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CPAP use - on vacation survey
I just recently went on vacation with 18 other people. Four of us are diagnosed with Sleep
Apnea. I decided to try and talk to everyone about their machines and compliance. Three of us use our machines regularly and one has put it in the closet. No one else knew anything about the settings on the machine or had any interest in seeing/tracking their own data. Everyone, except the woman who is not using hers brought their machine on vacation. I did not get to talk to the woman not using hers any more about why. Her roommate told me she was not using it, but before I could ask her why, she got a message that her 57 year old brother had died in his sleep and she went home. I don't know why her brother died, or if he had OSA.
Views: 1555
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Gordon Osmond on
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When I travel my machine travels with me.So now I travel not at all. Even an afternoon nap is dangerous.
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Permalink Reply by Kath Hope www.hope2Sleep.co.uk on
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I always take my CPAP as extra hand luggage and have never had problems. It stays on my shoulder as close as my handbag does. The only time I'm separated from it is when it goes through the xray machine. I have a medical tag attached to it to help with any confusion (this also lets other passengers know why I look like I've more hand luggage than them lol).
I've never asked for permission before I go to the airport, but you must ask for permission before the flight if you intend to use the CPAP onboard.
99 said:i was thinking of the carousel at the airports and our cpap
does the law state that it must go on the carousel if it is hand held luggage and does not count as luggage
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Permalink Reply by Larry Bruck on
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I bring my CPAP machine on vacation with me. I also have a brief encounter with airport security, but it is always better to have it with me.
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Permalink Reply by Mary Z on
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Good for you Chris. A lot of us are daunted by the problem of power while camping, but campers usually figure something out. How long did the Marine battery last for you and how complicated is it to hook up?
Mary Z.
Chris Larsson said:I just got my cpap in feb. so don't have a lot of experience with it yet but I did go camping with it twice this summer, the second time for a week and a half, and it worked just fine. Slept really well. I brought along a marine battery to power it. I plan on bringing it on all vacations in the future.
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new at this too have been on it for only about 6 weeks/does it get better sleeping with it on? I also have/had a Brain injury hence the name fallman +mutiple fractures, has been a few years since the accident fell in a oil refinery 54 ft. also lost my job then too, In Kansas if unable to go back to old job and preform it they can fire you in this state/lost a very good job. I still have extreme headaches too/usually cannot keep my mask on all night/usually don't go to sleep tll around 3A.M. and up by 7-8 in the mornings too.
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Dr. - Please tell more about the oral device. I have mild sleep apnea.
David Starobin said:Thanks, Doctor. Never thought of that use for an oral appiance. I recently traveled and was afraid to take a nap on the plane for fear of making a racket and disturbing others. I never got an oral appliance because I though it's be in leiu of a machine. Store-bought or Dentist fitted . . . . Which is best?
dr. martin bassiur said:If you have severe apnea it is best to bring your CPAP along - however, if there are circumstances that will not allow CPAP an oral appliance may be helpful- the oral appliance may not eliminate the severe apnea but it may reduce the the apnea as much as 70%- of course patient who have mild-moderate apnea should achieve better improvment using the oral appliance than a patient who has severe apnea. Many times patients who travel in planes for long distances will wear a custom made oral appliance for the trip- also patients who are visiting relatives for short weekend visits often opt to wear an oral appliance. These are some examples of when an oral appliance may benefit a patient who is otherwise using CPAP.
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Larry Bruck said:I bring my CPAP machine on vacation with me. I also have a brief encounter with airport security, but it is always better to have it with me.
They are getting quite used to those machines. A little extra time at security.
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I have tested 5 masks. I'm a mouth breather but found the ORACLE 452 ORAL MASK which doesn't need a strap if you don't want to use it. Apparently some people don't like this mask but I have found this is the one for me. Good luck. It has been hard for me but I think eventually it will be okay.
James Richard Wisdom said:new at this too have been on it for only about 6 weeks/does it get better sleeping with it on? I also have/had a Brain injury hence the name fallman +mutiple fractures, has been a few years since the accident fell in a oil refinery 54 ft. also lost my job then too, In Kansas if unable to go back to old job and preform it they can fire you in this state/lost a very good job. I still have extreme headaches too/usually cannot keep my mask on all night/usually don't go to sleep tll around 3A.M. and up by 7-8 in the mornings too.
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I heard that there is a medical tag you can get to put on the case especially for airport travelers. I saw it once but haven't looked into just yet.
Larry Bruck said:I bring my CPAP machine on vacation with me. I also have a brief encounter with airport security, but it is always better to have it with me.
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I experimented at home and the 100 amphour marine battery lasted about 2 weeks. Of course, how long it lasts depends on how long you sleep at night (about 6-7hours/nite for me) and pressure (6-16 for me) and of course the machine.
The hook up is really simple, but knowing what parts to get can be difficult if you aren't familiar with electricity. You need:
1) a battery - a marine battery is best.... I have a sears middle of the road marine battery
2) A cable with clips to hook up to the battery. Red goes on + and black goes on - The other end has a plugin for a standard car cigarette lighter connector.
3) A cable to hookup the CPAP to a cigarette lighter plug. This cable is CPAP specific.
That's the hookup..... simple right?
Then all you need is a charger to charge up the battery once in a while.
However, if your CPAP can't run directly on 12v, then you'll need to add an inverter into the above hookup to convert the 12v from the battery to 120v for the CPAP. Here's a website that shows an example of this:
http://cchipman.com/cpap_on_batteries.htm
You should expect to have to replace your battery every few years ... (4? 5? 6?). You should use it occasionally both to test the configuration and to keep your battery up to snuff. There are lots of websites with advice for caring for batteries to make them last longer.
You can use smaller batteries or larger ones depending on portability/cost desired. The key thing to look for is the AmpHour rating (Ah). The bigger the better. Also of course, make sure it's 12v. There are lots of 6v batteries and 24v and higher are common for use in solar systems.
In theory, one could even hook up 8 D batteries in series to get 12 volts and have a 12 amphour battery which should last a night or so.....I've never tried it myself.
Mary Z said:Good for you Chris. A lot of us are daunted by the problem of power while camping, but campers usually figure something out. How long did the Marine battery last for you and how complicated is it to hook up?
Mary Z.
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Permalink Reply by TorontoCPAPguy on
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The use of an oral appliance to shift the jaw and maintain an open airway is 'hit and miss'. It is not a great alternative unless you have a custom oral appliance made and know for a fact that it works to keep the airway open. Also keep in mind that it does not treat centrals nor hypopnea events. That wee fingertip recording oximeter comes into play here... make sure that your blood oxygen saturation is maintained above 90% when asleep... especially when in REM sleep. Did you realize that during REM sleep your body is essentially paralyzed with the exception of vital organs, the diaghram and eyeballs? I was amazed.
So again.... just make sure that the oral appliance is doing what it needs to be doing and is under the supervision of a specialist! Personally, I go with APAP and I have one of those cards printed and laminated indicating that it is a life sustaining device and is not to be monkeyed around with. A copy of my Rx and my receipt for the product showing its serial number is packed with it always. I have never had anything but a cursory glance in the airport and perhaps a 'take it out of the bag please'. Asking the handlers to please put on sterile rubber gloves (they are required to do so by law on domestic flights anyway) usually drives the point home. They wanna sniff or xray it? No problem. Just don't be messing with it.
Bob Crothers said:I have been taking my machine on business and vacation trips. However, I have been told that one can mitigate the effects of leaving the machine at home, by substituting an oral (mouth piece) device for short trips.
Could/would anyone care to weigh-in on that suggestion?
Thanks,
Bob
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