Susan,
This is the position to which they enjoy having us. DME's are no different than a "used car salesman", and I hate to say it, but the entire medical community is getting to be the same way.

I am at the Methodist sleep lab.

Good Morning! well good evening for me ;)

Ah don't worry about it.. I get it all the time. I am known as the sleep guy on the local news. People stop me at walmart hollering Hey Doc I have a question for you! You can see some of my segments at kxii.com medical Minutes

I have heard good things about St. Francis. Susan it will get better. the first couple of months are the worst while you try to get into a rythm with your machine.

Your problem is very common. I have seen many DME companies forgetting about the patients after selling the machine. With us, the patient has the choice of where to get the machine, but based in our bad experience with some companies, we refuse to work with some of them. What we did in our center was to open a CPAP Clinic, so we do not have to depend on the DMEs. In that way we detect problems, educate the patients and help them get used to the CPAP, which , by the way, many times is not easy. See if you find a doctor dedicated primarily to seep disorders, it could be a pulmonologist, neurologist, psychiatrist, etc, but that do this as the main thing in their practice. If they have a CPAP Clinic, much better.

Maybe the neurologist is not a bad choice, they treat a lot of sleep disorders. Check in the web pages of the National Sleep Foundation and American Academy of Sleep Medicine for some references near you.

Welcome to the Sleepguide community!!

I am glad you joined and hope you find it as useful as I have. The forum contains topics dealing with sleep apnea and various treatment options and methods of treating both obstructive and central sleep apnea.

The forum is made up of patients, like me, and professionals that are trying to help find solutions to the problems faced by those that are affected by sleep apnea.

Some patients experience problems that are not addressed by their DME. Their experience with their DME, may have been little more than handing over their machine and mask and sending the patient on their way. The forum is here to help both the newbie, just starting out with therapy, and those more experienced and knowledgeable to find solutions and answers.

The professionals that participate in the forum are invaluable with their expertise and advice on different treatment options and explanations of what is happening.

We hope that you find the forum useful and will participate in the discussions and groups

I think mike or Carol are the only ones that can move a post. Let Mike know he will gladly do it. i am glad you are finding your way with Pap therapy. So many others have not. it is great to hear and see a good success story.

From a techs view i believe that there is more to successful PAP treatment than just seeing results. The fact that you have taken responsibilty for your health, and are continuing to do something about it is a success story in itself. As for the sneezing talk to you doc about a prescription allergy medicine.

YEAH sometimes you got to give em both barrels! ya know.

Yes, there are quite a few ways to get involved.

Heck ya!!

sorry, Susan. I couldn't track down that response for you that you brought to my attention.

yep, i'm fine -- no further questions ;-)

Hi Susan:
Thank you for the warm welcome.
Respectfully, Chuck

I'm going to give the cpap another try, I think...

Hi Susan,
I am new to the world of sleep disorders, only recently been diagnosed with apnea. I am being treated with CPAP. How long before I actually feel better? I know it is probably different for everyone. Just looking for a light at the end of my tunnel.

thanks Susan My Idol was John Wanye, so sometimes I get carried away (I'm glad you understand I'm Having fun)

I'm sick of the heat. I need some frigid temperatures or I'm going to melt!!! :^)

Jason

My wife is doing really well. She's due to give birth within the next few weeks.

Yes it will be our first. Due date is October 28th.

Hi Susan,
Thank you for the welcoming me. I look forward to chatting with you and everyone else.
Take Care,
Janey

Hi Susan
THANK-YOU for the invitation I will start coming back to this forum a bit more often!
I wish you well!
White Beard

I found it susan. Thanks. Looking forward to it.

Thank you so much for your reply and information. I'm working on the being positive part. I don't have a sleep specialist physician. My PCP referred me to a sleep center where techs with ZERO formal education do the testing, fitting and sleep study monitoring. Supposedly, a physician then interrupts the results. The only doctor I've ever met with is my primary care physician who said the sleep center will make the recommendation for the prescription and that he'll be the one to actually write it. I do live in a community where there are some choices but I don't want to make my PCP unhappy as I love him. Supposedly the ENT surgeon I'm seeing today is a specialist is OSA. It'll be interesting to see what he has to say.

Navagational YES Stud ??????????????????????????????

It amuses me alot. I think I have a great sense of humor.

Susan, the book is on Amazon.com.

Thanks Susan! It was really bad before I was diagnosed. I had just started a new job and kept falling asleep at work, like every few seconds, and my work was horrible. I'm a medical transcriptionist and I was leaving out whole sentences in my transcription and wasn't even aware that I fell asleep. I couldn't go anywhere either because I would fall asleep while driving. I ended up going into the restroom at work and splashing my face with water trying to wake up and just started crying because I was so frustrated and couldn't figure out why I was so tired all the time. I finally went in for a sleep study and the respiratory therapist told me that I was having an occurrence every minute. They sent me home from the sleep lab with a CPAP and I have been doing great since then. I wasn't aware that so many people had this problem though. It's kind of surprising.

I was a Fellow of the American Academy of Neuruolgy (FAAN), until I retired and became a Senior of the American Academy of Neurology (SAAN). Fellows are elected by their peers and must meet certain requirements and accomplishments incl. board certification. Seniors are no longer in the full time practice of neurology.

Thanks for your kind words and upbeat attitude.

Thanks Susan! I went to my union dentist last week, who sees lots of UFCW members, the receptionists NEVER HEARD of CPAP. My wife had several surgeries for breast cancer and the operating room nurse said her husband's snoring ruined her marriage til divorce, I told her the truth(she mentioned those bogus nose strips, give me a break...) I hope the stigma goes away and we can help others.
I am skeptical about mouth devices too, although I bought 25 shares of Resmed under $43 yesterday, I believe in the therapy and would like to invest more, fyi.

I remember my frustration after the first night, but they had this really sweet gal who said to me..."Bruce, after 30 days we won't even be having this conversation" The next night, everything changed. I have often thought how great to be a Rep, even do house calls to encourage and inform on how I position everything, but you can always be sued, so that's ridiculous, without being bonded, it's a damn shame you can't help people like that, and they, like I said, depend on markups on the supplies for their profit, which is abused, so these blogs are really vital to helping remove the stigma of "I don't need a breathing machine, for God's sake..."

hi susan i just agreed with your cleaning methods with a little bit of clarity
please read

Thank you Susan. How long have you had sleep apnea?

Hi Susan,
I just was looking for a friend named Ian White and I came across his comment about sleep apnea. So....I read some of the blogs and decided to join. I was frist diagnosed back in 1989 but, I believe I had sleep apnea as a child. I first started using a CPAP back in 1990 and had all kinds of issues with the mask. I discontinued use and was again diagnosed with extremely severe obstructive sleep apnea in 1995 by a different doctor. He sent me to a Sleep Doctor. He suggested I loose weight and not to drink alcohol in the evening. Well, I lost 50 pounds, stopped drinking all alcohol and changed my lifestyle. I have had a mouth piece, a neck brace, 4 sleep studies, 3 operations and I still have severe sleep apnea. On top of everything, I was also diagnosed with Narcolepsy.

I believe my father had sleep apnea but was never diagnosed. I believe he had a mild case of Narcolepsy also.

I am using CPAP with a nasal pillow mask, chin strap and mouth guard. I am taking 800mg of Provigil each day to stay wake. I still feel like I didn't get a full night sleep when I get up in the morning. I do wake up at night and use the bathroom. I also take of the mask in the middle of the night for one reason or another. I have PTSD, mostly related to my time in Southeast Asia. I accumulated over 5000 hours of combat flying time and would wear an oxygen mask in some situations. The mask and bottle were cumbersome and would get into the way of my working and I would a grab it and fling it off. After a while I could feel that I need oxygen and I'd find my mask and put it back on for a short while. This all happened between 1969 and 1975.
I'm on my 3rd Sleep Doctor and I'm 100% disabled.