First night

Well, I made it!! Put mask on around 9:30 pm and dozed off around 10:00. Woke up several times confused about what was on my face, but quickly went back to sleep (once I realized I wasn't snorkling). Woke up about 4:15 am and took mask off due to nasal openings getting sore. Woke up again with alarm clock at 5:45.

My respiratory therapist said she would be happy if I was able to use it 2-3 hours for the first few nights. I consider almost 7 hours as a success. How 'bout y'all? I didn't use the ramp feature (didn't feel like I was getting anything in the beginning). I did realize that I didn't have the normal "gunk" to blow out this morning that I usually do (sorry for the gross stuff). And I feel "awake" this morning.

All things considered, I feel that I made a giant leap forward last night and look forward to many more great nights of sleeping.

Congratuiations on a great night, CLD,

Since your nostrils are going to be tender for a few days - or more - now it it the time to head down to the drug store and buy some AYR Gel, or (I kid you not) KY Jelly (the simple kind) to put between the nasal pillows and your nares before you next use the mask.

Those two were recommended by mask company reps. in a chat long ago, and I found KY Jelly a life saver when I started (no AYR Gel where I live).

Our nostril are not used to have something touching them - certainly not for many hours - so the beginning may be sore - and don't wait for it be more sore before you use something.
O.

Congratulations, CLD! Sounds like you're off to a great start. Please keep us informed and if you have any questions, comments, or just want to vent, we're here.

Kajun

Hi CLD! I just started using mine three weeks ago. The first week I think the inside of my nose was cut or raw. It was really tender. I was like this really blows if this is how it is going to be. This was before I found out about this website. So I sucked it up and stuck with it. I must tell you now that my nose doesn't hurt at all. I still wake up sometimes wondering what is on my face but I am hoping that will go away at some point. I must say that this machine is a lifesaver and thank God for my primary suggesting I get a sleep study done.

I don't like the ramp feature either. I feel like I am not getting enough air and then I open my mouth which I am sure all of you know how that feels.

Speaking of gross stuff. I used to feel really congested and used to have to get rid of a lot of flem in the morning. But no more. Even if that was the only benefit, and it is not, I would use this machine forever.

I've been on CPAP for 8 nights now using a swift II nasal pillow. The tenderness of my lip and nostrils is still there, but greatly reduced from the first couple of nights. I've even been ablie to cinch the straps tighter so that I can sleep on my side without my pillow dislodging the interface enough to cause leakage.

Chief, Joe, and Ken,

You all are doing great!! Almost unheard of!!!

Keep us posted, and welcome! Keep up with the forum, sounds like you've all done your homework! You'll find answers to just about anything you run into on here!

Chief, congrats on the successful first night. The gel suggestion was a good one and should help with the sore nares. You will find much support on this forum. If you run into a bump in the road that you can't figure out, usually the answer is on the boards somewhere. If not, holler out a help post on the board and the response time is phenomenal. There are some long time cpapers here who really know their stuff. Hope your day is a much better one due to being able to get oxygen last night.

Thanks all...KenC, I was able to sleep on my side the first night without too much movement of my mask. I was trying to figure out how to control that big 'ole hose when I rolled over then I saw a picture on this site where I could strap it to the headgear. I was wondering what that little extra velcro strap was for. I'll try it that way tonight.

It does scare me after reading some of these posts about users being concerned if they have to go without their machine for a night or two. Is it that addictive? I plan on using it but what if I miss a night? Am I going to die?? Sorry for that, but I try not to be that dependant on anything. Hope this doesn't change that.

Thanks to all of y'all for the great encouragement.

Congratulations! You can use ayr-gel or KY at night. During the day you can use an antibiotic ointment to help any sores that develop. Once you get used to it, it's no big deal.

If I change masks, I will have sore nostrils for a while, too.

Right on Chief!!!!!
I had a nasal mask and when I changed to the nasal pillow style my nares were pretty sore for a few days. It has passed (3 weeks + on the EVO Headrest). An alternative to the Ayre or Ky is Lanolin -- only brand I've found is Lansinoh. It's the stuff they sell for breastfeeding mom's.....The other stuff is certainly less expensive, but I prefer the lanolin when I decide to use anything....

As far as addicting -- I don't think it's as addicting as necessary for good health. You certainly won't die if you don't do it for a night, but for me, I can't imagine sleeping without my machine anymore. I won't freak out if I don't have it for a night or two -- but I will know going in, that I'm going to feel like #%&@ the next day......

Keep it up Chief -- and be sure to let us know how you're doing.

cheers
goose

Hey Chief... regarding a concern about becoming too dependent on anything.

Besides the obvious dependencies we have for water, food, shelter....

Some of us have to use reading glasses every time we look up a number in a phone book.

This cpap thingy is like eyeglasses, as far as I'm concerned. I'm no more "dependent" on cpap than I am on my K-Mart reading glasses.

If I want to read a menu, a book, look at the computer screen, etc...I use my glasses. I'm "dependent" on my K-Mart reading glasses probably more hours during the day than I am on that little cpap machine each night.

If I want to get sufficient air to breathe at night...I put on my mask and flip the cpap on. Like having a little fan blowing the right amount of air at me to let me breathe freely. And a mask to keep it directed "just right."

I think of cpap much like I think of my glasses. As a very temporary "dependency." The glasses when I want to read something during the day. The cpap when I want to breathe during sleep.

Amazing, isn't it? Something as simple as being able to breathe easily during sleep can do so much to ward off the possibility of my becoming really dependent on something -- like becoming wheelchair bound for the rest of my life if a devastating stroke hits. Or stuck in a nursing home totally dependent on other people.

And this little thing does its job while we're sleeping. Amazing. We take it off in the morning and go about our day. Gradually feeling better as we start taking care of our absolute dependencies on food, water, shelter...

Reading glasses. CPAP. It's all the same to me. They are just two of many things I can use around the house, or not. They happen to make my life more pleasant (feeling rested is a good thing), so I don't mind using them one bit. At least the cpap machine is a little harder to misplace.

I don't think of myself as a "patient", btw. I think of myself as a "cpap user." Like an eyeglasses wearer.

Nor do I think of the little machine as a "medical device." To me, it's just a glorified leaf blower. A fan. Pushes air at me so I can breathe easily during sleep. Pretty simple.

Granted, it does take awhile to get used to this whole new way of trying to go to bed and get to sleep. We don't usually put our glasses on to go to sleep. Not deliberately, anyway.

Keep digging into this message board and you'll find ways to make everything about this feel more comfortable and more natural. The right mask is the key. Sometimes it takes creative tweaks to make an "uh, I've got problems" mask be "ok, NOW I can sleep with this thing on."

For starters, here are several interesting topics to help you with your set up:

LINKS to Hose hangers and methods of managing the air hose
viewtopic.php?t=10640

Oct 30, 2006 subject: Please Share Misc Helpful Hints Very cool thread started by Moogy.
viewtopic.php?t=14746

LINKS to Lab Rat Trophy awards
viewtopic.php?t=15104

I think that RG's view is correct for the most part. However, it is also relative to the severity of the OSA condition. I have been on the machine since Aug 1st of 2006 and only missed one night since (the 3rd night due to raw painful nose from nasal interface). The next morning was perhaps the worst I had ever felt in my life and I have had some serious bad days during my lifetime. Yes, even after only two days of use I was severely incapacitated. I cannot even imagine going without now. It does not take that long for your body to get used to something as essential as breathing.

Anyway, I will never do without if I can help it ... in fact, I would likely just not go to sleep at all until I could connect to a working PAP machine ... call it addiction, depedency, concern, or whatever. Call me a wimp if you like but at least Ill be a live wimp.

BTW - As a reference, my pre-treatment Dx AHI was 102 w/ AI of 99 and O2 desaturation down to 60%.

Rested Gal wrote:I think of cpap much like I think of my glasses. As a very temporary "dependency." The glasses when I want to read something during the day. The cpap when I want to breathe during sleep.

Now, who was it that said "breathing isn't optional"?

My eyes are so bad I couldn't cross a street safely without my glasses... and some people's breathing when they sleep is so bad at night....

Dreamstalker wrote:Anyway, I will never do without if I can help it ... in fact, I would likely just not go to sleep at all until I could connect to a working PAP machine ...

We human beings are dependant on so many things - think of what it takes to climb the Everest (warm clothing, acclimatization to lower oxygen -not to mention all the help those mountaineer get from Shrepas carrying their stuff). Think of what it took to travel to the South Pole for the first time - one of my favorite books is "The last place on earth"....

We are not invincible, impregnable impermeable - we are human and we need all kinds of things from the outside to help us live.
O.

ozij wrote:We human beings are dependant on so many things - ...snip... Think of what it took to travel to the South Pole for the first time - one of my favorite books is "The last place on earth"....

I had the pleasure of dating Miss Byrd, a grand niece of Admiral Byrd (relation was her father's uncle), a few years ago and we remain friends to this day.

ozij wrote:We are not invincible, impregnable impermeable - we are human and we need all kinds of things from the outside to help us live.
O.

I think I was actually invincible when I was 18 or 19 ... but I'm a lot older now

And wiser....

O.