SleepyMommy703

Are you using it only while trying to sleep? Have you tried wearing it and using it while just chilling out and watching tv during the day? That's how I got used to it at first.

The very first time I used a mask was with a full face mask and I found it quite overwhelming and anxiety inducing and couldn't sleep the entire time. I went to a nasal mask and it was quite a different experience. So if time doesn't allow you to adjust I'd consider trying a new mask. Hang in there! I have had some bumps in the road but it's been worth sticking through it.

Do you have it on a set pressure or auto? I'm having trouble with my Autosense machine now as I'm finding with the auto it goes much higher than I actually need and it's causing me to wake and to have side effects like lots of leakage, dry mouth, etc. I also think it ramps up faster than it should when I set the ramp time. I'm going to contact my medical equipment provider and see what they say.

I found the easiest thing for me to do was to put my hair up in a clip and it's placed in a way that between that and the chin strap it keeps the headgear in place. That doesn't work great if you like to sleep on your back though so I improvise if I want to sleep on my back and do a kind of high messy bun with a pony tail holder that basically does the same thing.

I have a machine that does auto sensing or you can set the rate, but I have to say I don't love it on auto because it seems to go higher than I actually need and then causes side effects. We are trying to figure out a good set pressure for me as I do much better on lower, but there are times when it's not quite enough (colds, congestion or sleeping on my back effect things). I'd suggest going for something where you can change between auto and set if you find it works better for you one way or the other.

Successful treatment of sleep apnea is generally considered an AHI under 5 so at 12 AHIs that would not be considered effective treatment. Are you getting a good fit with the other mask, or have leaks showing up? You may be able to tweak things and get that mask to fit better, but I would not settle for an AHI of 12. That's my average during non REM sleep without CPAP and it effects me significantly.

I was in a similar boat and still feeling tired after 11 months on the machine and I gave up on it for a couple years because I was getting chronic sinus infections in addition to not really feeling any better. I went back on it this past summer and after a few months of still feeling really tired they did do another study. And my insurance did cover it so I'm not sure that your doctor is correct about that. First was an at home study to see if the machine was really working as well as it said it was. That picked up a number of times I was working too hard to breath so they ordered an in hospital overnight study with my CPAP. They determined my pressure was set higher than needed and I do feel a little better now that it was adjusted. Mostly less side effects, but all in all I'm managing better than I was. I also notice that I really have to use it for a minimum of 8 hours to feel decent. I still have some days that I'm horribly tired for no reason and so this last visit my sleep doctor prescribed Nuvigil to help me be more alert during the day. I haven't tried it yet, but it was a last resort after tweaking things for about a year.

We did do a thorough physical, blood work, etc. prior as well so I'd talk to your doctor and see what he/she suggests.

To judge if CPAP is working you need to look at your AHI. If it's below 5 it's generally considered to be working. As for how you are feeling that may take significant time or may not really improve. It can take quite a while for your body to get used to sleeping well with the CPAP. I did feel more tired for a bit, but I had significant daytime sleepiness already.

Agreed, it's not working. Are you working with a doctor or adjusting this yourself? Did you do a titration study? If not, I'd definitely look into it.

I found the nasal mask much more tolerable than the full face, but had to get used to it still. I found putting it on periodically when I was just sitting and watching tv to help me get used to it. For the dry throat are you using the humidifier? If not I would make sure you do. My mouth dried out because my chin was dropping so a chin strap helped. I'd give that a try but that was harder to get used to than the mask so be prepared it may take some time.

This happened to me twice with my Resmed 9. The first was my very first machine so I didn't know any better. But after a month of struggling with it I took it in to the tech at my sleep doctors and they checked it out and determined it was faulty and gave me another. The second machine worked for almost a year and then I had this sudden blast of air coming from it so intense it choked me and I couldn't breath. Same thing as you where if I turned it on and off it got better but that only worked for a couple of days. I took it in and they checked the pressure and when they checked it didn't happen, but the pressures were still off. They gave me a new machine and said it wasn't worth the time and effort of sending the old one back to Resmed to be repaired.

Definitely get in touch with your supply company and let them know it's malfunctioning.