I've used C-Pap for since 1995. My "Journey" to getting C-Pap was a 5 year ordeal. It started with just being constantly tired. Then I had a depressive episode in the fall of 1991. It lasted until I couldn't get out of bed one day the next June. I had to go on andidepressants. That made me feel better, but I knew that there was something still wrong. My best friend who was already using C-Pap, suggested that I get a sleep study and suggested his Doctor. I went for my first sleep study in 1993. He told me that I should be on C-Pap, but that my blood oxygen level had only fallen to 87% instead of 85%. (Thanks to a lifetime of not smoking and just damn good lung power) The GD insurance company wouldn't cover a C-Pap machine. Over the next two years I was tried on medication (Didn't really work) and a dental device to hold my lower jaw out and down. (My jaw ached and my teeth ached). None of that really did any good.
Finally in May of 1995, I had a sleep study that my blood oxygen level dropped to 85% and I qualified for a C-Pap machine. I went in for another sleep study a month later where I was tried on C-Pap. When I walked out of that lab the next morning, I felt like a cloud had been lifted that had hanged over me for years. Everything looked so sharp and clear, it's hard to discribe.
Over the next few months, I went through the usual adjustment period. I used the ramp function at first. I would wake up and find the mask off and I didn't remember how it got taken off. All the usual stuff of having to adjust to something strapped on to my face and head. Over time, I made the adjustment and I very quickly found out that this must have been the problem all along. My depression quickly went away for good. I threw away the pills and I haven't been depressed since. My heart palpatations disappeared, my hearburn and reflux improved and I didn't fight to stay awake at work every afternoon anymore. C-Pap was a godsend. I can't imagine being without it now. If for some reason I can't use it,(power outage) I feel like crap the next day.
I know that some people have a real hard time adjusting to it, but trust me, you can do it. The benifits are truely amazing. The damage that you are doing to your body, both what you can feel and a lot more that you can't by not doing anything about sleep apnea is life shorening. Getting on C-Pap may make certain other problems that you may have that you think have no relation to sleep apnea, suddenly go away. It is truely amazing the health benifits by getting on C-Pap and improving your health and longevity.
One more thing. I believe that more people need to use a chin strap than are given one. If you have a very dry mouth, or wake up to the sound of rushing air, then ask for a chin strap. It really does make a big difference.
Good luck.
Jeff D.