No longer need CPAP?

Lauperfan,
We all understand what you're going through here, we've all been where you are now. Perhaps it would help you to research Sleep Apnea in general to understand what it truly means. There's no cure, only treatment. I found that out when I didn't want to do cpap at all, and my sleep doc told me about some alternatives he wanted me to consider. I did that, and what I learned resulted in "I don't want that awful sounding UPPP surgery, I don't want a surgeon to reposition my jaw." I learned that the gold standard of treatment is cpap, and it's not only effective, it's noninvasive. So I gave it a whirl, and I went through the difficult adjustment. I'm still using it, and always will.

Lauperfan wrote:It's not that I don't appreciate the advice. I do. That's why I joined this forum. I am just asking honest, nervous questions. I'm not a seasoned CPAP user, so I don't understand the seemingly flippant responses of "this is the way it is, get over it." I have many more questions and concerns that I feel are met with a "get over it" tone. I don't want this to be my normal, so maybe I joined this forum out of desperation.

Sorry I didn't mean to give you flippant response... I just tried to answer your questions.

Give yourself some time... You will begin to feel better, and if you are like me you won't want to go back to feeling terrible again.

Welcome to the board.. Work ALL of your therapy issues out here.. Lots and lots of knowledge here.


I wish you well..

I appreciate everyone's advice. Before finding this forum, I didn't realize how invested people are with this condition.

Question: since I just started therapy and others have reported that doctors often don't monitor this, should I make an appointment to review my memory card in the machine? How often do you do this? How proactive should I be?

Lauperfan wrote:
Question: since I just started therapy and others have reported that doctors often don't monitor this, should I make an appointment to review my memory card in the machine? How often do you do this? How proactive should I be?

Doctors usually have a follow up appointment around 3 months but many just look at AHI and hours used. To look at your memory card get Sleepyhead and see for yourself. Here is a link. https://sleep.tnet.com/resources/sleepyhead Be sure and check out all of the other links on the page. It was developed by a member here.
Many find they are the most important part of successful treatment and try learning all they can to make it so. If you have a doctor that understands this and will partner with you then that's the best solution.

I've been on mine for almost three months. After getting diagnosed and doing my research I came to the unfortunate realization that this is forever unless some new technology comes along. I'm not holding my breath for that. So, yeah, I figure I'm on this thing the rest of my life. That being said, at this point I guess my brain has been trained that it's time to sleep when the mask goes on because I'm out within maybe a minute of laying my head on the pillow. I sleep all night, don't snore, and I can jog faster, longer, and with a lower heart rate than before. So, all the pain in the arse part is worth it to me. Of course, the immense health benefit to your entire body is pretty good too. Helps to have a little humor with this stuff.

As for your doctor. I'd just say it all depends on your doc. I did a follow up that was pretty much "How's it going?" "Fine, I'm sleeping with it now" "Great." He doesn't use one. My DME doesn't use one. How's someone that doesn't use one going to help me with all the little issues of adjustment, etc? So for me personally, I get all I need from this group. People here range from newbies to seasoned veterans. Some know a lot of technical stuff that will really help. So there's not much you can come up with that someone here can't help with. I strongly recommend you get the sleepyhead software in that link above. The charts and information look complex at first glance but they're really not. With help here you'll figure out what to focus on. Then, you can make the adjustments necessary. If you're having issues you can post your sleepyhead data and you'll get responses here on how to deal with things.

You'll get used to it. It's not as bad as it seems.

Six years ago, I was suffering from OSA. I felt like dog feces. Really!
After five+ years on cpap, I feel younger, better, and stronger than possibly 30 years ago.
I want this wonderful feeling for everyone--even silly people who disagree with me.

I feel your pain. I resisted the idea of having apnea because I didn't want to be hooked up to a mask and machine for the rest of my life. I finally felt so bad, I had to do something, and that was to get a sleep test. I am in the moderate range, so I can only imagine how you might feel being in the severe range. The sleep study was my turning point, after the titration, it was all they could do to keep me from walking out with the machine and mask right there. That is how much better I felt after only getting a few hours of good sleep after all these years. I have only been on this therapy for a little over 10 days, and already it has changed my life. I feel so much better. My partner is sleeping better and I no longer get punched in the side and told to roll over because of my snoring. There are worse things than CPAP, like a stroke or heart attack. Imagine suffering day in and day out with the disabilities they may cause. Both stroke and heart attack are real possibilities with untreated apnea. I feel blessed that I only need therapy WHILE I SLEEP. The rest of my life is normal, except that now I feel a lot better. Try to make the best of your therapy, and don't worry that you may need it from now on. It is really a small adjustment to make to get a better life.

lauperfan I think if you remain consistent to the point of being stubborn about sleeping with your equipment, you will get to the point that the CPAP is something like a security blanket. I am slowly learning how much better I feel and sleep. I have actually done this rather quickly, once I found the mask that worked for me. If you stay with it you will be happy you can treat this with just a machine to sleep with. Good luck with finding your comfort zone, it's there you just have to find it.

Lauperfan wrote:It's not that I don't appreciate the advice. I do. That's why I joined this forum. I am just asking honest, nervous questions. I'm not a seasoned CPAP user, so I don't understand the seemingly flippant responses of "this is the way it is, get over it." I have many more questions and concerns that I feel are met with a "get over it" tone. I don't want this to be my normal, so maybe I joined this forum out of desperation.

I hate my cpap machine I hate wearing the dam mask. I hate the pain in my stomach every morning from the bloating that my higher pressure causes. It's better than not remembering how I got to work or not being able top get past noon without enough caffeine to wake the dead.

Desperation is a very good motivator for me to use the machine. As much as I hate it it does make my life a lot better. It has gotten to the point that I'm scared to sleep without it.

DWaldman wrote:I feel your pain. I resisted the idea of having apnea because I didn't want to be hooked up to a mask and machine for the rest of my life. I finally felt so bad, I had to do something, and that was to get a sleep test. I am in the moderate range, so I can only imagine how you might feel being in the severe range. The sleep study was my turning point, after the titration, it was all they could do to keep me from walking out with the machine and mask right there. That is how much better I felt after only getting a few hours of good sleep after all these years. I have only been on this therapy for a little over 10 days, and already it has changed my life. I feel so much better. My partner is sleeping better and I no longer get punched in the side and told to roll over because of my snoring. There are worse things than CPAP, like a stroke or heart attack. Imagine suffering day in and day out with the disabilities they may cause. Both stroke and heart attack are real possibilities with untreated apnea. I feel blessed that I only need therapy WHILE I SLEEP. The rest of my life is normal, except that now I feel a lot better. Try to make the best of your therapy, and don't worry that you may need it from now on. It is really a small adjustment to make to get a better life.

I am so glad your therapy has helped so much! Please consider adding your story to the "success stories" thread at the very top of the forum to provide encouragement to new cpap users.

It's here: viewtopic/t14494/Newbie-would-like-to-h ... lease.html You could just cut and paste what you have above, or add to it or modify it as you like.

I would check with your physician and ask if the apnea was positional during the night of the study. If i am not mistaken you stated you are on a pressure of 4, which is the lowest possible pressure. Sometimes it only occurs or worsens when patients are on their back and gravity ends up in the mix of things. If it is positional there are a couple of remedies that could be used to help.

Be very proactive. No one is more invested in your life and health than you.

I'll just echo what has already been said.

I was diagnosed with OSA 2 weeks ago and I was honestly very happy when I got the news. Yeah I knew I'd have to sleep with a thing on my face, probably for life, but it's really not so bad. I get an increased boost of energy, focus, and my organs won't fail when I'm older due to this condition. I think that's a pretty decent deal! It also helps that OSA is so common that people are familiar with it and there are huge support groups/medical research being done. This is the only "serious" medical condition I have and it's probably one of the easiest ones because there is a 100% treatment available, it's just inconvenient at first

Looking at your low pressure setting perhaps you might consider some of the surgical options that are available. Lots of information available on the web for you to learn the benefits and risks. Remember also that this is a serious medical condition that can be fatal if untreated ( stroke, heart attack to name a few). You are not alone! I hated the fact that as a thirty something I had to drag around a machine when I traveled for business ( 3 days a week). Now in my fifties I can't imagine ever being without this machine. I think of all the poor bastards who had to room with me during conferences and ended up sleeping in the tub...or in one case on our meeting room table. I welcomed the positive social aspects of no longer snoring. If I can offer any suggestion it would be to give it a chance and dwell on all of the positive aspects of dragging around that little machine.

I wish you all the best