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Kelly,
The advice you quoted from your doctor seems scary - and dangerous. If he's your voice of authority, no wonder you're talking about quitting instead of fixing things. Only thing I'd consider quitting would be a doctor who is not current on the issues of his patients. You're closer than you were two months ago, so please keep plugging along and working on solutions.
Kathy

Kelly, Kelly, don't give up. I've been on CPAP therapy since last September and it's just been in the last couple of weeks that I've been able to sleep all wrapped up like someone in bondage! I have yet to say I am waking in the morning feeling refreshed. I have yet to tell anyone I haven't felt sleepy during the day. My blood pressure hasn't dropped, nor have I lost weight. Not one of the symtoms which drove me to my first sleep study have magically disappeared. (except I no longer snore at night)

I didn't grow into Sleep Apnea in 6 months and it's not going to go away in 6 months!!!!! It's that simple. It's just a fact we all have to live with. Please be patient and give it time. And just between you and me, I'd find a new doctor. It's just my opinion, but I don't think he's commenting in a way which will be of any help to you.

Please don't give up. There are a lot of others out here who have and do suffer who are willing to give you support.

Kelly, ditto to everything SleepGuy said. Even if treating sleep apnea never made me feel better, I would continue treatment because I don't want a stroke, heart problems, Alzheimer's, or any other health problems that sleep apnea can cause. Effective treatment of sleep apnea is not just to make us feel better; more importantly, it is to prevent the myriad of very serious health conditions caused by untreated apnea.

I feel I am blessed my sleep apnea was diagnosed before any of the more serious problems attacked my body. I hope you will soon feel the same. The most important thing you can do for your body and your health is to continue treatment.

IMHO, getting an auto cpap and software is needed to determine if you are getting effective treatment and to help you discover what you need to get more effective treatment.

If your mouth is open during sleep, you will need to tape it at night or get a full face mask as many of us do...because a nasal mask and an open mouth does not stop apneas. If your mouth is dry in the morning, that's an indication of your mouth being open during sleep. Your prescribed pressure may not be working for you and an auto cpap will adjust to the correct pressure needed. A different mask might work better for you. If a mask leaks much during the night, your therapy may not be effective. The c-flex in my machine makes exhaling so much easier. The heated humidifier helps in many ways.

There are numerous ways to improve therapy, but you will need to determine if and how your therapy can be improved. The wonderful people on this forum are always here to help when you have questions or concerns.

After you have done all you can to make the therapy work right for you, try to think about all the problems apnea treatment is preventing and then be thankful if and when each little area of your life improves.

Don't give up, Kelly! Don't allow your breathing to stop while you sleep. Don't allow your oxygen level to drop and not get to your vital organs. Your family and friends need you, so please take care of yourself.

Regards,

Alisha

Kelly,

I posted this before reading your post - Click here for my earlier post. It took me a long time to start feeling and sleeping noticeably better.

I think the biggest and best thing I did was to begin taking an Ibuprofen every night before going to bed. I read somewhere (I don't recall where) that moderate to mild PLMD caused by joint or muscle pain can be very disruptive to sleep and that an analgesic can help. I'm not crazy about taking it but something in the last 4-6 weeks has made a significant difference in both my AHI, the duration of my sleep and the quality of my sleep and that is the only notable change I have made. So, it is either the Ibuprofen or making up an incredible deficit or both.

David