"please keep me updated about oximeters "
Sleep Apnea Forum Bringing Power to the Patient
New? Free Sign Up
Then check our Welcome Center to a Community Caring about Sleep Apnea diagnosis and Sleep Apnea treatment:
CPAP machines, Sleep Apnea surgery and dental appliances.
CPAP Supplies
Latest Activity
Welcome to the Sleepguide Community!
Hi! Ready to Rock This Forum?
Thank you for visiting the SleepGuide discussion forum. We are committed to allowing freedom of expression for our members, and that includes maintaining a safe space for people with opposing views to express themselves. We get posts from patients and pros all over the country and even the globe, so needless to say, people come with different viewpoints on Sleep Apnea. We see this diversity and variety as a real strength-- dialogue and debate are an integral part of the educational process, as well as an important tool in exploring different sides of complex issues.
SleepGuide Code of Conduct
Okay, I know we said we want you to have the freedom to express yourselves. And we do. But a few rules never hurt, right?
• Be nice! No flaming. Many posters come here for information, not to be called names.
• Please respect the different backgrounds and education of posters—especially when it comes to diverse perspectives on Sleep Apnea from patients and pros alike.
• No one needs to hear you correct them on proper grammar and spelling. Let’s talk Sleep Apnea, not the difference between affect and effect.
• Wanna talk about religion and race? Well, we don’t. We wanna talk about Sleep Apnea.
• Don’t gang up with other posters against one person. It’s not nice!
• Did I mention you should…talk about Sleep Apnea? Cool! Now get to it and have fun!
Thank you for visiting the SleepGuide discussion forum. We are committed to allowing freedom of expression for our members, and that includes maintaining a safe space for people with opposing views to express themselves. We get posts from patients and pros all over the country and even the globe, so needless to say, people come with different viewpoints on Sleep Apnea. We see this diversity and variety as a real strength-- dialogue and debate are an integral part of the educational process, as well as an important tool in exploring different sides of complex issues.
SleepGuide Code of Conduct
Okay, I know we said we want you to have the freedom to express yourselves. And we do. But a few rules never hurt, right?
• Be nice! No flaming. Many posters come here for information, not to be called names.
• Please respect the different backgrounds and education of posters—especially when it comes to diverse perspectives on Sleep Apnea from patients and pros alike.
• No one needs to hear you correct them on proper grammar and spelling. Let’s talk Sleep Apnea, not the difference between affect and effect.
• Wanna talk about religion and race? Well, we don’t. We wanna talk about Sleep Apnea.
• Don’t gang up with other posters against one person. It’s not nice!
• Did I mention you should…talk about Sleep Apnea? Cool! Now get to it and have fun!
Views: 1804
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Mac Mastroni on
-
HI..I'm Mac and am in Wichita Falls, TX. I was Dx with OSA a little over a year ago. Had no idea I had it until I was having my military retirement physical. Best thing I ever did was yawn during the exam and the doc started asking me questions. Well...2 months and a sleep study later I had a brand new CPAP. I've had a very difficult time adapting to the mask. Started off with a nasal pillow mask and it was too difficult to exhale. I felt like I was suffocating. 5-6 masks later I settled on one that seems to do the trick. I average about 4-5 hours of sleep a night. I've only been able to wear the mask the whole night maybe 7-8 times since I've had it. Had some bronchitis and pneumonia a couple of months back and couldn't use the mask for about 2 weeks and had to start all over again. I had a little bit of luck recently but have now figured out that the reason I seem to rip it off is because my nose gets cold...like frozen cold!! I've played with the humidifier but the only thing that seems to work is to bring the ambient temperature of the room to about 76 degrees. That's not an option because no one else can sleep when it's that warm in the house. Today I bought a wrap thing for the hose...kinda like insulating pipes I guess. So we'll see what happens next. My research as to what other options are available for my poor frozen nose is what led me to this site.
Mac
-
-
RL, if you encounter that many centrals due to CPAP, have you enquired WHY the don't try you on the Resmed Adapt SV enhanced device? It was developed specificly for central apneas and Cheyne-Stokes syndrome.
-
Permalink Reply by RL on
-
Thanks Judy,
Your note prompted me to reread my original post and my two sleep study reports. It is a bit odd, and in my initial PCP consult after the sleep studies, we both agreed the central apnea aspect was "weird". Of course at that time, my knowledge and understanding of all this was even more limited than it is now. The recommendations of the sleep doc indicated that I should not have the C Flex nor EPR because they could cause the central apneas to be worse. Then, it was additionally noted that "abnormal overnight oximerty is evidenced by either the presence of a saw tooth appearance or deep desaturations, then I would recommend a return to the sleep lab for ASV to manage both the obstructive and central component". I don't know how experienced my PCP is with sleep apnea, but she wrote the CPAP Rx and then referred me to a pulmonologist. When I saw the pulmo. mid January, he read the report, not the graphs though, as far as I could tell, and simply said I should come back in three months, and how I felt was as important as what graphs said.
The only reason I know about different types of machines and what they do is because of my own research here and elsewhere on the web. I expect at this point that I will need the ASV as I believe I am still having significant central apneas, at least some nights. Looks like they may require me to go back to sleep center for titration of that. I plan to get 2nd appt. with pulmo asap, and will be seeing PCP soon to discuss also. The pulmo said I do not have the Cheyne-Stokes, and the central is "idiopathic" - no known cause. I'm just hanging in there trying to get this sorted out so I can start feeling better. My current frustration is that the CPAP they gave me may not even be able to provide the data to document the central apneas, so it is kind of wasted time in getting this corrected despite my 100% compliance.
Judy said:RL, if you encounter that many centrals due to CPAP, have you enquired WHY the don't try you on the Resmed Adapt SV enhanced device? It was developed specificly for central apneas and Cheyne-Stokes syndrome.
-
-
Well, that is the problem w/these d*mn prima donna sleep specialists who send their dictation and recommendations to the referring doctor instead of consulting directly w/the patient!!!
In fairness to both doctors tho, many insurances require that one "fail" CPAP before they will pay for the more expensive devices such as bi-levels and STs, SVs, etc.
So - you've been 100% compliant and you are still NOT feeling all that much better. Time to return to a sleep lab. You might want to consider another sleep lab if your insurance allows. This time "shop" the sleep labs first. Are they accredited, do their rooms and beds look clean and comfortable, do they have a sleep specialist on staff who consults directly w/the patient, are their sleep techs all RPSGTs or are some sleep tech trainees allowed to conduct the PSGs on their own, are the studies scored by an RPSGT, are they experienced w/multiple sleep disorders including CSA, UARS, PLMs, etc.? Sleep is still just a sub-specialty. What is the specialty of their sleep doctor?
You might even want to check w/your insurance what local DME providers they are contracted w/if you aren't happy w/your current provider. And by all means "shop" your various provider options before committing to one if you do decide you might want to switch. That also gives you the opportunity to see which brand and model they prefer to provide, how comfortable you feel w/the staff and how lenient their mask exchange policy is AND whether they will provide you w/a fully data capable device and by that make sure they understand that you mean EFFICACY data; i.e. your Leak, Pressure, AHI and AI. Some are dumber than a rock, some like to play dumb and some are just plain "less than truthful" so you want them to know that you know what the Efficacy data entails and that you won't accept any thing less than fully data capable.
Good luck!
-
-
If finances aren't a problem by all means go thru the neuropsych testing. If nothing else it is an interesting experience! I found it quite fascinating once I got past the d*mn MMPI 2. THAT was a tiring DRAG! Its a wonder I WASN'T bonkers after complete it. But the rest of the testing was really quite fascinating. Especially if you get the cut up comic strips to put back together in "proper" order. *wicked grin*
I wouldn't mind going thru neuropsych testing again at all - if there was just a way to shorten the d*mn MMPI 2. *sigh* If I remember right they did let me take a break during the MMPI 2. I sure needed it, I was beginning to feel "brain-dead"! If you do do the MMPI 2, don't try to think too hard, just respond w/the first response that comes to mind.
Laura said:Hello, I'm Laura. I am an elementary school music teacher in TN with fibromyalgia, severe allergies, asthma and a past brain injury when I was 17. I decided to seek new testing as a sort of progress report on possible new symptoms of my brain injury and went to a neurologist. I took a sleep questionnaire and failed it, so I had a sleep study and scored a REM AHI of 45. I am hopeful that the CPAP machine will have a positivie impact on my life. I still plan to go through with all the testing used to sort out what symptoms such as short-term memory loss might be brain injury related, foggy fibromyalgia brain, or apnea related. I have been told that the neuropsych testing may be able to sort that out to some degree.
I have my titration sleep test Tuesday night. Wish me luck!
Anyone have any advice or thoughts on my situation?
-
-
Hi my name is John and I live in Belford, NJ. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea last spring. I have been using a cpap machine since then although I can be inconsistent with it. I use a full face mask as I suffer from alergies and tend to be a mouth breather when my nose gets stuffy. My pressure is set at 14. I wound up getting shingles on my face in July and was unable to wear it for the whole month. Since then I have struggled to get back in the habit. I'm really trying now but find that my skin isn't reacting well. Not sure if it's winter and the heat. On average I'm only able to sleep with it on for 4-5 hours. I'm excited to have found this site as I think it will help to share info and receive advise from others who suffer from this issue.
-
Permalink Reply by Mary Z on
-
John, this might be a case where the RemZzzs liners might work. You can go to their web site- they used to offer free samples (you pay P&H) or you can take a look at the product and try to make one yourself out of an old soft t-shirt or something. The idea is that there will be a barrier between your face and the mask material.
Good luck
Maryy Z.
John McAllister said:I wound up getting shingles on my face in July and was unable to wear it for the whole month. Since then I have struggled to get back in the habit. I'm really trying now but find that my skin isn't reacting well. Not sure if it's winter and the heat. On average I'm only able to sleep with it on for 4-5 hours.
-
Permalink Reply by jim allAn on
-
I am 71 years old and have had a cpap or bipap forover 10 years. I have a respronics unit now that I got through the VA. A little more than a year ago I switched my care from PA to NY because of the rising cost of gasoline. Since then my health has gone downhill. My doctor refused to believe I have high blood pressure regardless of the evidence I provided that proved otherwise. When I told them to many times they told me to stop taking bp the four times a day readings suggested by the world health organization. I demanded a doctor from another facility altogether and got treatment based on my readings and the readings of many pros. But I have been over a year trying to get filters for the cpap machine. Now it is broke and doesn't cycle as it should. Probably due to being plugged up with dust. I live on a dirt and stone road so you can imagine the dust I have to cope with.
-
-
Jim, you can buy the filters online out of pocket. We have sandy soil, multiple hairy dogs and cats and the furnace ducts tho cleaned since are still pretty full of dust, etc. from 20 years of a wood-burning furnace add-on. I check and change my filters once a month whether they look like they need it or not.
-
-
I will bet you can, but that would permit the VA to save money by refusing the vets entightlement to supplies without the need to go through proper channels. They used to provide sterile water for the humidifiers. They told us beforehand that he water would be disconinued. But this supplies issue they have told me for a year that they will get some sent out. I think they just don't have approval from higher up to stop providing supplies.
I used to have a different machine which had filters about three times the size of the one I have now. Like you I tried changing the filter every two weeks and the pollen filter every month because it was dirty. The present machine doesn't allow for a pollen filter. I got one from a hospital and as usual it was dirty after a month. Now I have to breath that dirt and the newer machines have a much smaller filter. I am afraid it wont last 24 hours because now the same amount of dirt will be in a much smaller area. If I waited a month to change that filter there would be damage to the machine as there is now.
Oh, a pollen filter is 2 inches around and goes in-line AFTER the machine before the humidifier. The only way to use one now is to put it in the air line after the humidifier where it still gets dirty.
The problems I have now don't happen in PA. The quality of care vets get in NY state stinks.
© 2025 Created by The SleepGuide Crew.
Powered by
