Does sleeping on your back really make a difference??

kjarels · Post by **kjarels** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 8:03 am

If so then maybe thats why I do not do very well on CPAP because I am a back sleeper.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 8:29 am

For some people it makes a HUGE difference for others not that much. Either way, most people can still get effective treatment while sleeping on their back. For me it requires much higher pressures....which means if I turn on my side at anytime, the higher pressures just destroy my insides with the intake of air. Therefore I control my back sleeping with something on my back that prevents me from getting on it. I can then keep the pressure relatively low for me, get better treatment and not experience the massive bloating that higher pressures create.

mindy · Post by **mindy** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 10:45 am

Yep - my AHI is definitely noticeably higher when I sleep on my back vs side (per sleep study). That's a case where APAP is especially nice since the machine will adjust for the position difference.

Mindy

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 11:23 am

I assume you slept on your back during your titration study? If so that would have been accounted for during your titration and pressure set accordingly.

ALL of my "events" occurred whilst I was sleeping in the supine position (on my back). I had NO apenas or hypopneas whilst on my sides and I never sleep on my tummy any more since a whiplash back in 1994.

track · Post by **track** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 1:54 pm

Slinky...if you don't have any apnea on your side why not just eliminate back sleeping and then do away with cpap?

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:00 pm

track wrote:Slinky...if you don't have any apnea on your side why not just eliminate back sleeping and then do away with cpap?

Cuz she like her ResMed machine ...

track · Post by **track** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:11 pm

LOL..I like my machine and my mask too...because it's better than not liking it when cpap is mandatory. If it wasn't mandatory, I would not hesitate one second to ditch it.

mindy · Post by **mindy** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:17 pm

track wrote:Slinky...if you don't have any apnea on your side why not just eliminate back sleeping and then do away with cpap?

Track,

Yes you could do away with cpap in those circumstances. They used to have people with mild apnea try to do that but many found it impossible to avoid rolling onto their backs for at least part of the night.

One of our forum members uses a backpack stuffed with a pillow to force side sleeping to minimize events.

Mindy

track · Post by **track** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:23 pm

Mindy....I think I have tried it all....tennis balls sewed into the shirt, softballs duct taped to my night shirt, soccer ball under the shirt with a belt to hold it in place and a backpack with a pillow. I have found a normal softball duct taped...like the one they use in slow pitch softball...works best for me and it is quite effective. The backpack and the soccer ball are just too uncomfortable and make it difficult to turn from side to side. The tennis balls are just not effective and do not prevent one from sleeping on their back. The softball is big and hard enough to keep me off my back but not so big I can't turn from one side to the other.

mindy · Post by **mindy** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:28 pm

Oh my!

Mindy

Wulfman · Post by **Wulfman** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 4:11 pm

kjarels wrote:If so then maybe thats why I do not do very well on CPAP because I am a back sleeper.

Don't use that as a reason to quit.

Also, read #4 in this link......and the link within it.

https://www.cpap.com/DisplayNewsletter/34

Den

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 5:20 pm

Actually, sleep position training worked VERY WELL for me. I was a tummy sleeper all my life until that whiplash. I didn't do the tennis ball bit, that seemed extreme to me. I just knotted some of my husband's old hunting socks and basted them to the front of my PJs. That was a good 10 years ago and to this day I do not sleep on my tummy - at all.

The problem is I can NOT sleep an entire night on my sides. Shoulder problems, rotator cuff. So, I'm stuck w/ alternating sides AND back. Mostly back because my shoulders will wake me up if I spend much time sleeping on them. I've tried to go back to tummy sleeping and just can't do it. *sigh* Ahhhh, for the good ole days. *sigh* Too many years casing mail, lifting mail over the seat, driving one handed and opening too many mailboxes wore these ole shoulders down pretty bad. I LOVED the job but it exacted a bit of a price on the ole bod.

kjarels · Post by **kjarels** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 5:58 pm

I just got the ResMed Elite about 3 weeks ago and I doubt if they would let me return it.

roster · Post by **roster** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 8:02 pm

As best as I can tell, my 90% pressure on my back is 20 cm and on my side around 9 cm. This is using my Respironics A-Flex machine and Encore Pro software.

The last sleep lab titration indicated 20 cm for back sleeping. I did not sleep on my side any that night.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Nov 27, 2007 9:44 am

So are you still trying to stay on your side Rooster, or have you gone back to turning the pressure up and sleeping on your back?

Does sleeping on your back really make a difference??

Does sleeping on your back really make a difference??

Re: Does sleeping on your back really make a difference??

The APAP sounds great, however

Mask

Additional Comments: Strictly a side sleeper

Mask

Additional Comments: Strictly a side sleeper

Mask

Additional Comments: Strictly a side sleeper