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Happy Thanksgiving!
I had a sleep study about 6 years ago that showed I had no problems on my side but significant apnea on my back. After trying and failing to get used to cpap, I decided to just try sleeping on my sides.
After several episodes of actually punching my husband while dreaming, my Dr decided to do another sleep study. This study shows I have mild-moderate apnea on my back but moderate-severe on my sides. The gal that called me with the results could not explain how this is possible but just kept pushing me to do cpap again even though I told her I had an awful time before.
A mouth appliance is an option, but I have tmj and a jaw clenching and grinding tendancy that makes me think having an appliance would make me want to clench even more.
Please give me any advice possible as I am very confused about what to do.
Thank you!
Your best bet would be to try the CPAP again. Successful use usually depends on finding a mask type that works for you. What mask did you use last time and what were the issues?
My wife uses a mouth appliance for TMJ and uses it while using a CPAP and has no issues.
I don't have anything right now, not even a TMJ appliance because I am afraid of clenching and grinding. I tried multiple CPAP masks...I had a Phillips Dream machine. I can't recall the specific masks but we had a hard time getting a good fit and this also affected my husband's sleep. I saw something about EPAP but not sure if that is a worthwhile option.
I am afraid I would be very skeptical about the effectiveness of EPAP. It only increases pressure on exhale, and I suspect by not very much as there is no indication of the pressure. My experience is that apnea events are more likely to occur in the inhale portion of each breath. In fact most CPAP machines reduce pressure on exhale without any impact on apnea frequency, and in some cases reduce the number of hypopnea events.
The second issue with an EPAP is that it does not monitor the effectiveness of the device by giving you an AHI score each night. You can even use some freeware called OSCAR to give you much more detailed daily report. My AHI at diagnosis was 34 which is in the severe range. With my CPAP I now average 0.85 for AHI. My wife does even better at 0.5 for AHI.
I use a very minimalist mask after unsuccessfully trying a number of other types. Each person has their preferences but I like the ResMed AirFit P10 Nasal Pillow. This mask is also very quiet and does not disturb the other person. My wife uses a bit different mask called the F&P Brevida. It is a bit larger, but is easier to adjust for fit.
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