Newbie would like to hear success stories, please.

[bristolman]

I think I'm doing quite well now thanks to the forum people here. I have been sleeping minimum of 8 hrs every nite now for last 30 days . I wake up feeling better than I ever did for a long time .don't snore , getting up to pee occurs a lot less . my wife sleeps better not laying there waiting for me to breathe again . struggled finding a mask that got me to this point , but have succeeded now ( once again help from people on this forum ) .
mike

[katebrownell86]

I am a Newbie CPAP mask user. I am really glad to know about the success stories. I hope for the best. I will also get rid of sleep apnea.

[vkp765@yahoo.com]

Hi fellow members,

Joined new to this group. Looks like a wealth of information here for patients like me.
I have been using cpap for the last 4 years. Im in mid 30's. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea about 6 years ago but ignored until 2015 when i started feeling pulsating pain on my left head and arm twitching and not so well feeling during daytime. Also im diagnosed with high bp on the same year. I decided to go with cpap treatment and it is going well so far..
But im feeling recently some anxiety at work and home. Headaches. My resmed cpap numbers seems to be fine with under 5 AHI. Btw im diagnosed with 39 AHI.
Not sure if anyone is in the same boat please help me with tips to overcome.

Note: I have been going to my bi yearly cardio appointments due to the high bp scenario and nothing abnormal found related to my cardio health.Im taking amlodipine 5mg (norvasc)
I work in a investment bank and have a moderate stressed work life..

[ChicagoGranny]

please help me with tips to overcome.

Please copy and paste your comments into a new thread. This thread is for success stories and not for people asking for help. You can get more attention and help in a new thread of your own.

[K5MOW]

Good morning

I believe I have a pretty good success story. I have been on CPAP now for 13 years. Before I went to get my sleep study. I would fall asleep at my desk. I would have a hard time driving without the window down or slapping my face every so often to keep myself awake. I actually thought this was normal and didn’t think anything of it. I was in a doctors office one day when a sleep doctor happened to be talking to me. I was not there for an appointment with him. He told me he’s pretty sure I have sleep apnea because of my neck size. I did not think that was the case. But after thinking about it for about six months. I decided to make an appointment with him. After going through the sleep study. The study showed I had moderate to severe sleep apnea. After going on CPAP I actually started seeing results the very first night. I did have mask issues and extremely uncomfortable to sleep. Had trouble probably the first two months. But when I did sleep I actually got more rest than I normally would in an eight hour period without CPAP. After 13 years CPAP has changed my life. I no longer feel tired I do not fall sleep at my desk and I have absolutely no problem driving. It literally has changed my life. I am so dependent on it now that I purchased a battery back up. I never want to be without my CPAP.

Roger

[metaltech]

Ok I am not a long term pap user, about 4 months. I have severe complex apnea. I tested out with 69 events per hour, mostly obstructive but also central apnea events. The first 3 months my events were cut in half. I really couldn't tell if it helped. I knew I was not snoring at night and had no more acid reflux. My events are now around 15 per hour. I have started losing weight. I am down about 30 lbs. My blood sugar has dropped. I have dropped from the diabetic range to the pre diabetic range. My cholesterol has dropped. I have a bad back that prevents much walking or standing. These changes aren't from exercise. I can't guarantee they are from treatment but I do know I am not nearly as tired. It wasn't overnight, but I feel better.

[ChicagoGranny]

My events are now around 15 per hour.

That's very high for someone using CPAP. You can start a new thread, and ask experienced members to help you get your AHI down. It's what people do here.

[metaltech]

I was extreme with a 69 start. I feel much better at around 15. It is slowly lowering. I think I will eventually get there.

[Pixelsmack]

I was first told I might require apnea treatment back in 2001. I ignored it. Wrote it off as wacky. Come 2007 I am continuously waking up in the morning totally exhausted and a pillow literally dripping with sweat. (gross)

I finally hit a sleep study and.... "whoa."

I had severe apnea. They set me up with a machine, set it to 10, which I guess was the max back then. Result? I slept so much better that first night my wife thought I had died in my sleep. I woke up to her standing over me in shock. "You looked so peaceful. So quiet." I used to shake the house with my gasping and snoring. Now I was quiet and I could get as little as 5-hours of sleep and wake up ready to attack the planet!

All these years later I have learned and adjusted to self managed therapy. If you have the means, getting out of reliance on the insurance companies or sleep clinic techs will make life much easier. Puts the control back in your hands. Frankly, and I know this is a bit political/opinion, the requirement for no-option mandatory prescription and certified tech only adjustments is designed to fuel and feed a market. With only a little bit of knowledge you can manage your own therapy. Buy equipment, setup, maintain, etc. Of course no getting around that initial prescription. So get it! Then start learning. Buy the gear YOU want. (or for a friend, shhhhh)

Again this is personal opinion, don't get too wrapped up in all the cleaning products or replacing parts. I have been doing this since 2007. I have owned three machines in that time. Only the third after I dropped the second from my balcony while moving. You don't need all the anti-bacterial add-ons or to toss your hose or tanks every 6-months. Just clean them. Heck, you'd be surprised at the amount of yuck a body can take. (again, my opinion, not medical advice)

In closing I do love how far the tech has come. Portable machines the size of a phone. Machines with built in LTE and app support. Just so cool!

[haggler]

11/7/2019 was my first night. I went from 60 to 1.7. I wish I had started 10 years ago. So much damage was done by OSA.

[SemperVaporo]

I have been using CPAP since 1996... 23 years on the same machine and nearly as many on the same headgear (nasal pillows). Even with the small problems I had with the initial headgear (nasal masks) I can attest to it being a wonder in my life. I seriously wonder what my life would have been like if I had CPAP much, much sooner. Maybe I'd have been a better husband and my wife would have been happier and slept better without my snoring. I'll never know that, but I do know that I no longer have morning migraine headaches that used to keep me from being on-time at work and having to work late to make-up for it. I can say that I felt better the first morning after using CPAP that first time! A whole world of difference from before!

[Miss Emerita]

SemperVaporo, since 1996! That is so inspiring! You are one of the lucky ones who took to CPAP therapy right away, which is great. A lot of us need some time to get there, but when we do, we really get our lives back.

Thanks so much for posting!

[john49]

I started with my CPAP in 2014 and it took me several months to get used to it.

I have a blood disorder called Polycythemia which means I have too many red blood cells. One of the contributing factors was the fact that while sleeping with apnea the body does not get enough oxygen and this results in overproduction of the red blood cells.

Using the CPAP my red blood count went down to a normal level and has been in OK since 2014. My Polycythemia is in check and readings for blood count are on the high side but still under the upper limit. Previous to using the CPAP I had to have phlebotomies on a regular basis to reduce red blood cell counts. With the CPAP usage I no longer have to have phlebotomies.

I had a hard time with the humidity settings since I like to breathe cool air at night. I now fill the water chamber with filtered water and freeze the chamber. Just before bed I place the frozen chamber in the machine. This gives me cool air to breathe and humidity. By the time the ice melts I am fast asleep. I have more than one water chamber for my Resmed and keep one in the freezer for the next night.

For cleaning I use hot water and foaming soaps from Bath and Body works on my mask (clean mask every night) and clean the hose once a week. The foamy soaps come in many different scents and it makes it nice to go to sleep with a pleasant scent.

For me the CPAP has worked wonders. My apnea is in check and so is my Polycythemia.

[DormouseSaid]

After using a CPAP at my sleep test for half the night, I noticed a distinct and unexpected improvement in my eyesight, of all things. Also, I woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for the first time in can't remember when.

Even if that had not been the result, I was commited to the idea of this therapy after reading how untreated apnea and dementia appear to be linked. OAS runs in both sides of my family. My mother, for instance, refused to treat her apnea and passed earlier in the year from vascular dementia/Alzheimer's. I am determined not to make the same mistake.

I have only used the machine one week, but have had good results and relatively little trouble with it--thanks to studying this site---and I am now down from 49 episodes an hour to less than 2. Of course, there are things to learn, problems to solve, and unexpected adjustments to be made. Frankly, the first time I used to machine on my own, I experienced mild claustrophobia for a moment, but I talked myself down. (Relaxation meditation as you're falling asleep helps.) I also found myself surprisingly tired, even after producing good numbers, simply because adding the CPAP to my sleep routine made muscles I never knew existed tense up. I have also had mild pains from the center of my chest, which alarmed me, but quickly dissipated. OTOH, I feel calmer, more rested, and have less restlessness of the legs. (My IQ seems to be the same, alas.) As time passes, I look forward to discovering whether sleep therapy has positive effects on other aspects of my health. If this is as good as it gets, though, it has been worth it.

Since the alternative to using this therapy is to deprive your brain and body of oxygen---never a good thing---I believe the therapy is well worth whatever inconvenience it might cause.

I thank everyone who has contributed to creating this valuable online asset--that was a lot of work, and it is very much appreciated.

[LinkC]

I've been a 'child of the mask' for over 15 yrs. I'm on my 3rd machine.
Yes, there's is some inconvenience. My life would be different without my "buddy". Fortunately, I was already married when I was diagnosed. I'm sure dating is difficult.