CPAPtalk.com

JustTia wrote: This has been true for me, too. And I'm the odd-ball who actually likes the feeling of the air blowing into my nose. I've always been a person who could not STAND to re-breathe air. My husband likes to snuggle up under a blanket, with it even over his head, in the winter. I can't STAND that. I have to make a "tunnel" in the blanket to let in cool, fresh air to breathe or I feel like I'm suffocating. I hate scarves or clothing up around my nose/mouth, no matter how cold it is. I gotta have fresh air. So I think that blowing of fresh air effect helped balance the claustrophobia effect of wearing the mask, for me.

I'm the same way, never could sleep with covers over my head.

englandsf wrote:Has anyone else found they sleep "cooler" with CPAP. I swear I don't throw the covers off or toss and turn as much. Is it the actual temperature of the fact that I'm sleeping deeper I wonder?...

night sweats are one of the common side effects of sleep apnea.... so yeah.

Last night I put it on 1.5. Several of the previous nights it was off entirely. I alternate. I'm still trying to get a handle on the stupid rainout that I've begun experiencing in my pillows on and off. I've ordered a climate line to see if that helps. No rainout in the hose itself yet, just the pillows, but a pillow cozy isn't enough. So I have been playing around with the humidity setting.

englandsf wrote:I'm best at 8 hours plus a 30-40 minute siesta at 12:30 to 1:00 PM. And I try to go to bed at 10:00 - 10:30 at night. Seven weeks into CPAP and I did a single 7 hour sleep last night. Then another hour plus. Feel so perky it's annoying today.

Glad to hear of your success, englandsf! Too perky is usually only annoying to others. Maybe spend some time alone today.

Madalot wrote:Great to see you, BB!

I guess I probably fall into the 7-8 hour as well, but I sure haven't figured out exactly! I think my sleep is so disturbed because of pain and discomfort that even 7-8 hours isn't always enough. All I know is I never wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go, no matter how little/much I sleep.

Hi, Maddie. Nice to be seen.

I'm lucky that my sleep is not disturbed by pain. Sorry that you (and anyone else here who's in a similar boat) are sleeping long enough but not feeling refreshed, especially when we put so much effort into our sleep. But the xPAP machine can only do so much; when pain is involved, we have to look for other solutions. Sometimes, there just isn't an answer that's readily available.

I was on Prednisone for several weeks during my bout with pneumonia, and it really impacted my sleep in a bad way. I would hit the sheets at 10 p.m., sleep for 2-3 hours, then suffer insomnia for several hours, and then sleep a little more; that was awful, and I felt even worse than I did before xPAP. My hours of sleep have returned to normal now (around five weeks after I stopped taking the drug), but I'm still dealing with other side effects (Prednisone is nasty). The nurses told me it can stay in the system for months.

I wish everyone could sleep well and feel the benefits of it.

Sleeper Agent wrote:<snip>
I also find myself way more refreshed if I had 1+ hour of lead time to relax before bed.

This is with CPAP. Before CPAP, 9+ or 10+ hours was the norm, and I still feel like shit all day.

Yep, I think most of us benefit from an hour or more of "downtime" before bed.

Before xPAP, I felt the same way as you - no matter how many hours I slept, I woke up tired, and it was a chore just to get through the day until I could fall back into bed (not that that helped ).

BlackSpinner wrote:And another view - sleeping naked.

An Australian study concluded that some forms of insomnia can be provoked by improper body temperature regulation at night. Another study showed that the regulation of in-bed body temperature could significantly help in reaching a deeper sleep. In one study in particular, Dutch scientists placed thermosuits on participants in order to lower their skin temperature without affecting core body temperature. As a result, the participants had an uninterrupted sleep and spent more time in the deep sleep stages.

Hi, Lena. I'm one of the lucky ones who's rarely suffered from any kind of insomnia; once in awhile, I have difficulty falling asleep, but thankfully not often. FWIW, I've been sleeping naked for many years, and I love it. Even in the dead of winter. And I usually sleep for about 8 hours uninterrupted.

I'm averaging 6 1/2 to 7 hours of sleep since starting CPAP.

Weeknight bedtime is around 10PM & I'm typically awake shortly before my alarm clock rings at 4:30AM. (I have to be at work at 6AM)

Aside from one instance where I accidentally overfilled the tank and inhaled water into the tube, I've never ever experienced rainout. My higher bi-pap pressures may be part of the reason why I've never had rainout.

My current settings using the climate line hose is 3.5 humidity and a temperature setting somewhere around 77 degree's.

When the colder drier weather comes, I'll boost both settings upward.

englandsf wrote:Has anyone else found they sleep "cooler" with CPAP. I swear I don't throw the covers off or toss and turn as much. Is it the actual temperature of the fact that I'm sleeping deeper I wonder?...

I think it's pretty common that most of us stop tossing and turning when we're successful with xPAP use. I'm sure sleeping "cooler" helps, but it's the fact that we're not struggling to breathe that lets us really rest at night.

7.5 is good for me. If working from home and have the time, A nap around 2-3pm for around 1.5 hours give me mental sharpness like when I get up in the morning making it easier to deal with complicated situations. More of a mental thing than sleepy though. Unlike before I got hosed, I used to fall asleep all the time, driving, meetings, sitting at my desk, etc... was awful because I always felt tired and I snored loudly even then sitting up.

BlackSpinner wrote:And another view - sleeping naked.

An Australian study concluded that some forms of insomnia can be provoked by improper body temperature regulation at night. Another study showed that the regulation of in-bed body temperature could significantly help in reaching a deeper sleep. In one study in particular, Dutch scientists placed thermosuits on participants in order to lower their skin temperature without affecting core body temperature. As a result, the participants had an uninterrupted sleep and spent more time in the deep sleep stages.

Interesting... my daughter recently mentioned this study to me. I tried it. There is no doubt that I fall asleep faster and sleep better sans pajamas. It's amazing.