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Newly diagnosed and seeking advice

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PersistentPersianBlueHorse3435 +1 point · almost 7 years ago Original Poster

Hi everyone, I've just been diagnosed with sleep apnea (something I had suspected for years). I received the diagnosis with a home sleep test and they prescribed an APAP machine with no in-office sleep study. I had about 64 episodes and my oxygen level dipped into the 70s (don't know the exact number as I was just told the results and didn't get a copy. They have the APAP range set from 8-16. I've used it for the past three nights since I received the machine (Resmed AirSense 10 AutoSet and P10 for Her Nasal Pillows) with the data below:

Here is my issue: I'm exhausted. I feel almost more tired than I did before. I have all the happy faces on the machine saying that everything went well but I'm more tired than usual. I know I'm not leaking through my mouth (at least not last night) and I haven't taken anything off. Everything else has stayed the same, so the only change is using the machine. Is the machine accurately recording these events? Any suggestions?

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sleeptech +0 points · almost 7 years ago Sleep Enthusiast

It is not uncommon for people who have just started CPAP treatment to feel more tired. When you start CPAP therapy your brain is suddenly able to sleep, especially in REM, when it wasn't before. It often gets a bit overexcited and tries to make up for lost time by having a lot more of the stages of sleep it previously missed out on (again, usually REM sleep). This is called REM rebound. This can often lead to you feeling more tired than before. However, over the course of a week or so your brain should get back into a more normal sleep pattern and you should start to feel some benefit. So your situation is normal, don't worry too much. Having said that, has you case been reviewed by a doctor? And, if so, was this doctor linked to the service that sold you the machine or independent of it? Just be wary of the fact that some unscrupulous operators will throw a machine at you, take your money and run, without putting in the time and analysis to make sure that you are getting optimal treatment. Unfortunately, CPAP machines are a multi-billion dollar business these days, which attracts people who are more interested in money than health care.

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