Frequent awakeners with mild OSA, has cpap helped?

Categorized as mild osa, primarily having events when supine only. (I'm a side sleeper).

Any input from other like frequent awakeners? Did cpap stop your wakings or do you still have them but overall feel more rested?

The frequent wakings are what sent me for the sleep study along with being tired all the time.

Great Question............

I also waken frequently during the nite for no, as yet known reason.

I go tomorrow for testing, maybe find out more afterwards. I am also considered high risk, due to diabetes and hypertension. I will follow this tread with special interest as well

gomer wrote:Great Question............

I also waken frequently during the nite for no, as yet known reason.

I go tomorrow for testing, maybe find out more afterwards. I am also considered high risk, due to diabetes and hypertension. I will follow this tread with special interest as well

Hope you get some answers. Is it a sleep study you're going for? This has been going on for me for 3+ years...I'm tired with a capital T!

I wake up the same as before (2-5 times a night) and feel just as bad.

My diagnosed AHI was only 13, "moderate", according to the summary page,
but only covered by insurance because I also had HBP. (nice BCBSNE! --NOT!)
I was so sleep-deprived that I was morphing into Gollum -"must have sleep, precious sleep"
Morning after titration: "Was that all it takes?"
First night with my machine, I was HOOKED.
It took me 4 months to care whether or not my mask fit decently. (I didn't really notice--also no data)

chunkyfrog wrote:My diagnosed AHI was only 13, "moderate", according to the summary page,
but only covered by insurance because I also had HBP. (nice BCBSNE! --NOT!)
I was so sleep-deprived that I was morphing into Gollum -"must have sleep, precious sleep"
Morning after titration: "Was that all it takes?"
First night with my machine, I was HOOKED.
It took me 4 months to care whether or not my mask fit decently. (I didn't really notice--also no data)

That's great that you felt so good that you didn't care if the mask fit correctly. That says a lot!

I assume it resolved any frequent wakings?

1041 wrote:I wake up the same as before (2-5 times a night) and feel just as bad.

Me too, what's your doctor's take on the whole thing? I go to the PcP tomorrow but I'm not very optomistic, I don't think my DME has even sent her a report yet and I've been on cpap from Sept 26th to Oct 19th and then APAP and now back on cpap and no relief yet. I called the pcp today so they're supposed to try to get the report before I get there....

For me there were too many other things going on to see a clear difference in my wakings. I still had uncontrolled limb movements, undiagnosed diabetes caused nighttime potty runs, edema in my legs seemed to flush out a few hours after bedtime, plus I was taking at least one med with potential to disrupt sleep. Even with my best efforts, it took a while for my brain to re-learn how to sleep. It did at some point improve. Even now I wake up several times a night, but go right back to sleep and my sleep time feels mostly like quality sleep. Far cry from the years of short snatches of superficial sleep. I can only suggest ruling out contributors, observing reasonably good sleep hygiene, and providing an environment conducive to sleep - then let nature take its course. Sometimes nature needs a little help though.

I guess I was lucky, I had a lot of medical problems going on, but when I was started on CPAP I was on 17 cm, then raised to 19cm on straight CPAP. Still at 19cm on straight CPAP. I re-learned sleeping really fast, CPAP on, I was asleep like a log. Have been for 12 years, unless someone wakes me, I sleep. However sleeping in a strange place causes some sleepwalking & sleep eating if food is available. When I sleepwalk, I generally pull mask off or machine off table. Either will wake me. In my own bed, I am lights out on CPAP. I feel for those of you who are having trouble with frequent awakening. I did prior to CPAP, 6-8 bathroom trips nightly. Also had to clear out kitchen & put easily eatable food in hard to reach cabinet.
Jen

kteague wrote:For me there were too many other things going on to see a clear difference in my wakings. I still had uncontrolled limb movements, undiagnosed diabetes caused nighttime potty runs, edema in my legs seemed to flush out a few hours after bedtime, plus I was taking at least one med with potential to disrupt sleep. Even with my best efforts, it took a while for my brain to re-learn how to sleep. It did at some point improve. Even now I wake up several times a night, but go right back to sleep and my sleep time feels mostly like quality sleep. Far cry from the years of short snatches of superficial sleep. I can only suggest ruling out contributors, observing reasonably good sleep hygiene, and providing an environment conducive to sleep - then let nature take its course. Sometimes nature needs a little help though.

No other medical conditions aside from benign hypertension. My pcp doesn't want to address that until we get the sleep regulated. She seems to think that may be a participating factor. No meds. Reasonably good sleep hygeine. I've tried cutting out caffeine, etc. Doesn't seem to affect it one way or the other. No spontaneous limb movement, at least it wasn't mentioned in the sleep study report.

My apnea-induced nightmares were waking me up many, many times a night,
always heart racing, hard breathing, and shaky--usually with a horrific headache.
Now, I might awaken once or twice, briefly, relaxed, able to go right back to sleep.
I noticed my Micro was bad because my nose was always sore,
but when I started pushing it down below the sore, it started MOVING MY TEETH.
I like my teeth.

I used to wake frequently at night--a year ago I was seriously waking up every half hour or so. When I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea, I had high hopes that CPAP would help that. What happened, though, was that I started sleeping more, but still woke up all night long--instead of sleeping five hours and waking every half hour, I was sleeping seven or eight hours and waking every half hour.

What finally got me sleeping halfway normally again was estrogen--CPAP didn't do it, sleeping pills didn't do it, anti-depressants didn't do it. Estrogen was the magic bullet.

Carmen wrote:I used to wake frequently at night--a year ago I was seriously waking up every half hour or so. When I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea, I had high hopes that CPAP would help that. What happened, though, was that I started sleeping more, but still woke up all night long--instead of sleeping five hours and waking every half hour, I was sleeping seven or eight hours and waking every half hour.

What finally got me sleeping halfway normally again was estrogen--CPAP didn't do it, sleeping pills didn't do it, anti-depressants didn't do it. Estrogen was the magic bullet.

How long did it take for the estrogen to work? I tried the estrogen patch for a month. It didn't help and my gyne took me off of it because she didn't want me on it due to family history. Do you still use the cpap?

Look at your sleep report for RERA's...Respiratory Event RElated Arousals. Look into ORA too. Obiesity Related Arousals. The two are often overlooked in cpap titration and can cause 3 sec arousals and fragmented sleep.

stage0 wrote:Look at your sleep report for RERA's...Respiratory Event RElated Arousals. Look into ORA too. Obiesity Related Arousals. The two are often overlooked in cpap titration and can cause 3 sec arousals and fragmented sleep.

I don't believe RERA's were mentioned at all in my sleep study. What is ORA?