CPAP Basics - 4

49er wrote:Continue with your own rating systems such as +1

OK, that's fine.
Of course, my rating system will be the best.

......inevitably, though, I can just bet, there will be some one that
will profess that their rating system is better than mine.

Then....some one else will disagree w/both of these systems...
and want their system to be installed.

UH-OH ....here we go again.

Coming from someone who works for a DME himself, I've always felt this place has given me such an insight into the life a CPAP user. Here we are sitting at a desk ordering products, seeing what's new and always hearing what we have to do next. Weather it be Fisher & Paykel, Res Med, Respironics, Devilbis, or any other manufacture who creates CPAP equipment. None of that means anything unless you yourself has given it a try first. I thought I was a CPAP pro after my first year. Here is the start button, here is the ramp, your water goes here and O Ya here is the mask you have to wear. I had it down like a robot. Then I decided to take it home myself, boy I was in for ride of my life
CPAP is a life modification. We are in essence asking you to go against everything you know when it comes to your sleep. Being creatures of habit only human nature to resist change at first,especially when it involves sleep. So of course you may be more tired in the first week or so getting use to life with CPAP then you have been the past 10-20 years you have been coping with OSA. So for me Practice was key. Performance anxiety is what we should try to avoid and an easy way if you have this is to take it to the living room and keep it on your table next to your chair and do what I call a mask workout. Mental barriers are harder to breach then physical. Put the mask on during commercial breaks and each time it gets easier than the next.

carbonman wrote: ......inevitably, though, I can just bet, there will be some one that
will profess that their rating system is better than mine.

jnk wrote:My rating system is this:

Statements that say "I disagree with his opinion" get a +1.

Statements that say "I don't think people like him have a right to give their opinions here" get a -1.
But that is only my opinion.

.... WELL , there you go....
that didn't take long.

I think we can all agree that we all recognize that Jim is trying to start us out in Kindergarten when most of us(not me) are at college level or even Profs. But he's not being irritating or rude, he just doesn't yet get who he's addressing. I'm sure he is trying to sell his book or get material for a second edition, but I think is approach is pretty benign. You all know we've seen worse here. @ Mollette....Please try a little harder!

I respect everyone's opinions but my own, although I'm probably wrong about that.

Numbering points is related to making an outline; for the orderly presentation of a written work.
Here, order is not a priority--a thousand monkeys on typewriters becomes a hundred insomniacs on computers.
Chaos reigns.
I miss Lazer--he would find a cool image here.

very well said, Dori!!

DoriC wrote:I think we can all agree that we all recognize that Jim is trying to start us out in Kindergarten when most of us(not me) are at college level or even Profs. But he's not being irritating or rude, he just doesn't yet get who he's addressing. I'm sure he is trying to sell his book or get material for a second edition, but I think is approach is pretty benign. You all know we've seen worse here. @ Mollette....Please try a little harder!

zoocrewphoto wrote:<snip>
I do appreciate that the signature is better than before. But I have had an icky feeling about this whole situation since it started. I do not like infomercials. I do not want somebody who hasn't slept with a cpap machine to preach to me about cpap basics. And I find it really odd that a question is asked (what is number 1, 2, etc), yet the answer is ignored and the lesson continues on.

And I really don't understand the motive. Everything being "taught" has already been discussed many times, and is not new and not very specific. I really think it is a way to discuss the topics in the book so as to improve his book.<snip>

From the "Basics - 3" thread:

SleepWellCPAP wrote:Chunkyfrog, that is a great line! <snip> With your permission, I would like to use that line in the second edition of my book.

There are vendors and vendors on this site. There are known, reliable forum members who sell used machines. They are providing value. There are known, reliable forum members like Karen (Pad-a-Cheek) who sell comfort products. They, too, are providing value. There are true experts, like Dr. Steven Park, who I believe has written books. They, too, are providing value. There are DMEs who appear to be here for educational/altruistic motives (Sleepstar springs to mind). She too is providing value AFAICT.

Then there is this situation. Judging from the above quote, the "Basics" threads are calculated to harvest forum content so that it can be repackaged and sold back to us or to future forum newbies. The "three best tips" that were offered in return were not, as I recall, particularly perceptive or useful. And has someone who's been fitting masks for ten years really never heard of the Lansinoh trick? That gave me pause.

One may ask: might this be a fair use of the forum in any event? After all, the information to be found here is not well-indexed, and the search engine, although serviceable, leaves a bit to be desired. So perhaps the creation of a "second edition," especially if it has a title less grandiose than "Definitive," would also provide value. On the other hand, the information generated by the Basics threads can also be found in the stickies at the top of the forum, especially "Where a Newbie Should Start."

Here is what I have concluded with regard to my own conduct (the only thing I have any control over). On occasion, I add content to the forum that could be harvested (usually on legislative/regulatory issues). I do so voluntarily and without expectation of compensation, and I will continue to do so. I'm not inclined to package any of it with a bow and add it to these threads for resale.

I've been reading through these posts with great vigor. You folks are really helping me shape my attitude towards this forum with all the great content you have expressed. Irritating? Yes I would say some of what I read on this site is irritating, if not crass and even borderline slander in some cases. But you know, this site has been the single biggest source of information into my recent journey into xPAP. Not the sleep doc, not the DME, not the RT, no one else has helped me along as much as the members on this board. So I think I can put up with a little irritation as a trade off for an improved quality of life which xPAP is giving me. That's a no brainer.

As for the book seller, I think he is just going down his bullet list of items as expressed from his perspective. It is not clear to me that he is scalping ideas for another book. Maybe he is, but he wouldn't have to post to get that; it's all in the archives. And maybe this is one big infomercial, but I am getting bits and pieces along the way from the other members who chime in with their wisdom, so it's not a complete waste of space.

BTW, I totally disagree to the numbering scheme. If you are waiting until #4 on a list of 7 for patience, you've probably given up a long time ago. I'll be waiting for Jeff to give me a +1 (cuz I disagreed with somebody)

Drowsy Dancer wrote:
One may ask: might this be a fair use of the forum in any event? After all, the information to be found here is not well-indexed, and the search engine, although serviceable, leaves a bit to be desired. So perhaps the creation of a "second edition," especially if it has a title less grandiose than "Definitive," would also provide value. On the other hand, the information generated by the Basics threads can also be found in the stickies at the top of the forum, especially "Where a Newbie Should Start."

..ya know.....I'm trying, as best I can....with that Unruly Mob mentality that I have,
to keep an open mind about SleepWell.......BUT.....
as I have said before, any information that would go into a cpap pamphlet/book
is already available here, now. I can't think of too many problems/solutions that
that could not be mined from this site.....right now.....
with no membership, no posts, absolutely anonymous.



......of course, there would be no marketing opportunity....either.

carbonman wrote:

Drowsy Dancer wrote:
One may ask: might this be a fair use of the forum in any event? After all, the information to be found here is not well-indexed, and the search engine, although serviceable, leaves a bit to be desired. So perhaps the creation of a "second edition," especially if it has a title less grandiose than "Definitive," would also provide value. On the other hand, the information generated by the Basics threads can also be found in the stickies at the top of the forum, especially "Where a Newbie Should Start."

..ya know.....I'm trying, as best I can....with that Unruly Mob mentality that I have,
to keep an open mind about SleepWell.......BUT.....
as I have said before, any information that would go into a cpap pamphlet/book
is already available here, now. I can't think of too many problems/solutions that
that could not be mined from this site.....right now.....
with no membership, no posts, absolutely anonymous.

......of course, there would be no marketing opportunity....either.

There is also an uncharitable conclusion that could be drawn based on the flabbiness of the site's search feature.

I gave up the site search and I google the topic I want and cpapforum. It works much better.

Drowsy Dancer wrote:. . . an uncharitable conclusion . . . drawn based on the flabbiness of the site's search feature.

Some may draw uncharitable conclusions based on the flabbiness of some of my features. Is that sort of the same thing?

CPAP101 wrote:Coming from someone who works for a DME himself, I've always felt this place has given me such an insight into the life a CPAP user. Here we are sitting at a desk ordering products, seeing what's new and always hearing what we have to do next. Weather it be Fisher & Paykel, Res Med, Respironics, Devilbis, or any other manufacture who creates CPAP equipment. None of that means anything unless you yourself has given it a try first. I thought I was a CPAP pro after my first year. Here is the start button, here is the ramp, your water goes here and O Ya here is the mask you have to wear. I had it down like a robot. Then I decided to take it home myself, boy I was in for ride of my life
CPAP is a life modification. We are in essence asking you to go against everything you know when it comes to your sleep. Being creatures of habit only human nature to resist change at first,especially when it involves sleep. So of course you may be more tired in the first week or so getting use to life with CPAP then you have been the past 10-20 years you have been coping with OSA. So for me Practice was key. Performance anxiety is what we should try to avoid and an easy way if you have this is to take it to the living room and keep it on your table next to your chair and do what I call a mask workout. Mental barriers are harder to breach then physical. Put the mask on during commercial breaks and each time it gets easier than the next.

Hi CPAP101!

I think you should talk for a long time with your doctor before doing this but for the "real ride" you need to boost the pressure up to about 20 if BMI <30 and a point per point if above 30 - limit your sleep to four hours a night for three nights previous - watch the scariest move in the world that evening - add a cup or two of coffee. That "should" add some breathing instability - which I believe is the main reason that people to discontinue xPAP therapy. It has a lot to do with stress (imitated here by sleep deprivation and the scary move) and central nervous system activation badly imitated with coffee.

I am not at all kidding about talking with your doctor first. I think breathing instability is very hard on our bodies.

I am encouraged by the fact you care enough to see for yourself!!

Have a great week!

Todzo