Cpap

a bi pap machine may have been a better choice..when you try to inhale it blows at you high setting and then reverts back to the low setting as you exhale and until you inhale again..i think mine is set at 22/12..mine made a world of difference..i was falling asleep everywhere (driving included) before..been almost 5 years..

Hey Gidge! Glad it worked well for you. I look forward to the same once the kinks are worked out.

I don't think I really had a choice as to what machine they offered me. With mine, it was at times acting like it wanted to pace with my breathing, but it seems so unnatural to in turn try to pace with it. If I swallow, or relax between breaths, whatever, things get out of sync. Before I knew it, it was blowing air, constantly I suppose. Given that I was not approved for an onsite sleep test at a facility, I did a home monitor test, nobody actually tested to see a customized airflow setting. Mine is set to automatic. I may have to experiment with the settings on my own.

Given that it was set to auto, plug-n-play, I have yet to read the literature. Typically I prefer a bit of hands-on before reading literature with a new unfamiliar item. I will do so now. Perhaps I will turn off auto and try something different. I'm not sure from whom I would ask advice, i've dealt with three separate entities in getting this thing. At this point i'm just hoping the machine isn't a lemon.
 
Okay, but how does it sound?

lol

Actually, it's fairly silent. Just a bit of white noise.

My dog, the big one, Trampas, he is not digging it. He seems really concerned with the look, and though he normally sleeps in his bigboy bed, he sleeps by my side while i'm wearing it. He's a good guy.
 
Your height to weight ratio seems normal. Have you dealt with apnea your whole life?

Hell, I don't know, i'm asleep! All kidding aside, I probably snore a lot more as I got older. But I have snored pretty heavily for years.

I don't get this damn machine. As far as airflow, it appears I can only adjust the "ramp" time, which is the time until it ramps up from mild air(when I am yet to fall asleep) to full air (when I am supposed to be asleep). I can set it to auto, which means it detects I am asleep. Or, I could set it to whatever minutes I desire it to kick into full gear. I have read the literature. It keeps making reference to my "prescribed" airflow. I sure looked to me like the lady at the pharma place just took a brand new machine out of the box and showed me how to turn it on and off....how to set humidity, temp. No custom air pressure was set, that I know of. As far as I can tell I do not have the ability to adjust the airflow, if even I should.

Damn i'm tired.
 
A couple of guys standing beside the bed with baseball bats would have the same affect. There will be no snoring (if you don't sleep).

It's gonna be a long day.
 
Hey Mick, I feel ya. I also have had one for a long time, and I don't use it either. I tried it again a couple of weeks ago, and now I can't get the humidifier to work. As it's so old, I'm sure I need a new one. But as it's been so long, I'll have to get it from a different sleep doctor using a different insurance. The original one was totally paid for by the insurance we had at the time. Now there will be a 10% copay on a machine and any ongoing supplies, which sounds like a good deal, right? I found the paperwork on the original machine from back in the 90's, and it was about $4500 back then. Can't imagine what they cost now. I'm just hoping the technology has improved enough to make it bearable for me.

My problem with it was that, as you have discovered, it's really hard to wear unless you sleep on your back, which I can't seem to do. I automatically turn on my side as soon as I'm asleep. What I've thought about trying, Mick, is sleeping in a recliner (most men are good at that, eh?) to keep me on my back.

My problem is anatomical (I've had it all my life, even when I was a teenager and fairly fit), but it's generally exacerbated by weight, as in, the heavier I am, the worse it gets.

I kind of disagree with Dr. EZ's assessment of your height/weight ratio. I know that at 6'0", about 218 is the heaviest I've ever been and yeah, I was fat. I don't actually like the term 'fat', especially when we're talking medically, I was definitely obese. I'm currently 178, which is the upper limit for 'normal' and on the edge of 'overweight' according to the NIH tables.

OK, I've gone on longer than I intended or have time for at the moment. I'll chime back in later, but soon, because I don't think you fully grasp the gravity of your situation.
 
Hey Mick, I want to send you a pm, but you won't be able to respond until I clear some stuff out, so I'll wait.
 
Yeah, EZ's height/weight index thing didn't sound right. I'm probably 208lb (since I was weighed 212lb at my last dr appointment), which is too much. But I can carry 190lb fine. A year ago at this time I was 192, and reasonably svelte. I'm a 54 yr old man, I have no desire to be the 180lb kid I was upon high school graduation.

I'm going to tighten up the mask a bit more tonight. I can't sleep on my back, and a side position results in a leak once my posture relaxes when actually falling asleep.

I'm realizing that rush of air is normal. Air flow starts low. As I start to fall asleep the machine detects it in my breathing. It then automatically "ramps" up the airflow. If for whatever reason I open my mouth it reduces back pressure. The machine detects it and unleashes a hurricane. I have to close my mouth and exhale with effort to calm the hurricane. Glitch hasn't checked back in, but I think what he meant when he said "mine is set at 24/12", there is 24 (whatevers) of air flow/pressure on inhale, and 12 on exhale. I have no idea what my settings are, they never told me.

As long as I can keep the mask from leaking, I do not open my mouth, and I do not sleep on my back, i'll be fine. I'll be fine. :facepalm:
 
I think things went better last night!

Tightening the mask was helpful, just the lower strap. There was a bit of slack. When I laid on my side and the strap was then pressed tight against the side of my face, that slack then had to go somewhere. It went to the front, slack was created on the nose piece causing leakage. Mind you, it should not be so tight as to collapse or squish the "pillow", the soft part that touches the skin and facilitates a good seal.

I think I only had one episode where I opened my mouth, which causes a strong rush of air to build up in my nasal cavity and mouth. I did not wake completely, but enough to realize what was happening. It's important, it seems, to once you close your mouth to not freak out, purposely exhale strongly to in a sense both reset the airflow from the machine and to clear the air in your face.

According to the report sent via internal modem and accessed through the net, I only had .6 events(stopped breathing) per hour, compared to the 41 an hour as indicated in my initial sleep test! :thumbs up:

Although I only slept about 4.5 hours last night (on account that is how long I was in bed), I feel fairly rested. I think i'm on my way to having this thing dicked. :guitar:
 
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Progress!:thumbs up:

Good luck, dude! Stick with it.

The thing is, it should get progressively easier to tackle your other health issues when your body has had the rest it needs.

I myself have several other health problems, and they say that I won't be able to begin to get a handle on any of them until I get the apnea corrected.

So here's hoping.
 
just woke the fuq

Wore that bitch 3 hours fifty last night, "slept" another 2.5 without. Removed an account I was opening my mouth and waking up to really bad weather, cyclonic aspersions emanating from me piehole. According to wife, snorey demons commenced thereafter.

Report says, .2 events per hour. Bam!

Evidently, though a pain in the ass, it is working. I'll keep at it.

Have a good one gents!
 
there are chin straps to help keep your mouth closed but I am just a mouth breather and it has never been a problem as far as cpap...what mask are you using?
 
I'm using the mask that goes over the nose only. When the machine is ramped full tilt, I only have to crack my lips for things to get a little crazy. I guess without the back pressure, instead of some of the excess air pressure escaping through the vent on the hose, it fills my nasal cavity and comes out of my mouth. It's kind of a bitch to exhale to clear my head, lower the pressure, and get it to start venting again. It's kind of like trying to breath while sticking your head out the window of a car cruising down the interstate at a high rate of speed.

Last night, I drank, ahem, a few beers. I woke up this morning with the mask somehow off and the nose piece detached from the mask & hose and lying on my chest. I suppose it's okay. I'm getting ready to hit the sack, I guess i'll find out when a go up there and attempt to reassemble the ruins of last night's fitful slumber.

The report from last night said i wore it for 3 hrs 50 min. I had 1.6 an hour stopped breathing events, compared to .2 the previous night when i had nothing to drink, and 41 an hour from my initial sleep test.

I guess i'm getting more used to it, but in all honesty it is a royal pain in the ass. I have to admit, though, I am feeling much better and rested in the mornings. I'll keep at it.
 
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So - the CPAP machines that use tubes.... they're better than the modern ones that use fancy electronics right? :D

Doobie - you know all this right? You smoke a lot, you drink too much and you're a bit porky. Your body is talking to you. Suggest you listen to it and do something about the vices while you're wrangling with the ins and outs of the machine to work out how not to die at night time. Or it ain't gonna get any better for you from here. 54 is no age at all these days to be crippled with what are probably reasonably avoidable health issues.

I say this because I'm inordinately fond of you and don't want you to die. :thumbs up:
 
I'm gonna die, you're gonna die, we're all gonna die! None of us are gonna make it out alive.

Sure, man, I know all these things. I have some vices. It won't be easy, but I should and probably will at some point stop smoking. I've lost about 7 pounds in the last 3 weeks, so i'm a little less porky every day. But, i'm going to drink alcohol, a lot. That's just the way it is.

There was a story in the news recently. This chick, a vegan, she was going to attempt the summit of Everest, in part, according reports, to prove vegans too can reach the summit. She got sick and fucking died. Dead. I'm not trying to make sport of that poor girl's death, but she spent her days eating fucking sprouts and, what, kale smoothies, only to die trying to prove how healthy she is as a vegan. Many people in these modern times are kept alive by modern medicine well into a frail and otherwise forgotten state. Their children (and society) seemingly no longer give a shit and treat them as if they are a mentally deficient burden, only because they can no longer do for themselves and must rely on others. Many have spent nearly their entire lives caring for others, and that is what they get in return. I've seen it first hand, it's a real pisser. Talking to a young girl just recently, hell, she wasn't young, early 30s......"old people stink, ew, they smell". Fuck that. I don't want to die. I can't point to an age and say that is as long as I want to live. I can say, I want to live until I die. If living kills me, so be it, with my boots on. /rant

People have snored since forever. I suppose at points in time it could give away your position while vulnerable and asleep to predators, or enemy attack. Maybe as they say it can result in a domino effect of other health problems. Maybe snoring is just a part of life, and death. Now they have this CPAP thing. No matter how uncomfortable or a pain in the ass, i'm going to wear it. Maybe it's a first step towards healthier habits. But at minimum, at least it will make my wife, and you, happy. It's good to be loved. :thumbs up:
 
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Hey Chili....

Your surgery this week, best of luck and hope everything works out for you!

I don't know what they are going to give you to put you under, but propofol is blissful. I hadn't slept that well in ages, and you wake right up without lingering loopiness. It never hurts to ask, all they can do is say no.

Good luck!
 
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Hm, that may have been a bit harsh.

Yes, Amistice, you are correct, sir. I should watch out better for my health. I look forward to CPAP, though i must say a pain in the ass, as being a step in the right direction. Off to bed.
 
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