CPAP since age 48. What’s your experience?

[Fireup2020]

CPAP since 2016 due to severe OSA (totally flunked/passed the darn sleep study!)...was also referred by my dentist (like many here, wasn’t overweight, no diabetes, etc)...grateful that all is covered by VA-but I’m on my second dreamstation and alternate between dreamware nasal pillows and a full face mask when nasal passages are stuffy *.

 

[Bamaman]

Do you snore loudly?
Do you hold your breath when you sleep?
Do you weigh over 200 lbs.
Do you wear size 17 inch dress shorts or larger?
Do you wear down in the middle of the afternoon--or sleep thru church?

If so, you probably have sleep apnea.

My blood oxygen level is about 92 when I sleep, and I'm a breath holder and loud snorer. I'm on level #9 on CPAP, and I actually enjoy being on the machine with a water reservoir.

My pulmonologist is in a town of 50,000 people, and he has 50+ local physicians on CPAP. He says that those needing CPAP have a much increased chance of heart disease and the need eventually to have heart bypass surgery.

I had a friend that had sleep apnea so bad that he had a number of car wrecks. He'd go to sleep sitting at red lights too. He finally had to quit driving at a young age.

Sleep apnea is nothing to fool around with. With CPAP, I have a much better chance of living many more years, and less chance of having serious heart disease. Breathing through a mask when sleeping is just no big deal, and well worth the effort.

 

[jdmorton]

I am a very recent convert to having my sleep apnea treated. My DW has for years complained about my snoring and stopping breathing/gasping for air while sleeping. This year I finally did a sleep apnea study. I have a BiPAP device (with a humidifier) with the nasal pillows and a chin strap to keep my mouth closed. Since getting the machine in late July this year, I've used it every night except for one (went on an overnight stay). I thought my sleep study numbers were bad, but some of numbers mentioned in this thread are pretty scary.

I've been sleeping exclusively on my back for about 2 decades due to having both hip joints replaced and a bad back, so I readily adapted to wearing the head gear.

I feel so much better, no longer fall asleep while watching TV or just sitting in a chair. My DW has noticed a big change as well - and she is getting a much better night's sleep not worrying if I stop breathing .

 

[Teacher Terry]

When I lose weight I had a second sleep study. While my apnea went from 78 incidents a hour to between 4-6 my oxygen levels drop so I will need it for life. After 8 years I am used to it.

 

[RobbieB]

I'll be getting my own machine soon. Lab revealed 18/hour

 

[davismills]

I'm a newbie to CPAP as I've been using it for 10 nights now. 19 incidents per hour are now down to 3. I just can't seem to sleep more than 5 hours with it, however.

I do feel much better and do sleep sounder.

In case you folks are unaware, there is an at-home sleep study now. No need to report to a sleep lab anymore.

 

[Markola]

I just can't seem to sleep more than 5 hours with it, however.

In case you folks are unaware, there is an at-home sleep study now. No need to report to a sleep lab anymore.

I didn’t click with the CPAP but found the BIPAP effortless.

Good news about the home test. What’s the process?

 

[RobbieB]

Yeah, they just give you this little wrist recorder with a pulse oximeter attached. You put it on, sleep and toss it in the drop box the next day. Easy.

I'm delighted that I only have a 20% copay, so the $800 buck machine is down to $160.

 

[Christine]

Thank you for this thread. It sounds like a bipap could really help my mum. If I can get her to look into it.

 

[JDARNELL]

I now have a BiPap for over 3 years. Cpap got me from 19 events to 9 but no more. BiPap got me to less than 1 an hour. Sleep time went up from 2-4 hrs to 7-8. Quality is life went way up. I don’t go anywhere without it but I admit I get tired of packing it up and unpacking it when I travel. I may just purchase a second unit for ease so I can leave the one at the house already set up.

 

[DrBrisket]

... I may just purchase a second unit for ease so I can leave the one at the house already set up.

I hesitated for several years about buying a travel CPAP. Finally got one about 2 years ago. Haven't regretted the purchase in the least.

 

[lhamo]

I'm a newbie to CPAP as I've been using it for 10 nights now. 19 incidents per hour are now down to 3. I just can't seem to sleep more than 5 hours with it, however.

I do feel much better and do sleep sounder.

In case you folks are unaware, there is an at-home sleep study now. No need to report to a sleep lab anymore.

I started using a CPAP in February. For the first few months I could barely tolerate it the 4 hours (minimum) you are supposed to wear it every night. But gradually it got easier. Now I can regularly keep it on all night - 8-10 hours most nights.

I feel so much better, too. I used to feel the need to nap most afternoons. Now that is rare.

In my take-home test I was having 18-20 disturbances an hour. Now it is more like 2-3.

 

[MrsHaloFIRE]

DH could never adjust to his cpap so uses a mandibular advancement device (think 2 interlocking retainers)

 

[bloom2708]

How about a whole food, plant based diet? Dump caffeine. Lose extra weight. Start an exercise regimen.

 

[JDARNELL]

How about a whole food, plant based diet? Dump caffeine. Lose extra weight. Start an exercise regimen.

Don’t drink caffeine not overweight and I exercise. These things might help the obstructive events but probably not the central events. I’m not sure with all the neuro stuff. But for sure the things you mentioned would help some.

 

[KenZ71]

DW says she is getting a CPAP that looks like The Alien from the movie. I might need some time to adjust to seeing that in the middle of the night.

 

[DrBrisket]

DW says she is getting a CPAP that looks like The Alien from the movie. I might need some time to adjust to seeing that in the middle of the night.

My DW jokingly said it was too quiet for her to sleep when I first started using a CPAP! Now, she says she needs a white noise machine that sounds like my CPAP to sleep when I am out of town.

 

[folly]

I had sleep test in 1996 and then based on results they preformed a surgery. Total BS. Follow up test showed no improvement. Although I no longer had bruises on the back of my hands from throwing my arms and hitting bedpost. I swear every doctor I spoke to about it seemed to not want to get involved. I got copies of my test and reviewed them with the internet. By doing this I discovered more info. I traced links on the internet and used supplements to self treat. I kept telling the dr my muscles were not relaxing and I woke up exhausted. They ignored me. Told me I probably had narcolepsy. Bottom line...No answers, go away. Terrible experience. My DH now is using a cpap. He says it is helping him. He still only sleeps 6 to 7 hrs a night and wakes me up at least twice bouncing around. The only good thing I see with him is the machine keeps him tethered to his side of the bed and I now get 3/4 of the bed! I feel the whole thing is a scam

 

[sengsational]

Many years ago, with all the buzz about sleep apnea, I bought a recording pulse ox device and taped it on my finger while sleeping for a week or so. I looked for instances of heart rate elevation and/or oxygen saturation drops when I pulled up the strip chart on my computer. I didn't see anything significant. Also, none of the daytime symptoms. DW complains of snoring occasionally, but I did the voice recorder thing and all I heard was rather loud breathing, but she fixates on stuff at night sometimes. So not enough evidence for me to go to the doctor. But I've wondered if my tests and observations were even legit. I guess you need the formal study to get the hardware prescribed, but to rule out a problem, the self analysis might be sufficient? When they talk about "events", how low does the O2 sat go? Or is it not based on O2 sat?

 

[Markola]

How about a whole food, plant based diet? Dump caffeine. Lose extra weight. Start an exercise regimen.

Nothing wrong with doing those things, of course, but they aren’t all correlated with Obstructive Sleep Apnea. OSA is a serious medical issue requiring treatment based on severity, not something that can be controlled by the patient any more than other chronic conditions can be.

 

[copyright1997reloaded]

I had sleep test in 1996 and then based on results they preformed a surgery. Total BS. Follow up test showed no improvement. Although I no longer had bruises on the back of my hands from throwing my arms and hitting bedpost. I swear every doctor I spoke to about it seemed to not want to get involved. I got copies of my test and reviewed them with the internet. By doing this I discovered more info. I traced links on the internet and used supplements to self treat. I kept telling the dr my muscles were not relaxing and I woke up exhausted. They ignored me. Told me I probably had narcolepsy. Bottom line...No answers, go away. Terrible experience. My DH now is using a cpap. He says it is helping him. He still only sleeps 6 to 7 hrs a night and wakes me up at least twice bouncing around. The only good thing I see with him is the machine keeps him tethered to his side of the bed and I now get 3/4 of the bed! I feel the whole thing is a scam

I've had the opposite. For many years, my ex would tell me that I stopped breathing during sleep. I, like all normal men, ignored her.

Finally many years later I got a sleep study done. While I don't remember the numbers, my PCP told me in no uncertain terms that I should see an ENT and/or consider a CPAP. For the fun of it I went to an ENT who told me I was a great candidate for surgery - remove my tonsils and reconstruct/shave things a bit back there.

I did the surgery which was pretty darn painful for over two weeks. However, no more snoring and in general better sleep. Since then, I've also gone on to take off 30#, which I'm sure hasn't hurt.

 

[sandlapper]

No, as a matter of fact, they ask you to avoid caffeine/stimulants or alcohol/sedatives for at least 24 hours before the sleep study. For anxious individuals, falling asleep in a strange setting might be an issue. But usually for the chronically sleep-deprived, falling asleep in a strange bed doesn’t take long.

It wasn't easy, when I finally went to sleep, I dreamed I was in the matrix with tubes hanging off me.

I have had a CPAP for 13 years. It has really improved my breathing while sleeping.