New CPAP user touching base

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Permalink Reply by symmit on December 23, 2012 at 7:10

Hello and welcome to the world of CPAP usage - I hope you do persevere as if it works for you and relieves your sleep problems your life will be changed and in a non-invasive manner.

It gets easier if you just relax into it, go to bed early and just lie there breathing with the pressure running, use the ramp facility and nag your clinic if your mask isn't a good fit. If you're willing and able to spend some money there's lots of comfort accessories and other masks you can try out there also!

I've been on CPAP two years now and can't believe the difference it's made for me, both me and my wife sleep so much better!

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Permalink Reply by Kath Hope on December 23, 2012 at 11:23

Great to see you've joined us on here Peter and hope your treatment means you'll get to feel so much better over Christmas, and more importantly that you can look forward to better health in 2013!

Sleep apnoea doesn't stop for Christmas, unfortunately, and neither will the forum, so shout out if you get any problems over the holidays. 

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Permalink Reply by Rosemary Kemp on December 23, 2012 at 11:30

Hello Peter,

Yes it certainly does get easier. Everyone has a different experience of course but for me, it was finding the right mask mainly. The idea at first that this is for ever was rather intimidating but it is amazing how it has become "normal" for me and I even welcome switching it all on and breathing deeply into the mask. I tend to get phases where it all works like a dream and then I seem to get it wrong for a bit! Then it all settles down again.

So try to get to bed early and don't eat for a good while prior to sleep. (You probably know this already?) Perhaps look into some different sorts of mask. (Kath Hope in Hope2sleep will help you with this if you want to try alternatives). See how well you get on with your full face one first?

I get on best with nasal gel masks. They seem to seal the best for me (with the help of the special moisturiser which is a must to help the seal; the complexion and the care of the mask itself) . Two years plus into the whole experience and I bought my own apap machine (with the help opf the hospital - you have to do everything through them in this country) which adjusts the pressures as needed and it is much quieter and more helpful to me than my original cpap machine.

My cpap machoine still does the job well though and I take that one away with me on trips away, leaving it all packed up and ready to go so that I don't have to mess about packing and unpacking my home use machine. My apap machone tells me whether I have succeeded with the mask seal or not and what my apnoea readings have been over the night. Also what sorts of apnoeas. It really confirms what I suspected all along and what my sleep clinicians tell me - that I need a machine - but that is good as it helps me to live in the present and accept what has happened.

I am four years into to the treatment now and it has probably saved my life. Have you got a hose lift yet? Really helps to get the hose at the correct angle to not get "rain out" (condensation turning back into water on the face - lovely!! You probably know about that as well?)

Yes, as you have been told by someone else on the site, there are lots of comfort aids out there to help make the experience better.

Good luck with it all.  Rosemary

     

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Permalink Reply by Peter Andrew Downham on December 23, 2012 at 18:32

Thank you everyone for your support & advice, it is greatly appreciated. I will follow up some of your suggestions Rosemary when I go to the sleep clinic at Aintree. Kath has already advised, and provided, a hose lift, which is great. Now just have to get my pillows right.
Does CPAP cause chest pain? Had central chest discomfort for last 2days since starting therapy but also have newly diagnosed unstable angina so a bit confused as to what might be cause.
Once again, thanks & Happy Xmas.

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Permalink Reply by Rosemary Kemp on December 23, 2012 at 23:31

Difficult to say what the cause of your pain may be. Unstable angina can perhaps be triggered especially if you are concerned or anxious about using the cpap equipment. If the pillow isn't right yet then you may be uncofortable generally and this could also be a trigger perhaps but I am sure that you know that you need to tell your GP and your cpap specialist about the problem so that they can rule out the possibilities.

Re the pillow, I have tried all sorts of "special" pillows but have resorted to a thick and soft regular pillow with my neck resting on top of the long edge of the pillow which I prop up before gong to sleep. This means that when I lay sideways, my mask doesn't touch the pillow.

Using a full face mask will mean that you are lyjng on your back (whereas I am sideways with the nasal mask). Is that the postion you used to sleep in prior to cpap? If you like lying on your back that is fine but if it isn't comfortable, you might be tensing up and that could also be having an impact on your chest muscles and perhaps your angina? Just ideas!

The important thing is to find a comfortable position and then take long deep breaths which will also help you to relax while you wait to fall asleep. Hope that helps.

Rosemary

   

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Permalink Reply by Kath Hope on December 24, 2012 at 1:10

You obviously need to be mindful of the angina Peter, but I definitely had pain in the chest area in the early days of CPAP - especially when I was put on APAP whilst they sorted my pressures (like you are at the moment).  I discussed this with my sleep clinic and they pointed out that this can happen at first, as our lungs are getting a good workout during sleep instead of all the apnoeas and shallow breathing.  See how it goes, but worth discussing with your heart consultant.

Did you manage to download the SleepyHead Software yet, so you can see what kind of pressures are being administered by the APAP in your sleep?  Here's the link if you never http://sourceforge.net/projects/sleepyhead/

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