CPAP and pnumonia experience

I often see complaints about not being able to use cpap with a stuffy nose. My experience has been the exact opposite. I came down with something horrible I was exposed to on Christmas Eve. It started on the 27th and I am just now recovering from cold/flu,sinus>bronchitis>pneumonia>asthma. Getting old sucks.
horrible coughing was the only thing that forced me out of bed to a recliner. Cpap was the only thing that kept me breathing once nasal passages opened slightly cpap continued the process
Every night I used a saline nasal rinse, mouth rinse and gargle. I then, while able to breath a bit went directly to bed and my cpap machine. I did put a bit of cotton with good quality essential oils of eucalyptus globulus, frankincense, and lavender just outside my filter(which I changed often). I was able to breath well enough to sleep until coughing got me up.
I spoke last night with an old friend who told me that she too breathed better on cpap than without. She did not even use the oils.
I have seen saline rinses recommended many times here and hope this will encourage their use, Do not give up on cpap when ill-it can keep you breathing. use it day and night, as often as possible

I found my APAP helped quite a bit when I had a URI. I was def. better with it than without it.

For stuffy nose, consider low dose oxymetazoline (one spray each side only, use a short spray [less than a full spray] if possible), short term only, and talk with your doctor beforehand if you have hypertension. Try to avoid any spray that has benzalkonium chloride if you have vasomotor rhinitis (your nose closes in response to strong perfume/cologne, rapid changes in temperature/humidity, etc...) it will likely make your situation worse since your nasal vessels will spams in response to such a nasty irritant.

Let me hop up on my soapbox and encourage everyone to get their pneumonia vaccine. It's cheap and safe. Not 100% effective, but improves the odds against a really big killer.

archangle wrote:Let me hop up on my soapbox and encourage everyone to get their pneumonia vaccine. It's cheap and safe. Not 100% effective, but improves the odds against a really big killer.

I second getting the penumonia vaccine after consulting with your doctor. My mom had untreated sleep apnea (she left halfway through her titration study and never went back) and sadly passed away from pneumonia at 54. I think if she had taken some of those actions for her health, she'd still be here.

I had a similar experience with pneumonia. Breathing was a lot easier with cpap then without. I even wore it at my desk working from home ( a FFM did make answering the phone a bit difficult ). That bout was shorter and easier then the previous one before cpap.

I also had the vaccine this year. When the nurse came to give the family flu shots she said "Oh you are 65 I have your pneumonia shot here too, give me the other arm"

It's not just for us getting-old people. Pneumonia is one of those things that kills healthy young adults, too. I had a friend who died of viral pneumonia at 39. Bacterial pneumonia can usually be knocked right back with an antibiotic, but if you get the viral kind there is nothing that they can do but try to support your body while your own immune system kills the virus before the virus kills you. It's a race that the patient often loses.

I recovered from a nasty bout of flu in an unusually short time by healing myself "cat-style".
On my worst day, I logged 19 hours on my machine. The next day, I was much better. Surprisingly so.

My neighbor has a bad respiratory infection. Shes on Pap as well and is pretty ill. I too believe the vaccine is a good idea. I haven't asked her how she's doing with the machine and the illness.

I know we all have had RSV (so we're being told) from our kid's circle. It's taken my wife and I about 30 days to get over it. I used the my machine every night in that period it really helped me. Even with a taped mouth, I was able to work through any congestion with nasal allergy meds and mucinex. I can't imagine how I would have made it without therapy. The coughing was so violent that I had to get a rescue inhaler to stop the spasms. I certainly feel for you with pneumonia, must be way worse! I hope everyone gets to feeling better.

Best,

Mike

I'll add my "dittos" to the suggestion to get the pneumonia shot.
I wish I'd have known about it before April of 2011 when I ended up in the hospital WITH pneumonia.
Got mine shortly thereafter.


Den

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archangle wrote:Let me hop up on my soapbox and encourage everyone to get their pneumonia vaccine. It's cheap and safe. Not 100% effective, but improves the odds against a really big killer.

The new one also covers main more strains, and you can get it even if you had the previous one that covered fewer strains.

I had a bacterial pneumonia that nearly killed me as a child due to misdiagnosis by an elderly physician (who unsurprisingly retired immediately after I was released from the hospital...).

I've had more than a few "near misses" with death thanks to malpractice. I think its one of my motivations for being a patient advocate and helping people find the right doctors and medical facilities that will assist them in finding the right diagnosis.

I have had a pneumonia shot and boosters. It protects from the most lethal form and glad I have that protection. My doctor told me there were hundreds of pneumonia varieties, viral and bacterial, that are constantly mutating. not a positive thought but a good reason to rest and recover from bad colds and bronchitis.
I use a nasal mask and found it also kept my nose clear at night if i irrigated and blew it pretty clear before connecting to cpap.

"Pneumonia" isn't a specific organism, it's a medical condition. It can be bacteria, virus, chemicals, or even aspiration of liquids.

The shot is a vaccine of some of the most common pneumonia causing bacteria. I presume the choices of strain are based on the prevalence and severity of the bacteria, and how effective the vaccine is against that strain.

You can still get pneumonia if it's some strain not in the vaccine. Even with the right strain, vaccines aren't 100% effective.

It's a bit like a bulletproof vest. You can still get shot in the head, but it improves your odds.

I also recently got the shingles vaccine. It's expensive $200+, but I checked my insurance and they paid 100%. They've recently lowered the "minimum" age to 50 years.