Your sleep apnea/CPAP thread

I'm going to keep using mine until I sort out something new. I've never cleaned with oxygen and it doesn't get too hot or humid so I'm gonna assume I'm not breathing in too much foam.

I actually still have my previous CPAP, which was the Respironics System One, but not auto. Worst case scenario if I have to send my dreamstation in and wait for a replacement I can go back to using it. I can just look at what levels my auto has been using for the last few weeks and set it to that.

I'm diagnosed with "not really needing a CPAP" but I "twitch like a fucker" according to the person I share a bed with.

I'm going to be joining the CPAP club soon! Got diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea and I'm waiting for a second sleep study where I'll try different masks and they figure out what settings I need for my machine.

I have heard that depending on insurance, it can make more sense to buy the machine myself if I can afford it. Can anybody recommend a good source for the supplies that need to get switched out periodically?

I don't use insurance but my issue is with the DMEs that I've been set up with. Too much hassle and shitty service and shitty supplies. Your mileage may vary, so if your sleep dr. gives you a prescription and sends you to a recommended DME, it's probably best to give it a shot.

Otherwise, or in the future, there are a ton of online shops, but I've generally stuck with https://www.thecpapshop.com/ which has everything and has very good and very quick service, including money back mask returns.

It's a strange time though...the machine I use, that I bought outright myself, has been recalled so the market is all fucked up as it was like 60% of all machines. The Respironics Dreamstation. I suppose somebody new to the CPAP machine will just be put on the competing RESMED instead, which I'm sure is just as good.

The real issue of course is the mask type. If you look at the reviews, you can get a sense of the top options and try a bunch of those, but there isn't a single mask the works for everybody so don't be dissuaded by bad reviews.

The first concern is what type of mask, full or nasal, and if nasal, which style. There's another mask that's like the FULL face, even the eyes, I tried that once and it wasn't good...too many places to leak.

As a lifelong mouth breather (prior to getting deviated septum surgery and finally getting the right nose sprays) I always needed a full mask, which covers the nose and mouth. Took me a while to settle on one that worked pretty well. My problem then was that I have a beard, so I had to pull it really tight, which you're not supposed to do. After a few years of no real complaints I recently started having breakouts, which I think are due to covid masks as much (ugh)

So I decided ok, I'm actually breathing through my nose better, maybe I should try to switch back to a nose mask. I tried one and had a bad fit and then tried this older Fischer and Pykel Eson mask I had from trying once before and it worked amazing, no leaks. I've been using it for a few weeks now and it's been great except for the other night I somehow must've opened my mouth and started breathing through it which fucked it all up.

For most people the nasal masks are fine, but then there's 3 kinds, the kind like the Eson which fit over the nose, then there's the pillows, which kinda of fit into the nostrils, then there's ones that are just like little slits in a tube. The later two didn't work for me but this Eson is great. alhtough the headgear is kinda confusing.

The struggle continues.

Thanks. Thankfully the sleep study people are going to work with me on finding an appropriate mask type.

I'm looking forward to this. I've gotten to where I always feel tired and I just assumed it was part of getting older.

I got lucky with the mask I used for the study - DreamWear, the hose attachment is on the top of your head which works great for me. I started with the simple nasal one and those work okay, but things would get catawampus when I'd sleep on my side. I recently switched to the nasal gel cushion (prongs in the nostrils) which initially I thought would be awful, but it's actually great. I don't use a DME, just check various online suppliers.

Mr. Jaq was having mask leak issues, thought it was his beard etc so tried a few different masks. Turned out one of our cats had bit the hose.

Good luck Cow_Art - I thought waking up with a headache and always being tired was lack of coffee but turned out to be lack of oxygen.

Thanks. I've also got restless leg syndrome AND the sleep study told me that I have periodic limb movement disorder.

The medication for RLS is working and I stopped drinking caffeine, so I'm already sleeping a little better. Feels good to be getting these things taken care of.

mr veg has had a CPAP for 4 years or so (through insurance) & it’s made a big difference imo

he started w nose & mouth mask but it seemed to leak a lot when it forced extra air or if he changed position in his sleep. he switched to nose-only within the last year & it works great, seems less fussy & much more comfortable

I've had a couple of CPAPs over the last ten years.
I don't have to worry about cost because I get them through the NHS.
I've always had ResMed machines (they've been very reliable) and I get the current nasal mask appropriate from my assessment.
I find it works best if I sleep on my back but luckily I'm a pretty static sleeper.
It has made a huge difference to my life.

Wonder how hard it’ll be to get a resmed machine now that respirinics is off the market.

Didn't say it before but after some new sleep studies in late 2019 -- good timing, that -- I got a fully new CPAP setup with the covers-the-nose option in February 2020 and have been using it steadily since. I don't think I get MORE sleep -- I average around six hours, maybe seven -- but per the readings it's definitely been a help, so I'm grateful. Last week for the first time due to a short vacation I spent a week without it and I could tell the difference on waking up, a touch groggier, drier throat and so forth.

Ten years ago I went to a sleep doctor because of excessive daytime sleepiness. I was having 1 or 2 spells each day where I would zone in-and-out for up to half an hour, with a drugged feeling like I fighting off Nyquil. I video'd myself at work a couple of times to see what was happening--I was repeatedly dropping off into microsleeps of between 1 and 20 seconds long, as many as 40 times in 30 minutes.

After a couple of sleep studies, they said I had moderate sleep apnea (maybe a dozen incidents per hour). Got my CPAP, used it for over a year, and it never had any affect on my daytime sleepiness! So I eventually stopped using it.

Nowadays my sleepiness is really bad (like, "the boss keeps telling me to wake up" bad), so I just did my first sleep study in many years. My apnea is now about 50 per hour, so I'm getting a new CPAP soon.

So does anybody else here have to put a big elastic band around your head to keep your mouth shut while you've got the mask on?

I tried that once but it was too much. I stuck with the full face masks. As mentioned I’m now using a nasal mask and somehow am not opening my mouth, except one night where I suddenly did and started snoring and woke up my wife.

from an update email that ended up in my spam filter:

Based on current estimates of impacted devices worldwide, we are working towards completing this effort within approximately 12 months.

I don’t know what to do. I know the odds of having an issue with your machine are slim esp if you’ve never used ozone cleaning, but in starting to have perhaps psychosomatic symptoms.

I'm seeing CPAP equipment in the drugstore recently, not just hoses and masks, but the actual machines. You need a prescription for the machine, but I'm happy you don't have to go to the supplier for new masks and such.

When I last had a CPAP about 8 years ago, they had to send a rep to my apartment to set it up or change the settings. Do they still do that, so that I'll have to actually clean the place so they don't know I live in filth?