Could use some help

I was diagnosed with apnea a few years ago, and having been using a machine (philips respironics dreamstation, with a dreamwear under the nose mask) for over a year with little success. In general I have had no issues falling asleep or using the machine in general, however I can count on one hand the number of times that i have felt rested since I started using the machine in Sept 2018.

I'm hopeful in getting some assistance in understanding the overwhelming amount of data. Ideally I can understand is the machine doing its job and my issues are elsewhere or what adjustments I need to make for more benefit from the machine.

If there is something I"m missing or need additional data please let me know.

Is there anything more you can tell us, e.g. do you take any meds and have you looked into side FX that might affect your sleep?

Does your mask feel comfortable? Are you aware of leakage when it's on? Do you mouth breathe?

Have you ever tried raising your pressures? The min. is the one that 'does' the job and the max is often left at 20, so raising the max by 1-2 cm for a couple of nights might just be the thing... 5 is very low (4 being the machine's default low).

ParallelGrapefruit wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 13, 2019 3:24 pm

I was diagnosed with apnea a few years ago, and having been using a machine (philips respironics dreamstation, with a dreamwear under the nose mask) for over a year with little success.

welcome aboard!

i would agree with julie that your minimum pressure should be raised. it will help your machine respond to events more quickly and help you get a better night's rest.

others will be along shortly to give some sterling advice.

good luck!

Start by setting your pressures to a min of 6, max of 20, and let's see how that works for a few days.

More min pressure to prevent those events from occurring should help

Julie wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 13, 2019 5:06 pm

Is there anything more you can tell us, e.g. do you take any meds and have you looked into side FX that might affect your sleep?

Does your mask feel comfortable? Are you aware of leakage when it's on? Do you mouth breathe?

Have you ever tried raising your pressures? The min. is the one that 'does' the job and the max is often left at 20, so raising the max by 1-2 cm for a couple of nights might just be the thing... 5 is very low (4 being the machine's default low).

The only thing I take is allergy related medications.

The mask feels fine, not aware of leakage, I do tend to breath through my mouth due to allergies (i almost always have some type of blockage due to allergies in one nostril), though both the ent and company i got my device through encouraged me to stay with a nasal mask. My sleep study (which was done years ago) was done with a full face mask.

The pressure is what the ent prescribed, the only change was to lower the max pressure after a few months of using the machine. I have lost trust that the ENT is actually engaged (as my apts are only a few minutes long and the focus is on AHI only without looking at any data).

Can you go into more detail in explaining what you mean by "not feeling well rested".
Is it daytime fatigue? Is it that you are still sleepy during the day and want to take a nap?

Do you have any other health conditions that could be impacting how you feel?

Which allergy medication do you take and when do you take it?

Do you wake often during the night and/or have any trouble falling asleep?

Do you drink alcohol in the evening?

ParallelGrapefruit wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 13, 2019 6:57 pm

The pressure is what the ent prescribed, the only change was to lower the max pressure after a few months of using the machine. I have lost trust that the ENT is actually engaged (as my apts are only a few minutes long and the focus is on AHI only without looking at any data).

So, change the pressures as suggested, and see if things get better, (they should).

Some allergy meds will definitely keep you awake, or at least not let you sleep well and the allergies (depending on what they are) could be addressed in other ways... if nasal, you might try e.g. Flonase rinse before bed and/or even a heated hose (if you use the humidifier) could make a difference.

ParallelGrapefruit wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 13, 2019 6:57 pm

The pressure is what the ent prescribed, the only change was to lower the max pressure after a few months of using the machine. I have lost trust that the ENT is actually engaged (as my apts are only a few minutes long and the focus is on AHI only without looking at any data).

you have the ability and option and so on to change your own pressure. it's what many on this forum have done. most of us have, indeed, lost faith in any representative of the medical profession when it comes to sleep apnea.

you can do this. i have faith in you.

good luck!