes, will definately try the nasal ones to see if i can get away with that.

Seems Resmed is very popular so i think i'll get that one (a friend of a friend suggested it too as well as the apap). will ask for the fully data capable machines. thanks heaps.

The RRP for the ResMed S9 AutoSet is about $2500, and this is the price some will try to charge. If you don't require full service the AutoSet is about $2000. The full price for masks is about $250.

I found the below article interesting concerning full face masks. The Acurest mask is rather expensive and not generally required but the information interesting.
http://www.acurest.com.au/truefit-custo ... face-mask/

Its amazing how a bit of pressure can open up the nasal passages

Hi Frankie...welcome to the forum. You are in the best place to dial in your therapy. Many of the things you feel are normal. You are not alone...and believe me...no matter what the question...someone here probably has gone through the same issue and will be willling to offer assistance.

If you go the cpap.com you will be able to see prices of things. That should ease your mind.

As to what damage is being done to your body...well...not getting enough oxygen puts a strain on your major organs....causes your body to produce lots of adrenalin...causes sleep deprivation (of course) which impairs cognitive functioning, memory loss, etc. Your blood pressure may be low now....but it doesn't mean body functions are not being interrupted. Besides, sleeping sitting up isn't any fun!

Be sure to read the information at the top of the website...the wiki stuff...it's great stuff for newbies. And hang in there! You'll be fine.

I like the data capable machines that show the waveforms of your breathing patterns. It helps out if you get a lot irregular breathing patterns. I like the visual aspect of viewing the data. So if you get a data capable machine from your DME, I have my doubts they will do it, make sure you can get the software to read the data. They might try to make you bring your card in to them to read. This is a pain and you don't know how long it will take for them to do it. Its easier to read it on your own computer.

From my experience go for the Bipap. It cost most more but it feels better when you breathe with it. The cpap makes you work to hard when you breath. Auto cpap kind of works like a bipap and eases the breathing. The bipap allows for greater adjustiments in pressure settings and feels the best. You will most likely have to armtwist the doctor to get the bipap. If your paying for the machine go with the bipap. Online suppliers are a lot cheaper than the local DME.

Also if you go through the local DME they will restrict the settings on the machine to the prescription. The machines I got through my online supplier (cpapsupplyusa.com) allowed me to set my own settings. Online suppliers are not great on knowledge of the machines. The basics and thats it. I don't even think the DME are that great.

Sleep Apnea affects on the body: First its mental. Falling asleep at bad times. The irritatable and grouchy from being tired. Lowered mental capacity. Long term it lowers the hearts work load capacity. You want lots of reserve work load capacity in the heart. The heart doesn't like to work oxygen deprived and it takes its toll on it over time. Sure you can get away with it a few times. Over years it takes its toll. I think it destoys the cellular machinery in the cells when it works in oxygen deprived states. Throw oxyen deprivation in with adrenaline and you have a recipe for doing damage to heart cells. This eats away at that reserve work load capacity. So you take away that reserve work load capacity in the heart and you put your self in a bad situation. You may be mowing grass or doing some other stressful work and you go past the hearts working capacity. When you get signs of problems, you have already done damage to the heart. This may be sickness or weakness feeling. You can actually feel this if you pay attention. Don't pay attention and bull ahead at full speed and you end up with a heart attack. It may not happen right away. You can feel sick and go lay down. In a day or so when the heart starts healing you can get some bad stuff going on which goes to full blown heart attack. Remember the heart doesn't like to work oxygen derprived. Now I have had doctors tell me there is nothing wrong with your heart. They are idiots. I don't think they understand the effects oxygen deprivation on the heart unless it does major damage and your heart doesn't work anymore. I am not sure whether they can measure the stressor chemicals that the heart muscle give off when they under go damage due to oxygen deprivation. I think there is some blood test but it probably only pick up major damage.

Some typical Australian ResMed prices (Complete machine including heated hose, but without mask)
S9 Autoset $2000
S9 Elite $1500
S9 VPAP $3500 (BiLevel)
If you get a ResMed machine someone will help you obtain the software and instructions on how to adjust the pressures etc.
Some sleep doctors are OK with you making your own adjustments, some not, but in the end its up to you. If you become familiar with your situation and understand what your doing you can join most others on this forum and make your own adjustments, hopefully in consultation with your sleep doctor, but you must have a fully data capable machine such as the ones above and the software.

Thanks everyone.

Thanks greg for the prices. I will speak with hubby and check what he is happy with. I like the sound of the s9 autoset though either way i need to speak to the docs about it all. not sure how it works and whether i buy my machine for the month trial or what?

Yes, i think it's a bit early for me to have any idea on adjusting my own setting but perhaps later on.

cheers

Welcome, I'm also a newbie - been on CPAP just over a week and have never felt better - I also suffered from (undiagnosed) Fibro and have been shocked to wake up and find my pain level at zero every day. I'm not sure how your medical system works down under , but follow the advice from the experts on this board. You definitely want to get a data capable machine!

Frankie84 wrote:Thanks everyone.

Thanks greg for the prices. I will speak with hubby and check what he is happy with. I like the sound of the s9 autoset though either way i need to speak to the docs about it all. not sure how it works and whether i buy my machine for the month trial or what?

Yes, i think it's a bit early for me to have any idea on adjusting my own setting but perhaps later on.

cheers

Make sure it does not include the word "Escape" in its title. They show no data except the hours used.

If you were diagnosed with diabetes you would be checking your blood 4 times a day and adjusting your diet or insulin accordingly. This is AIR! If you can drive a car you can figure this out. If you can figure out how to use a computer you can figure this out.