Medications

Does anyone take medication in addition to using their CPAP equipment? After about a month on CPAP, I told my doctor I was still sleepy during the day just not as much.

He had me do a daytime sleep study (I forget the name) where you take several naps, etc. At that point, he prescribed Provigil for me to take during the day.

Understand that I use my CPAP machine faithfully. I usually log 7-8 hours a night with it. It just doesn't take care of it all.

My original sleep study showed 103 apneas per hour. At my last visit, he tells me it is down to 15. Which still worries me...that means I have one every four minutes, right?

Anyway...no one ever mentions their medication so I just wondered if I'm the only one having to do both.

Lisa

I have been using a CPAP machine for at least six months. I am going to talk to my sleep doctor about provigil because I am running into days where I am still tired after sleeping for 6 hours or more. Provigil is usually proscribed to help someone with Apnea if they are still experiencing tiredness. I have a coworker that has apnea and narcolepsy and is using the provigil. He has felt more alert and not as foggy during the day. So, even though I am not using it I am aware of its use for someone with sleep apnea. I know others here have either used it or still use it.

I think the collective wisdom here is 5 events per hour is ok and above that there are still issues.

Are you sure your titrated pressure is correct? Maybe an APAP loaner to check it out? What machine are you using?

I agree - it's worth trying to get better results than an AHI of 15 - did your doctor have any explanation about why he found that satisfactory?

Did he diagnose you as having narcolepsy in addition to OSA, or was he just trying to handle your coplaints with medication?

Moogy was using provigil for a while - and if you use the search button and put provigil in the subject, you'll find info from other users too.

O.

Hi Lisa,
That AHI of 15 is not something I would be content with if I were you. No wonder you're still tired! An AHI greater than 5 is considered abnormal and in need of treatment. 15 is better than what you had originally, but still not acceptable. Definitely see if you can get an auto to try, to check your pressure - I'd be willing to bet you were incorrectly titrated (same thing happened to me).

I have taken provigil in addition to my CPAP treatment, and I actually found that it didn't help me at all. Could be my dosage needed to be raised, I don't know. Finally, when I found the right combination of mask and pressure, I didn't need it anymore anyway since I was no longer fighting daytime sleepiness.

Good luck, and fight for yourself - you deserve adequate treatment!

Oh, and in case your doctor tells you you can't expect an AHI any lower than that, I started with an AHI of 97 events per hour and now have an average AHI of between 0.0 and 0.3. I DEFINITELY think you can do better than 15.

I use Provigil as I have been instructed to not drive without a medication to wake up. Can take Provigil and go to bed and sleep, but it helps somewhat. Have also used Concerta, which helped my brain fog and alertness trememdously, but can't afford it right now. My case is stubborn, as it is complicated by PLMD, and they still haven't ruled out narcolepsy, due to the apnea and PLMD not allowing me enough restful sleep to determine how much residual sleepiness there really would be.

As bad as your apnea was pre-cpap, one month may not be enough time for you to know what degree of recovery you will experience. Factor in that with your current numbers, the adequate hours you are sleeping may not be as restful as you need to feel better.

Did your daytime test for sleepiness substantiate your need for help staying awake? Glad your sleepiness has improved, and think it is reasonable to expect even better results as you fine tune your treatment.

Kathy