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Permalink Reply by Marie Davis on August 19, 2009 at 11:45pm

There was a great but sad posting on this site from a woman who had lost her husband with OSA. You need to find it and have him read it, it may motivate him to care more about his therapy. I have known couples that got divorced because of non-treated OSA and snoring. It is serious and you have ever right to be concerned. best of luck to you and my prayers for change will be with you.

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Permalink Reply by bonesigh on August 20, 2009 at 11:51am

Thank you Marie. Sometimes I leave a Sleepguide page open with an interesting article so when he goes to the computer he just might be tempted to read it. Not sure if he ever reads them. It's the most subtle hint I can throw at him. Maybe I should "accidentally" leave that video playing of the guy who's like a fish out of water! Our marriage is strong but you never know what life has in store for you.

Marie Davis said:

There was a great but sad posting on this site from a woman who had lost her husband with OSA. You need to find it and have him read it, it may motivate him to care more about his therapy. I have known couples that got divorced because of non-treated OSA and snoring. It is serious and you have ever right to be concerned. best of luck to you and my prayers for change will be with you.

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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on August 20, 2009 at 1:37pm

Having sold insurance back in the day, I'd guess that it would be a problem. However, many companies may, with certain illnesses, handle it like the suicide clause, i.e., if you die within 2 years of the policy going into effect, it doesn't pay. Not sure about apnea--never had a client with it. But it's worth a try. You might want to call the Insurance Commissioner (state office) and see what they say. They're the gatekeepers for the insurance industry. Worth checking out.

Susan McCord

bonesigh said:

I think the stuffy nose is due to the change in mask. I had 2 days on that mask and I thought "Wow this is great, I actually feel a little better". I usually wear a Mirage Quattro full face mask due to mouth breathing. I think I have, after 2 years of this, trained my brain to keep my mouth shut. Now if I could only keep it shut when someone is talking to me, I'm always interrupting because I'll forget what I wanted to say if I wait. LOL (Apnea related I'm sure).

So things were going fine with the nose only mask and then...the plugged nose. I have not had problems for some time now because of using Flonase nose spray and using a Netti pot each night, well, most nights anyway. My guess is my nose is not used to having ALL that air in a jet stream up the nose. I have switched back to the full face but, now it's bothering me because the other one was soooo comfortable! I'd like to use the nose only mask but how can I get used to the mask when my nose plugs up and I'm forced to open my mouth. I don't know, sometimes it's so hard. I saw light at the end of the tunnel and now I'm in the dark again.

I've always used my humidifier and it was kind of funny, but not, on my first night with the nasal mask when I turned over in the wee hours of the morning I got a rude awakening with an unintended nasal rinse! Yuck! I'd never had a problem with condensation before. I made a hose snuggy for the foot long tube attached to this mask and solved that problem.

About camping, your comment about the storm is a nice way to think about it. Thank goodness it's over and it was only for one night! I hope you are able to get back to camping and canoeing soon Susan. Good luck.

PS...Wallace and J. Thanks for the concern. I don't think he wants to understand just how much danger he puts himself in. I need to talk to him about life insurance. Hmmm, I wonder if having OSA makes it harder to obtain life insurance.

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Permalink Reply by Christine C on August 20, 2009 at 2:11pm

I too have the whole stuffy nose issue. I was using the Mirage Quattro. They switched me to another Mirage type mask, but I had leaks with that one which caused really bad dryness of my eyes. Last night was my first night with the new one and I dislike it as much as the Quattro. I am hoping that my medicare will approve me for the Full Life full face mask. It doesn't have that forehead piece that I really don't like because it obstructs my view when I am trying to watch television.
I do have a question for the "veteran" CPAP users. When you first started using you machine did you have to use the ramp, if so how often did you have to push the button and how long before you were able to use full pressure. I do have one other question that relates more to this thread than all the stuff that I just typed. When I first put my mask on and turn the machine on the air that blows is very cool. Sometime in the middle of the night I wake up and the air that is blowing feels very stuffy. Anyone else have that problem? Is it just me or can I do something to remedy it?

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Permalink Reply by Brian Katzung on August 20, 2009 at 2:27pm

susan mccord said:

I don't know how much those batteries cost, but I bet someone on here does. Mike, probably, or Rock or one of the other professionals--they're a wealth of information just sitting around waiting to be asked!! My therapist is on CPAP, has been for years, and he uses a boat battery when he's out and about like that!!! But there are special ones just for our equipment--that's what I'm going to get as soon as I feel ready to go out camping/canoeing again which is one of my most favorite things to do!! Not ready yet though. I just remembered, Mike has some connection with an apnea supply company--he could probably point you in the right direction. Again, just a thought. I've seen them on the internet in my apnea travels in cyberspace--don't remember seeing $$ though. You might check there too and see what you find. There are different kinds...

Susan McCord :-)

I've seen Lithium Ion ones in the range of $250-$450. These seem to be about 3-5 pounds, can be pretty well discharged, and then recharged in a reasonable amount of time (like six hours, easily before the next night's use).

I've seen Marine Cycle (not starter) batteries for around $120, but they tend to take a lot longer to charge (I've seen 16-20 hours), and weigh 20-35 pounds. You definitely want a deep cycle battery if you go this route, as deeply discharging a starter-type batter will kill them pretty fast. This type is probably better suited for home power backup than camping.

Some models won't work directly on DC (direct current), and require a DC-to-AC converter called a power inverter. This is not as energy efficient and will require a more capable battery for a given amount of time.

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Permalink Reply by Mack D Jones, MD, SAAN on August 20, 2009 at 2:53pm

A video of your husband sleeping without his mask could do the trick. I know two nurses who's husbands refused to take OSA seriously and wouldn't see a sleep doc. They both video recorded their husbands repeated apneas and showed them the recording the next morning. It got their attention. Both saw their sleep docs posthaste and are now using their PAP machines faithfully. Nothing like a video to get up close and personal. I that doesn't work, I one more trick that might help, but its a last resort. I'll get back to you on that one.

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Permalink Reply by Tanina Agosto on August 22, 2009 at 10:53am

I completely understand your concern. I have a very dear friend who is extremely stubborn about taking his CPAP with him on business trips. He is engaged to one of my best friends and is a father of 2 lovely daughters. His fiancee and myslef have finally convinced him to consider oral appliance therapy to use instead of his machine when he's out of town. He will be coming into my office soon for impressions to start treatment. The oral appliances require no batteries and are small enough to a zip-lock bag and go. Speak to your husband's sleep physician and see if he/she can refer you to a local dentist that can provide this service. My office has a number of patients that are very happy with the easy of the use of the oral appliances.

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