Falling asleep

Falling asleep and falling back asleep both before and aster starting with the C-pap machine. I'm 71 and resisted using a c-for years, finally my adult children and their wives begged me to start. I could never wear a a mask and nasal pillows seem to work. Owever sometimes falling asleep is a problem. Should I take long deep breaths or short. I think I stop breathing while trying to fall asleep and this startles me. Anxiety at bedtime has been a problem from time to time in the past. I have some oral presentations, and usually I can fall asleep , and rehearsing them usually worked, such that barely begin and fall asleep. Now that doesn't seem to work as well. I'm sleeping longer at night, waking up one or twice (an hour early) instead of hourly wake ups sometimes before the nasal pillows and C-pap.

Any suggestions regarding breathing and falling asleep. Sometimes I hav been in baed awake for 15-20 min and I'll get up and check my e-mail. It relaxes me. Or seek help on the internet. That's how I found this website.

Do not try to control your breathing while using CPAP; just breath naturally however you feel like breathing. You should not have to think about your breathing at all. However you breathe, the CPAP machine will sense your breaths and adjust to match them.

Also, you should not not use a computer, smart phone, or other device with a screen during the night (unless you are very careful to protect your eyes from the blue wavelengths of light these screens emit). Exposing your eyes to blue wavelengths of light during the night will make it harder for you to fall back to sleep afterwards because blue light is interpreted by your brain as daylight. You do not want to send a false signal to your circadian rhythm that it is daytime when it is actually night because your circadian rhythm will respond to that signal by making you more wakeful and alert, which is not what you want when you are trying to fall back to sleep. When I am out of bed with insomnia during the night, I usually just read a relaxing book using only the light of a dim, red light bulb. I avoid turing on any light that might include blue wavelengths, such as normal white light bulbs.

Maybe you should mention to your sleep doctor that you are having trouble falling asleep due to anxiety and see if the doctor has any helpful suggestions for you. Some things that many people find helpful in this situation include reducing your time in bed and avoiding naps (so as to build up more sleepiness) and doing various relaxation exercises (such as meditation, progressive muscle relation, stretches or yoga, etc.).

Hello ConsiderateRoseChicken6721, you should try to breath normally, not shallow, not deep. Probaly easier said then done. I would suggest trying to wear your mask while reading or perhaps watching TV in the evening, something where you will become more accustomed to the air while not solely focusing on it. If you have trouble falling asleep, getting up out of the bed and waiting until you feel tired to return to it can help.

Great suggestions from @Sleep. I agree with trying to wear the mask while reading or watching TV. Some patients I have talked to found it helpful to move their PAP machine to another room and practice outside the bedroom while doing something else. This may help reduce the anxiety at bedtime. Best wishes, and please keep us posted!

FWIW: Some folks wearing a full face mask such as the one I use can't wear glasses with the mask. This makes reading or watching TV problematic. I tried watching TV once with the glasses perched outside the down piece of the mask and pretty much found it was a bust... the glasses were farther from my eyes than they should be and trying to see was uncomfortable.

Good point for Full Face Mask Users Wiredgeorge. Most full face masks do make it difficult to wear glasses. The Amara View from Respironics, glasses are able to be worn with it.

ResMed also has the AirFit F10, which does not have a forehead pad. This may make it easier to wear glasses while wearing the mask as well.

The masks suggested are probably good suggestions for someone wishing to watch TV with the mask on. I never watch TV in bed; when I go to bed, I do one puzzle from the paper then lights out and fall asleep before my 5 minute ramp time is up. I have to do a puzzle to get myself unwound I guess. Thanks!