barbz

I am having problems with deep sleep. Years ago I took Ambien for a whole year with no problems...then it started. My son never told me I was sleep walking and making phone calls. He had always heard that a sleepwalker should not be woken up. I wish he at least told me the next day. It was the person I made a not so nice call to that made me realize something was happening I was not aware of!

Joe, I add my welcome. Sleep apnea is quite a journey. Sharing ideas, supporting each other is what makes this journey possible.

Member 116157...wish I knew the answer for you. Not sure if this is ok to say here, but you may be able to get a used one from SecondWind. Not sure if your script has to say BIPAP. I was lucky in that my doctor was open to my trying it. Could not get it through insurance as I mentioned in first post. Paying for it was hard, but worth it!

Wish you luck. We are the ones who are most aware of how our bodies are reacting to our treatment and I wish our input held more weight!

I just use the pad part of a bandaid...cutting most of the tape part off, leaving just enough to hold the pad in place on my nose. I also put a small piece of one inch wide tape (1/4 inch long) on top of that. My nose may be a bit red when I wake up, but that disappears shortly after I wash my face. No more sores...been there and do not want that!

Just started getting centrals. I had a silent stroke sometime in recent history. It was in the Pons area which is the part of the brain that transmits ‘orders’ from the brain to the body. (brainstem) I asked my ENT-sleep doc if I could try a BIPAP. Only been using it for about two weeks...big difference felt. BUT...I have been reading that it still is not the best machine to treat centrals. Cannot afford to get the AVS (?) which I have read is the correct machine.

My DME said that my centrals and apnea levels were not high enough to warrant my insurance getting and paying for it! In my Dec 2014 testing I had 21 obstructive events in a split study (7 OA events, 4 centrals and 10 HI). I also had 38 RERAS not meeting the criteria of other events ...my nightly sleep results show hypopneas and non-responding events or flow limitations (depending on which software is used) BIPAP does not mark centrals.

Theresa, I spoke too soon...last night was a disaster! Think it was the coffee at 2pm. I have to stop caffeine at noon! I have your email and will keep the books about dreams in mind, thanks. Right now I just want to enjoy them.

True, my centrals were not as many as some, but also...my sleep study was a split one. It seems that they occur mainly in the beginning of my sleep.

I have had my BIPAP only a few days and almost afraid to mention the positive results...I do not want to jinx myself! So far, I am very aware of my breath hesitating...whether it is a full central or not...and the BIPAP kicking in. This has been the hardest part to get used to. Otherwise, I find myself adapting to the BIPAP fairly easily.

DREAMS: I can say that I am truly experiencing dreams for the first time in years. Yes, the say we all dream, we just do not remember them! Nope!!! These are real dreams, with a storyline...an actual plot! It is amazing. It has happened all three nights so far. No complaints...that may come later if a nightmare sticks its head into my head! 😝

What is sad, is that I had to ask for this unit ...also, my DME felt my sleep study did not warrant a BIPAP. I had to borrow fron Peter to pay Paul to do it. Down the road, a nurse practitioner will be visiting from Humana. I will show her my data (both Sleepyhead and SmartLink) and see if she can help with that. I will have actual proof.

Any survival hints, things to be aware of are most welcome. I have to use a FFM and mine is the Hans Rudolph. I have a FP 431 as backup. My sinuses have had the only complaints so far, but will try various tricks regarding this. They are such sensitive individuals 😜😳😔 !!!

I ended up going with a standard BIPAP. Good questions here, lots of thinking and talking with local hose head with years of experience. Since I do my own monitoring, I went with the DeVilbiss BIPAP. I have used them before. It has always been my backup unit. I have the official software as well as Sleepyhead for reviewing.

My present doc, an ENT+ sleep certified, actually thanked me for being active in my care. He knows that I know how. I always let him know what I am doing and the results afterward. Was just so happy to find a doc who acknowledged the extent my sinuses affected my CPAP!

Thanks for responding...Barb

My last sleep study showed centrals for the first time. My script is for BIPAP only. I also had RERAs along with my forever present hypopneas. Getting a backup capable unit was my idea.

Miss the old ASAA forum also. Hope that this one keeps growing as that will make it better in many ways. Guess it is up to us ‘pioneers’ here to get the word out. One other forum has changed from being informative to very cliquey. You can still get good information, but the other input really turns me off.