New CPAP user... My experience so far

13 nights in and I have little to complain about. Reading many of the posts around here, I feel lucky and humbled to have such an easy experience. Truth be told, I learned a lot that probably solved many of my problems before they even happened. I knew before I got the mask that it needed to fit right with no leaks, for example. Reading here I learned it was important to let myself adjust to the mask and not to panic just because I took the mask off, or worse, to get into the habit of taking it off. I would tell myself as I fell asleep that the mask was helping me.

I learned to turn off the ramp "feature" and to raise the lower end of my AFlex to 7 since I was feeling a little short of breath early in the night. That has, I think, helped my compliance a great deal. I learned it was okay to sleep on my side and that putting some of the hose under the covers with me made the air ALOT warmer.

I learned to look at my numbers so I could see that the mask was really helping me. I can see my AHI slowly slipping down (now at 1.3 over the last 7 days). I learned that these are really great numbers and that I should be very happy and satisfied. I learned that many other people are having a hard time, much harder than I and that I should be very happy I can sleep the whole night with the mask on.

Correction, I don't sleep the whole night, I am sleeping for several hours at a time, but I only wake for a little while.

I've learned that waking up is okay and that I should just relax. It's not time to tear the mask off or quit therapy. I've also learned that even though I don't feel "bright-eyed and bushy-tailed" in the morning that it's okay too, that the fact that I dont feel like napping in the early evening/late afternoon is good enough and a sign of progress.

So, I hope that at the least, if you read this, you know that I know how good I have it and that I am grateful. And, maybe if you're having a tough time, you will find it gets easier in time, too. I hope so anyway.

gurp13,

It's great to see a newbie who's making such a smooth transition with the useful help and tips he's found here.

Here's hoping things continue to go well and that those small but inevitable bumps don't cause you any trouble sleeping ...

Robysue, if there is any justice in the world, some of my good luck will go your way and help you sleep better as well. You have been very helpful, kind and welcoming. I will send good thoughts your way each night, hoping you can conquer the Insomnia Monster. Thank you!

Night 17: A New Mask

I was doing okay with my nasal mask, but a forum member offered to sell me a Swift FX nasal pillow and I coudn't resist. Thanks, KM! So, I got it yesterday, fitted it up and strapped it on for the night. My primary attraction to it was that it was smaller and less "confining". It would allow me to put on glasses and read or watch TV, even when masked. And lots of people seem to like it.

My initial impressions we're favorable. The small pillows seemed to work and seal well. I was a little disturbed by the pressure of the air venting, though. The ComfortGel nasal mask does a good job, comparatively, of diffusing the venting air. The Swift was like a jet engine! Quiet, but strong. Oh well, I can deal with that.

I felt like I wasnt getting enough air at first, but I relaxed and it was okay. Fell asleep. Awoke some time at Dark O'clock and didnt check the time cause Robysue said not to. My nose hurt! I took the mask off and was like, "screw this! I'm going back to sleep.". But, my training kicked in and I put the mask back on. Went back to sleep. In the morning, my nose really didn't hurt any more. Go figure.

In all, i'm not sure what I think. I want to give it a few more nights to see if I adjust and sleep better with the nasal pillows. I suspect I will.

Hi grup13,
Glad to see you are keeping your 'journal' up to date. Thanks for posting as your journey is helpful to me. Also very glad you have got the Swift FX to try out and hope it works for you. I switched from the FX to the Opus 360 as it didn't work for me... but our face shapes, and likes and dislikes, are all different. If the FX doesn't work out try the Opus 360. I found it is more stable and won't pop out of my nose when I roll around in my sleep and mess with the bed pillow.

Best of wishes on your journey and pleasant dreams!
Cindy

I am just sitting here chuckling and saying I told you so...

I knew you were just too curious to wait. The Swift FX may or may not suit you but now you will know. I have a drawer full of experiments that I tried during my first 6 months of treatment.

I don't think that there is ever a "perfect" mask. There is always some sort of trade off.

Funny thing is that I never notice the sound of the vent. When I first got the FX my husband woke me up in the middle of the night telling me to put my mask on. He couldn't hear anything and thought I had turned the machine off and removed my mask.
I have a decent pressure of around 12 too. He could hear the Swift LT though. So I guess if you think the FX is like a jet plane, no telling how loud you might think the LT would be.

Good luck, I hope it suits your needs adequately.

gurp13 wrote: I Awoke some time at Dark O'clock and didnt check the time cause Robysue said not to. My nose hurt! I took the mask off and was like, "screw this! I'm going back to sleep.". But, my training kicked in and I put the mask back on. Went back to sleep. In the morning, my nose really didn't hurt any more. Go figure.

LOL at Dark O'Clock---I know it all too well. But in my humble opinion, Dark O'Clock is better than the Vague Light Is It Dawn? O'Clock and Should I Just Get Up? O'Clock, things I"m getting to know all too well with my sleep restricted schedule. With Dark O'Clock I can just turn over and work on going back to sleep without any worries or frets---there's plenty of time left for zzz's.

In all seriousness, gurp13, it sounds like you are working hard on makiing CPAP work for you. And you are building some good habits---good to see you put the mask back on and then went back to sleep.

I remember when I hit some rough spots, I got to where I told myself I only needed to worry about putting the mask on for tonight. I still do this when I get down thinking about the chronic part of OSA, which still happens frequently for me. But I've consciosly decided: Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow and all those tomorrows marching off to "for the rest of my life" can be dealt with one night at a time---as long as I've made it a habit to sleep with the mask---which now seems to be a pretty firmly in place habit.

Best of luck to you gurp!

Cindy Lou: i'm glad to hear it helps. I'm narcissistic enough to write it regardless but the encouragement is nice.

JG, Pugsy: I think right now I was putting the mask on too tightly. I may even bump up to the medium pillows tonight and see if that helps. I actually did think the pillows went inside the nostrils but tonight i'll do a better job fitting.

The mask isn't noisy unless something gets too close to the vent. It was very quiet when I was on my back.

Stop laughing at me, Pugsy! I'm just following the examples I see here!

Robysue: I am using your other suggestion. I am trying hard to not eat or drink anything more than water after 6pm or so, as well. We have pretty dark curtains in the bedroom so it's hard to know what time it is unless it's truly light out. But, I know what you mean. I hate waking up and realizing I only have an hour left until I have to wake up.

Thanks to all of you for the support and advice. It's really helping me, I know.

Hi Gurp! I'm a new Swift FX user, having switched from a Hybrid. On about my 10th night of it. I love it, but I did discover that I needed a larger pillow size than I thought. The trick I learned from others here is that the pillows need to really inflate before being seated. So I put on the mask, turn on the machine, then I pull the pillows away from my nose a bit so they really inflate, then I seat them. Works really well.

I tried a medium first but seemed to get leaks with any small movement. Went to the large and presto! much better fit. Try other sizes and see what happens. I'm sure you've read how the pillows just rest outside your nares--not in them....only a little bit of the cone part goes inside your nose....so the pillows need to be larger than what one might think in order to seal around the outside of your nares.

Good luck!

Weezy

Hi: I am new, too, and have found this discussion very helpful. There is so much information here on the forum that this first week with the machine was successful technically. Still don't feel rested and chipper, but I hope that will come as my nightly series of wake-ups diminishes. Seems as if all of the questions I've had have been addressed somewhere here, so, thank you all.

I was interested to hear that some have music on all night. That would probably be a better choice for me than the iTunes talk/news radio that I have on all night! Probably poor sleep hygiene - but it helps me not think about work... seems like revolts and revolutions are less stressful than teaching in an elementary school!

The Swift Fx pillows are the choice I made the second I saw them among what was available at my second sleep study. For me, they are wonderful. Of course, the helpful hints from you folks about how to fit them properly - or experiment - truly "ramped up" my experience in a positive way.

I'll continue to read here on the forum and pass along the links to my cpap using friends.

SinS --- wow, I better not shorten SleepyInSyracuse to THAT!

Hi Doc, I moved up to the medium pillows last night. I might try large, those seemed too big, but the mediums did get me some leaks and I think I was still wearing them too tight as I took the mask off in the middle of the night, something I haven't done for a while. When I awoke at 5:30 am, I realized I wasn't wearing the mask and put it back on. Slept a few more hours.

I still think I like the mask, though. I just need to adjust to it some more.

SiS, hang in there. I agree there's a ton of good advice and experience in this forum. I find music or TV helps me fall asleep, and then will wake me up later. You might try just turning the TV down so the volume is audible but not enough to wake you. Personally, I like the room darker so the TV bugs me. I like the music to turn off at some point.

gurp13 wrote:Hi Doc, I moved up to the medium pillows last night. I might try large, those seemed too big, but the mediums did get me some leaks and I think I was still wearing them too tight as I took the mask off in the middle of the night, something I haven't done for a while. When I awoke at 5:30 am, I realized I wasn't wearing the mask and put it back on. Slept a few more hours.

I still think I like the mask, though. I just need to adjust to it some more.

There are aspects about the Swift that are counter-intuitive. Definitely loosen your headgear and try the larger pillows. I'm amazed at how loose my headgear is with these things, yet the pillows are quite secure. My only problem with the Swift is that I seem to be hard on the pillows and my first one is worn out, soft and squishy after only about 10 nights.

Sometime during the day when you're not getting ready for bed, try the large pillows and see how loose you can get the headgear and still have the pillows stay in place. Make sure they're fully inflated before seating them. If you move to the large, they WILL inflate more--at least I really felt a difference between the medium and large.

It's so weird....I actually have a small nose....but I guess the shape of my nares means that the large fits best. Go figure. Anyway, experiment with it when you're not sleepy and see what happens.

Weezy

Gurp, it's good to read that you're adjusting so well to CPAP. It is a journey, that's for sure!

SleepyInSyracuse wrote:I was interested to hear that some have music on all night. That would probably be a better choice for me than the iTunes talk/news radio that I have on all night!

Just thought I'd mention that I used "nature sound" CDs during the first months of CPAP use. I find the sounds of the ocean and rain to be especially soothing, and it took my mind off my breathing so I would get to sleep faster.

Doc: I got the large pillows out and fitted them to the headgear... Let them inflate and set them against my nose. Good seal! I will give them a try tonight.