New CPAP User – having problems!
Question:
My husband and I are both just fresh from our second sleep study which was the titration one. I had mentioned in here earlier that during the sleep study titration the tech took us both up to 16cm of air!!! I felt like I was going down a freeway at 70 miles a hour with my head out the car window and was fighting for air. Larry said he felt like he was suffocating and the pressure was so great it made his lips flap LOL. I asked her why she did that and she said she needs to try us at all levels so they get a read out that tells them which one poses the least amount or no more apneas, hyponeas etc. Have you tried the ramp mode on your Remstar? Ours are Remstars also. I have to use it in order to get to sleep because even at 8 I find myself fighting to expire. Also just a word of advice to you. If your Remtar is noisy or squeels at anytime but especially as it is ramping …..TAKE IT BACK! We got a bad batch and went through three between the two of us before we got absolutely whisper quiet ones.
Response:
TPoun wrote: > I may be wrong….. there are great folks in here who will > correct me if needed and also post their own thoughts > that may help you.
No need for correction. It’s a great description, and possible explanation of the issues. > Most important though, don;t get despondant… xPAP > can take time to get adjusted to properly.
Amen! Trevor, again you hit the nail on the head. All too often xPAP is presented as an instantaneous ‘fix’ for Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Works that way for some people. But most have a longish (many weeks to a few months) adjustment period. It takes a long time to teach our bodies new tricks! ;^) Regards, =jbf= John B. Fisher
Response:
>My study with the CPAP indicated that I needed a unit, >recommended a pressure of 11cm, but stated that I couldn’t >tolerate a pressure of 10cm.
Lee…..I going to guess that the tolerance issue is related to exhale opposed to inhale. That would mean you need 11 cmH20 to clear your obstruction (you should be able to tolerate breathing in 
). However you may be struggling to breat out against the same pressure. If (and I stress IF) this is the case with you, then Bi-Pap would be the probable solution. Many people in here use this special (expensive) type of PAP machine. You may read people posting their settings in this way….17-9 or 12-6 as examples. The first number is the pressure the BiPap exerts on your inhale. The second is the pressure it exterts on your exhale. Of course the machine has "intelligence" built in to detect when you breath in and out…hence the cost penalty. I may be wrong…..there are great folks in here who will correct me if needed and also post their own thoughts that may help you. Most important though, don;t get despondant…xPAP can take time to get adjusted to properly. Good Luck Trevor
Response:
> I am having a lot of trouble sleeping still, and frequently > fall asleep in my chair or on the sofa while reading or > watching the news on TV (11 pm to midnight). When this > happens, I never will get any sleep either with or without > the CPAP for the balance of the night. This has been the > case for several years as well.
Just with this part put your CPAP on while watching TV in the chair I did this for a while as use to fall to sleep watching TV, After a few weeks was not tired while watching TV. For first 3 months I was going to sleep at midnight and getting up about 4.30 to 5 am. But as you will see by other posting it varies for everyone. I now after 18 months go to sleep about 10.30 till about 6.30 to 7am. With regard to pressure you will have to check will sleep specialist I was on 16 at start and was getting a sore chest but it went away after first couple of weeks, I now have a increase lung capacity the highest I have had in my life, Have been getting it measured since I was a Kid, I am now 43. The docotrs have always known something was wrong with me, but it was actually myself who seen an acticle in a newspapers weekend magazine about sleep apnea and asked a doctor to refer me to a sleep clinic, in Australia you have to get a referal from your doctor, I have known other people to go to a number of doctors before gettin a referal. Warren
Response:
I’ve only been using my machine for a couple of weeks, but am having difficulties. I wonder if anyone here can clarify some information from my sleep studies that I think is relevant but don’t understand. My study with the CPAP indicated that I needed a unit, recommended a pressure of 11cm, but stated that I couldn’t tolerate a pressure of 10cm. During that study, I feel asleep very quickly (8 minutes) and slept very soundly for just over four hours, and was awakened by a smothering feeling and the noise of air leaking from the mask. I removed the mask, called for the technician who told me she had raised the pressure to find out my tolerance level. Since the report indicated virtual elemination of episodes during the four plus hours of sleep, I can’t understand why the recommendation of 11cm. I have a follow up appointment next week with the sleep specialist, and will be posing this question to him then. I am having a lot of trouble sleeping still, and frequently fall asleep in my chair or on the sofa while reading or watching the news on TV (11 pm to midnight). When this happens, I never will get any sleep either with or without the CPAP for the balance of the night. This has been the case for several years as well. I called my respirologist and he couldn’t explain what appears to be contratictory results on the study, but suggested that perhaps a solution would be to lower the pressure to about 8 cm until I was comfortable with that and increase in 1 cm increments as my tolerance increases. I’m using a Respironics REMstar, so I can change the programming easily enough. Has anyone else experienced a similar problem that has benefitted from a progressive pressure increase. Any pearls of wisdom/experience would be most appreciated. Regards, Lee Babcock
