another failed night with cpap

chdurie2 · Post by **chdurie2** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:35 pm

advice would be appreciated. i've been doing cpap for the last week, second time around. my only successes were with the series 2 full face mask, so i thought i better go back to that. what has happened with my others, including activa, is i wake up with the mask next to my pillow--the full face one is the only one i've kept on. well. this morning the full face mask also was next to me on my pillow, so then i realized that the nights i had successfully done cpap i had only (deliberately) had three hours of sleep each night. so this morning i made myself go back to sleep for two hours with the full face mask on, and it was better than 10 hours without. so i'm thinking that i only tolerate it for a few hours, then pull it off (unknowingly.) suggestions? thanks.

Gidgie · Post by **Gidgie** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:47 pm

Keep trying! Also, wearing the mask while you watch TV, read these posts, etc.,may help make you more comfortable with it. But lots of folks take longer to adjust to what is indeed a very unnatural way of life. Only thing I'm going to tell you NOT to do is give up. There's lots of folks here with a whole lot of good advice to help you make the transition easier. think like a cat.....every thing is meant to be played with.

roztom · Post by **roztom** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:56 pm

I agree - practice wearing the mask around the house.

I did that with the SWift when I first got it. MY nose rebelled against it - so I wore it a few hours around the house.

MY wife had a field day laughing at me - I'm glad she sees humor in it and isn't negative.

I only took a few extra hours to get used to it.

Try the TV suggestion. I just wouldn't wear it to the Movies.

Good luck,

Tom

Wulfman · Post by **Wulfman** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:59 pm

It seems that we ALL go through the "mask laying on the bed next to us" phase at some point (usually early on) in our therapy.
Sometimes having a pressure that's too low will give you the feeling of being starved for air and will cause you to pull it off during your sleep.

Just tell yourself to "Stop doing that!".

Best wishes and hang in there.

Den

SLEEPYCD · Post by **SLEEPYCD** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 2:22 pm

chdurie2,
Don't despair, it took me a long time to get used to wearing my CPAP all night. You will feel so much better in the future, you won't want to sleep without it. Keep us posted on your progress, we're all in this together!!!!
Carolyn

chdurie2 · Post by **chdurie2** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 2:29 pm

thanks you guys. i will keep trying and wear the mask around the house. so now i know that at least for now, it's less a matter of which mask, than becoming comfortable with the whole process. the few successes i've had have been terrific. this time i'll hang in there. thanks again.

Linda3032 · Post by **Linda3032** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 3:15 pm

chdurie2, if you could complete your profile information regarding equipment, etc. (also, you can add your pressure and cpap settings in the comments section), then we would have a little more to go on.

Den (wulfman) mentioned low pressure settings. If you have an Apap, your minimum pressure setting might be too low, causing you to feel suffocated, and therefore taking your mask off during the night, subconsciously.

So, if you have an Apap, and know how to bump up the minimum pressure, you might want to do that - only if you are comfortable doing that of course.

For some reason, many of the Remstar Apaps are factory set at 4-20 and never get changed to a patient's prescription level.

chdurie2 · Post by **chdurie2** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 3:53 pm

thanks, linda. filled it in. my machine is a little older than those specified--sullivan v elite--but i filled it in under "other."

Mask

Additional Comments: Large mask collection

Mask

Additional Comments: Large mask collection

Mask

Additional Comments: Large mask collection