DanM

Welcome! Glad to hear you are sleeping better. Please keep us posted, and feel free to post any questions you have about sleep apnea or treatment. We have a great user community!

Hi Yayoe10. There can be several reasons you sometimes see a higher AHI. Medications can contribute if you have taken anything different that causes relaxation, and some people have sleep apnea that worsens when they sleep in different positions (like on the back). If you continue to experience these slightly elevated AHIs and believe it is causing you to not feel well, consider talking to your sleep physician. It might also be that your machine pressure just needs a slight adjustment. Your home care company and/or sleep physician should be able to determine this by monitoring the data from your machine. Hope this helps, and please let us know how you're doing!

Hi Battleaxe. CPAP pressures can change as weight changes, so it might be that you need slight pressure adjustments with weight gain or loss. Good luck!

Hi wiscman. Most newer machines can compensate for some amount of mask leak, so the AHI remains controlled even if mask leak increases a bit. There is also something called "intentional leak" that should always be present. This leak is the air that is intentionally blown out of the exhalation valve (small holes or port) of the mask so that you do not re-breath your carbon dioxide. This might be why the AHI remains consistent even when the mask seal score changes. Best wishes!

Hi SteveTC. If you think the Buteyko breathing is helping treat your sleep apnea, the only way to really know would be to have your sleep study repeated. Sleep apnea is can be caused by several factors, but the most common is obstruction of the airway caused by tissue collapse. Even if your snoring has improved, I encourage you to follow up to make sure your airway is not collapsing and/or causing significant changes to your blood oxygen levels at night. Best wishes!

Good suggestions, Sleep. Allergies can make CPAP difficult to use when they are not under control. Also, some medicines take weeks to reach full effectiveness. Seeing an allergist or talking to your primary care doc might be helpful.

Hi DBABB. Have you had your technician check to make sure all other machine settings (like EPR, ramping, etc.) are set properly? There are more settings on the s9 and s10 than just the pressure range. Also, is the mask type set correctly? It may be a good idea to try to have them compare setting by setting, if possible. I have an s9 and an s10 as well, and I did notice a small difference when I started treatment. I found that my EPR was turned off on the new machine but at a setting of 2 on my old machine. Just a thought, and I hope you are able to solve the problem. Best wishes, and please let us know how you are doing!

Hi SincereRoselbex3113. I'm sorry to hear you have had such struggles with sleep apnea. Unfortunately, your story is much too common among those of us who suffer with this diagnosis. Some people are fortunate enough to adjust to treatment very quickly, and it takes months for others. Some patients are never able to tolerate CPAP and use oral appliances or other forms of treatment. I agree with wiredgeorge that you should go back to your physician and discuss the problems you have had with treatment. Sometimes having your physician speak to your insurance company can help as long as you are persistently attempting to use treatment. Have you tried wearing CPAP while you are awake and doing another activity (while not actually trying to fall asleep)? I had a terrible time with treatment in the early days, and it was recommended to me that I take my CPAP machine into the living room in the early evening and practice wearing it while watching television. This really worked for me and helped me adjust to the feeling of the mask and the air pressure. I don't know how long ago you tried using CPAP, but new machines are also very quiet. Mine sits on my nightstand, and I hear no noise at all. If you are hearing noise, maybe discussing this with the equipment provider might be helpful. Is the noise from the machine, or is it air from the mask? Masks are designed with exhalation holes to help get rid of exhaled carbon dioxide, but some are much more quiet than others. There might be a combination of things that can help you adjust to therapy. Best wishes, and please let us know how you are doing!

Hi NeatViridianBear3425. Some patients do complain of ear congestion when using CPAP, and there can be several causes. For patients who have allergies or chronic sinus issues, a steroid spray can sometimes help. For others, slight adjustments to air pressure or humidity can help. I encourage you to speak with your physician about the symptoms you are feeling and see if he or she has a recommendation based on your medical history. I personally use a nasal spray that seems to keep the problem under control. Hope this helps, and please keep us posted on your progress!

Glad you found it, BigCat89! Feel free to post any questions here on the Forum.