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Sleeping while on airplanes
I am worried about my up coming cruise to Alaska and having to fly on airplanes without my CPAP nasal mask for 12+ hours at a time. I asked my sleep apnea Dr about it and he said I wouldn’t "die" without using them and that I would just have to snore. But I snore so LOUD, loud enough that my "husband of 14 years", gets tired of saying, "Debbie you are snoring put on your mask". And I say ok, roll over and go right back to sleep and continue to snore, even louder now. So he actually leaves our bed and ends up in the guest bedroom at the other end of the hall. Where he can still hear me snoring but just not nearly as loud!
There are many of times I have fallen asleep in the car when we would be with friends and family. I would always get a nudge in my side followed by somebody telling me to wake-up because I am " SNORING". When I hear someone on a plane or at the airport passed out snoring, I ask my husband if I snore just as loud as him or her. He says, "no, your 50 time worse than they are. So I can’t really enjoy our flights, I am always trying staying awake and not allow myself to dose off. But it is really hard to stay awake when you are on a "1 am" overnight red-eye flight for 14 + hours. The crew always makes the cabin really dark on the overnight flight, so everyone is normally sleeping and you can hear just a few "quiet" snores.
But on this cruise we will be out sightseeing all day and they flying home that same evening. So it will end up being a 36-hour day and there is no way I can stay awake all that time.
Any suggestion on traveling, can't afford 1st class so we would be considered economy class, on long flights without being able to use my CPAP mask and machine w/ humidifier, would be greatly appreciated. If you would like to contact me directly my email is hintonfamily@q.com yes after the @ it is just the letter Q ( lower case) and .com
Views: 2683
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mary Z on
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Yeah, I agree with 99, can you afford to invest in one of the battery packs specifically for the machines? If you fly often it might be a good investment. I flew from Hawaii to Norfolk VIrginia, most of the trip during the night and I just took some benadryl, didn't use my CPAP and slept, but I snore pretty softly. I empathsize with you, but for a 36 hour trip where you need to sleep at night I definitely think you need to use your CPAP.
Good Luck,
Mary Z.
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Permalink Reply by Dave D. on
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There are some small battery powered units available.. Their pressures are limited, but if you are at low to moderate pressures, they may fit the bill. They can be used for camping and anywhere else AC power is not readily available. Another option is to get an oral mandibular device made to use on these trips. I wouldn't use it regularly instead of a well titrated system, unless I have been studied with it in place (at least a portable monitor), but they can also be "good in a pinch".
Dave
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Permalink Reply by Mary Noth on
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I empathize with the loud snoring problems. It runs in my family on both sides. My maternal grandmother said she and my grandfather always slept apart because of his snoring. That was before sleep apnea was recognized and he still managed to live to a ripe 94 with a 'mind like a steel trap.'
My husband of 40 years gets cases of 200 pairs of construction-strength earplugs which are advertised to reduce sound by 29 decibels. While it is difficult to have midnight conversations since he can't hear me, he is able to stay in our bed.
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Maybe one of those chin straps or other things you see on line and in the drugstore advertised to stop snoring would work for one night.
Maybe one of the mouth guards athletes use? How many days do you have to experiment? There's an old wives tale that putting a broom under the bed stops snoring. LOL. Maybe try that at home (nothing ventured nothing gained, maybe the power of suggestion), if it worked put a wisk broom under your seat on the airplane. I have a friend whose snoring would wake the dead- she used breathe right strips, but I'm afraid they didn't help much. I know you're not supposed to wear the mask without the machine, but is there a way to rig the mask so it would be safe to wear for one night? Would that stop or at least muffle the snoring. I still think the best idea is the battery pack. Did you google "stop snoring"? No telling what you might find. I wonder if a lidocaine spray would work.... You would need a script from a doc. This is getting outlandish (as I'm sure a lot of my brainstorming is), but wear a fancy gag.
Mary Z.
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Permalink Reply by Tim on
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A li-ion battery to power your CPAP is the elegant, although not inexpensive, answer. There is no elegant way to use a humidifier.
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Permalink Reply by Smitty on
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Debbie, I just flew a 3 hour non-stop flight home a few days ago. I took one Advil PM, put my I-Pod and earplugs in, tossed a neck ring on, we took off and the next thing I was awoken by the flight attendant to bring my seat forward to land! I looked at my husband next to me and asked if he got as good a sleep as I did? He said, "OMG, not a wink...how could I with that loud snoring--you better duck your head and don't look at anyone around you when walk off the plane". I just about laughed hysterically. I just told him he and everyone else should get some noise reducing headphones and drown out the noise too. It worked great for me. Don't worry about it. Sleep. Snore. Put some earphones on and enjoy your trip.
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Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on
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Tell them that you have apnea. If they complain tell them to kiss it.
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Permalink Reply by Steph Serrano on
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I think you shouldn't worry too much. A lot of people are snoring and there are ways to live with this problem. The use of a CPAP mask is probably the best solution. You can also ask the person sitting next to you in the plane to wake you up if your snoring is too loud. If you can't take the CPAP with you, a cheap chin strap could do the job, too. I would just get a few cheap ones and test them at home. They're not working for everybody but it's definitely worth a try.
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