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Anyone here have sleep apnea?

#61
yodedude2 said:
^^ agreed. sleep apnea almost certainly led to the death of my father, an athlete who played tennis for the university of texas in his youth, at the age of 65. his father, my grandfather, lived to be 91. my father passed 11 years ago. i still miss him every day.
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Are you listening sleep apnea and CPAP deniers? :rage::spit::spit::thumbsdown:

Your life's on the line. Maybe not today or tomorrow but when you least expect it. :dead::confused::rollno:

Get a sleep study and become a CPAP user! Play bass longer! :thumbsup::bassist::bassist::)
 
#62
CPAP users: your headgear is washable. It absorbs perspiration from your skin and oils from your hair.

I hand wash mine with dish soap and warm water. If not washed regularly, skin and scalp irritations can form, especially if you have longer hair or a beard.

I have to be clean shaven for my full face mask to set properly and be more comfortable.
 
#64
I failed two sleep tests.:sorry::sorry: Then I shaved. Still feel like I'm being waterboarded. :wideyed:
Upside, spouse sleeps better.
upside, only waking up because of bladder, but that's another story. :whistle:

Don't over fill the water chamber, or you will really get waterboarded. :eyebrow:
 
#66
Drgonzonm said:
I failed two sleep tests.:sorry::sorry: Then I shaved. Still feel like I'm being waterboarded. :wideyed:
Upside, spouse sleeps better.
upside, only waking up because of bladder, but that's another story. :whistle:

Don't over fill the water chamber, or you will really get waterboarded. :eyebrow:
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I turned down the humidifier to stop the rain. Is yours adjustable?

Also, when you take a nap, be sure to use your mask.

As far as the bladder, try no liquids 4 hours before sleep and make sure you hit the head right before conking out. Worth a try . It helped me. :-)
 
#67
Stumbo said:
I turned down the humidifier to dtop the rain. Is yours adjustable?

Also, when you take a nap, be sure to use your mask.
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You overfill the water container, you get water in the long tube, and air passing through the water. Sounds horrible,
The feeling of waterboarding is a physical/mental sensation, where the mask the strapped to the face. I am a mouth breather. Had my nose broken, about 47 years ago, along with allergies, not the best patient for CPAP.

By the way, let the dentist know, or the doctor know if they are going to knock you out for any procedure.
 
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#68
Ive got the sleep apnea. Got tested,got the machine,live it like a religion.

Been on it a year , feel better than I have in years. I don't snore anymore which makes her happy. I fall asleep and rarely wake up until the alarm goes off. Prior to that i woke up constantly throughout the night. I no longer feel like a zombie. Didn't realize what I was going thru until I took corrective action.
 
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#72
All set for a good sleep tonight:

i8sgQua.jpg
 
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#74
Killed_by_Death said:
I've added hours to every day by being able to sleep properly, but my face mask is packing up lately. It won't seal w/o strapping it on so tightly that it hurts.
Cleaned it all up today, but it still has to be too snug for a seal. It feels like the facehugger from Alien is on my face.
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Yeah, the straps on the masks stretch out over time, and the seals get deformed. They recommend replacing the mask and hose every few months, I make mine last longer, but they do wear out eventually. At least my cat has stopped poking holes in the hose with her claws! :)
 
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#76
Killed_by_Death said:
The schedule to replace is every 6 months & a wash once/month, but it's been less than 3 weeks.
If I have to strap it on too tonight I'll call the provider in the morning & see what they recommend, possibly a new membrane.
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There are several different styles of masks, too, some fit better than others. My first one was a kind of "nose mask" that fit over the entire nose, but the ones I get now are the "nostril pillow" type, which I have a harder time keeping on right. Keep meaning to ask if I can switch back to the other style...
 
#78
I got my sleep test results today, and it was not good at all. I woke up 36 times that night, that's a tad over 5 times per hour, so every 12 minutes or so. I did not achieve REM sleep once. CPAP is now a certainty.

Thankfully I have my deceased mother's CPAP machine, so that saves a lot of money. They are going to get me in again and try several types of masks so I can buy which ever works best for me.
 
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#79
Petebass said:
I got my sleep test results today, and it was not good at all. I woke up 36 times that night, that's a tad over 5 times per hour, so every 12 minutes or so. I did not achieve REM sleep once. CPAP is now a certainty.

Thankfully I have my deceased mother's CPAP machine, so that saves a lot of money. They are going to get me in again and try several types of masks so I can buy which ever works best for me.
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There's nothing quite like those first few nights of real sleep with the CPAP machine after living with apnea.
 
#80
Drgonzonm said:
. Had my nose broken, about 47 years ago, along with allergies, not the best patient for CPAP.
.
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TL;DR There's more to using a CPAP machine than meets the eye. Read up on it.

Here's a link to a forum that may help:
Invalid Link Removed
They have technician codes so you can adjust anything on your machine.

You can also find the manual for pretty much any CPAP machine online.

You may need new tubing, filter and a good cleaning for an older machine. There are special wipes available for regularly cleaning inside the mask. Wash your mask gently with dish soap and warm water.

The new machines are quieter and collect daily data on how long and well you sleep. It helps me to see my scores.

Some come with a humidifier that helps me from getting dry sinuses. During hot weather, it can be adjusted. Same for cold weather as the warm humidifier air meeting the cold air make rain in your tube and mask.

Masks last about 6 months due to the seal breaking down due to skin oils. You'll have to keep tighten it and fiddling with adjustments to keep from getting air leaks the older the mask gets. Change the filter every few months so the machine air flow is maintained.

You'll have to figure out the best way to keep the tubing from bothering you. I mount it to the head board with Velcro. There are other, more permanent ways to do it you can find online.

Sleeping on you side is possible. There are CPAP pillows available. I use a cylindrical neck pillow on top of one ir two regular pillows to adjust my sleep position.

I used my machine 356 days out of the last 365. The other nine days I was really sick.

I use a RESMED Fitlife full face mask due to irritation to my nose, nostrils and forehead by other machines. I recommend clean shaven face, moustache okay, for a full face mask.

Have you looked into getting your nose fixed and your sinuses cauterized? Should be covered by insurance. Also anti-allergy shots help.

I recommend using saline flushes like a netty pot or something like Simply Saline, at the minimum,every night before bed.

Breathe right strips help me. I use two at a time. Another thing that really helped was trimming nasal hair way down to increase air flow.

I had my septum straightened and cauterization in '98. Three weeks ago I had cauterization on both sides and removal of a nodule on the right side.

Cauterization is not permanent because you sinuses will eventually get inflamed again. Still, definitely worth it. Breathing much better.

Not all Docs do cauterization. I had to see three before I got what I needed.

Good luck.
 
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