Wow! A first, after all this time

A little background: I've been on xPAP since late 2007 (almost 3.5 years now), but I've only had data since June of 2009, when I purchased a lightly-used APAP on CraigsList. Then I found Houdini (my ASV) on CraigsList in January of 2010 and have been using that machine ever since.

In all the time I've been downloading my data on a weekly basis (nearly two years now), I've yet to see one night with absolutely no recorded apneas or hypopneas - until this past week! Interesting to see that little chunk of Periodic Breathing, which I hardly ever see on my graphs. But when that's the only thing on the Events graph, what's a little PB between friends?



I'm not very sensitive to subtle differences in my therapy. My AHI almost always runs under 2.0 these days, and that's fine with me. I never wake from the rapid pressure changes the ASV is capable of, and that's also fine with me. (I know some others are very sensitive to minor changes in their AHI, and they feel a considerable difference if/when their AHI isn't below 1.) So FWIW, I didn't feel any different after the above data was recorded. But as long as I feel good during the day and my data looks normal (for me), I'm satisfied that I'm getting effective therapy.

I'm just posting this graph for posterity ('cause I'll probably never see it again).

Congrats....I'm jealous!!

Wow! BB, that's impressive! I think you should frame this one!

It's a beautiful thing!

Bev

Excellent and kudos! What a wonderful difference between now and when you first started.

Absolutely wonderful news! Thanks for sharing it...

You hooked the mask up to your dog to get this data, didn't you??

so the wine cork ended up in the hose?

WOW !
The rest of us can only hope...High Five

Congrats BB. Isn't the ASV fun when it decides it doesn't like the way you are breathing, whether you need the help at that moment or not? I'm glad that you found one and it's taking good care of you.

Sweet dreams,
Tony

-SWS wrote:Excellent and kudos! What a wonderful difference between now and when you first started.

Ain't it the truth! Way to go, BB !!

BleepingBeauty's saga with a happy ending:

VERY interesting long thread:
"A Question re: my AUTOPAP Trial"
April 13, 2009
viewtopic.php?p=359741#p359741

Hope springs eternal:
"In a word, my new sleep doc is... "("awesome")
May 8, 2008
viewtopic.php?p=366865#p366865

Still hopeful...
"What a Difference a Doc Makes"
May 18, 2009
viewtopic.php?p=369491#p369491

High hopes are dashed:
"Spoke with my Doctor"
May 28, 2009
viewtopic.php?p=371916#p371916

Things begin to look up...:
"Data, at last!"
June 18, 2009
viewtopic.php?p=377754#p377754

After acquiring an ASV on her own:
"I'm Back (with an update)"
June 30, 2010
viewtopic.php?p=494878#p494878

BleepingBeauty wrote:I was lucky enough to find an ASV that I could afford on CraigsList in January and had been using it since, with great results.

beckah wrote:Congrats....I'm jealous!!

Thanks, beckah! Keep hope alive! (Only took me a little longer than forever. )

DoriC wrote:Wow! BB, that's impressive! I think you should frame this one!

Bwahahaha! You're too much, Dori! (If I do frame it, I'm whiting out that little red square of PB first. But don't tell anyone. )

OutaSync wrote:It's a beautiful thing!

Bev

Thanks, Bev! Truly, I never thought I'd see the day.

-SWS wrote:Excellent and kudos! What a wonderful difference between now and when you first started.

Thank you, -SWS! My hero!

Just for comparison's sake, let's take a stroll down Memory Lane and see what my treatment was like when I was using the APAP (in CPAP mode @ 12cms):




All I can say about Houdini is, "Ahhhhhhhh..."

Madalot wrote:Absolutely wonderful news! Thanks for sharing it...

Thanks, Maddie! A likely once-in-a-lifetime event for me, but I'm really happy to see it.

SleepingUgly wrote:You hooked the mask up to your dog to get this data, didn't you??

Bwahahahaha! FWIW, Woody often "runs" in his sleep, twitching and whimpering, so his data would likely look MUCH worse than mine. Nice try.

fuzzy96 wrote:so the wine cork ended up in the hose?

Put a cork in it, Fuzzbutt.

It's nice to see your passed-out squirrel again!

deerslayer wrote:WOW !
The rest of us can only hope...High Five

Hey, if I can do it, anyone can! (Just don't ask me how, 'cause I have absolutely no idea! )

tonycog wrote:Congrats BB. Isn't the ASV fun when it decides it doesn't like the way you are breathing, whether you need the help at that moment or not? I'm glad that you found one and it's taking good care of you.

Sweet dreams,
Tony

Hi, Tony, and thanks! I can't even begin to tell you how much I love my machine! Once I'm asleep, I have no idea what it's doing all night, pressure-wise; the transitions are so smooth, I sleep right through them. It's made such a huge positive difference in my therapy, there are no words. Life is good.

rested gal wrote:

-SWS wrote:Excellent and kudos! What a wonderful difference between now and when you first started.

Ain't it the truth! Way to go, BB !!

BleepingBeauty's saga with a happy ending:

[snipped]

Thank you, RG! You've always got all the pertinent info at your fingertips. Certainly one of the best organized and most helpful members of this forum, and I'm so glad to have gotten such good advice and guidance from you!

~~~~~

Thank you all for the warm replies. Took me long enough to get here! I started with a compliance-only machine, submitted to five (yes, five) sleep studies in 18 months, endured a few week-long APAP trials (the last of which was sheer torture, with messed-up settings from the doc's office), and was told by (not one, but two) board-certified sleep doctors that I didn't need an ASV to treat my SDB. Ha!

So, to any newbies reading this thread: Read all you can here, ask your questions and take the advice of the stellar members of this forum, and (above all) question authority!

I thank each and every one of you for educating me, helping me understand what I was dealing with, and encouraging me all along the way. I'd never have made it without you!

BleepingBeauty wrote:

beckah wrote:Congrats....I'm jealous!!

DoriC wrote:Wow! BB, that's impressive! I think you should frame this one!

Bwahahaha! You're too much, Dori! (If I do frame it, I'm whiting out that little red square of PB first. But don't tell anyone. )

BB, you have to leave the little red square in to prove you were actually doing something!!

WTG BB, I remember your struggles when I first started therapy. You have come a long way.

DoriC wrote:

BleepingBeauty wrote:

beckah wrote:Congrats....I'm jealous!!

DoriC wrote:Wow! BB, that's impressive! I think you should frame this one!

Bwahahaha! You're too much, Dori! (If I do frame it, I'm whiting out that little red square of PB first. But don't tell anyone. )

BB, you have to leave the little red square in to prove you were actually doing something!!

Oh, all right... Hehehe

Pugsy wrote:WTG BB, I remember your struggles when I first started therapy. You have come a long way.

Thanks, Brenda.

It's been a long and winding road, and I have no doubt I'd have remained unsuccessful at therapy if I hadn't found the forum and all of you. I'd never have thrown the machine in a closet and given up completely, because the results of my initial sleep studies scared the hell outta me, and I knew I needed treatment; but with so little help from my "professionals" at the time, I'm sure I'd still be struggling to find effective therapy if not for the education and help I got right here. Thanks for your part in that.