How well do you like your CPAP?

Congratulations to both of you, @WillingGrayArmadillo4841 and @wiredgeorge. Excellent progress all around!

Does or has anyone else had this problem. I am really new to CPAP and due to my job, I "HAVE" to be able to use it so I am really trying. However, after 30 min on it, I am totally exhausted my chest hurts, I and feel like I have done a days work. Will this go away? I certainly can't work like that.

Hi @papawmedjic. Many new patients experience difficulty and increased effort when trying to exhale while using CPAP. I experienced it myself as a new patient. This is usually muscle soreness because of the increased effort to breath out against the incoming pressure. As you continue to use your treatment and your body adjusts, this usually goes away. You might try wearing your CPAP machine while awake and either reading or watching television before you go to bed for a few nights. This may help build your tolerance and help you adjust. Additionally, many newer machines have features that help relieve some of the pressure as you exhale. If your machine has this feature, your equipment provider should be able to adjust it or tell you how to make the adjustment. As a more experienced user, I am no longer even aware of the effort related to breathing out against the pressure. Hopefully, you will adjust quickly! Best wishes, and please keep us posted.

Hello, I am a new user of an auto pap. So far I have laid awake for hours everynight without being able to fall asleep. With my nasal mask on I have to sleep on my back(or get leaks) and that is not the position I am used to. In addition, although I turned the heat feature off, the air blowing at me is warm and stale causing me to panic at times. There has to be a way for me to conquer this, any help?

Hello @ConscientiousRedSalamander4496. Have you tried wearing your treatment while you are out of bed and awake while reading, watching TV, or doing some other activity you enjoy? Many patients report that this helps them adjust to the feeling of the mask and air pressure, so it is eventually easier to fall asleep with the mask on. As for sleeping on your back, it sounds like you may need a mask with a better seal/fit. Many patients, including me, wear masks and are able to sleep in other positions. I encourage you to contact your home care equipment provider and request they check your mask fit. A proper mask fitting would include you being able to lay in whatever position is comfortable for you during the fitting so the representative could check for leaks in that positions (an others). Regarding the warm air, I am unsure of what you can do aside from turning off the humidifier, filling the chamber with cold water, and/or cooling the room. Sometimes it does take time to adjust to the feeling of the air temperature and pressure. Hope this helps, and please keep us posted!

I have been using my CPAP machine since October as my sleep study discovered that I have severe sleep apnea. I was able to adjust to wearing the mask and immediately started sleeping better with only waking up once a night compared to several times before and my numbers have been really good. I've only had two problems with the first being I was getting too much air into my stomach causing severe bloating. My doctor reduce my pressure, I switched from the nasal pillow mask to just the nasal mask and it has helped some. I tried sleeping with a wedge pillow and that didn't help much. I still have bloating and I don't breath thru my mouth either. Now lately I have notice that I am back to waking up more and finding that one of my nasal passages is plugged up. I have tried to adjust the humidity and turned off the heat on the tubing thinking that maybe that was drying me out but that hasn't worked. Do you have any suggestions?

Hi @CompassionateRaspberryGiantPanda7625. Have you had your CPAP compliance checked since the mask change and pressure adjustment? If the pressure is now too low, that may be causing your awakenings. It might be worth having that checked first. As for your nasal passages, this may or may not be related to CPAP. Reducing the humidity too much can actually cause congestion because the colder air can cause dryness and swelling of the nasal passages. Less humidity will dry you out. Maybe you should consider slowly adjust your humidity level back up to a comfortable level. The heated tubing will help keep moisture out of the tube and will help maintain the humidity level of the air as it exists the machine and travels to the mask. Some patients find using saline spray or rinse before bed also helps. Thanks, and I hope these suggestions help.

I just swtiched from a nasal mask to the new Dreamwear nasal mask and my AHI numbers are up alittle bit, is this normal? Does it take your body a little while to get used to the switch? I'm sleeping ok.

Hi @CompassionateRaspberryGiantPanda7625. It is generally not uncommon for AHI to vary a bit, and a mask change can have an impact on AHI. This can be especially true if there is some mask leak as you adjust to the best way to wear the new mask. When you say your numbers are up a little bit, I think my first question would be how much are they are. If they are up from an AHI of 2 to 4, for example, I would not be too concerned. However, if your AHI has elevated from say 4 to 10, I would be concerned about mask fit or other changes that may have increased the AHI. Hope this helps, and good luck with the new mask!

No, they are just up one or two but still under 5. I was just curious. The mask fit good too. I'll jsut keep an eye on things. Thanks!

I see alotnof people that hate there cpap. I mean it's not the most comfortable thing in the world, but I was just diagnose with severe sleep apnea. I was always tired and always falling asleep. My test showed I stop breathing 37 times ina. Hour, and I snored at 50 decimals. Crazy I know. Last night was my first night with the cpap and o my God. I finally slept threw the whole night and my wife said I didn't snore. My reports from last night showed I only had 1.7 episode of apena. That is way down. I rather use the cpap and be able to stay awake and have energy then be tired all the time, so I will deal with the uncomfort of a mask and be able to sleep

Some people have a hard time adjusting to lots of things. Some people don't. Glad the therapy is working out for you and as time goes on, if you keep working at it, you will find the right combo of things (mask type/size, etc.) that will make the therapy more comfortable and work better. Good luck!

I am perplexed at the issues people have adjusting to CPAP. For me it was literally immediate (slept like a rock during my CPAP titration study). Love everything about it, been getting comfortable all-night sleep since day 1.

Hi Everyone!

Recently diagnosed with OSA, and failed with the mouth guard (it was giving me horrible jaw pain). So my doctor sent me for an overnight sleep titration study to determine CPAP settings. I slept well during the first half of the study (the non-CPAP portion) because the sleep lab was VERY comfy. I did not expect to sleep well during the CPAP part of the study, but the sleep tech gave me a Dreamwear nasal cushion mask, and I barely noticed it after the first 15 minutes. I slept like a baby, and dreamt a lot more than usual (which I suspect is a sign of better sleep- more/longer REM cycles). The only reason I was tired the next day was that they woke me up too early! I can't wait to get my machine and feel human again.

It is refreshing to hear of a positive experience as most folks are looking for solutions. You will find therapy is vastly improved as time goes by as you learn what works best for you. Good luck and sleep well!