Had sleep study last night: calling all auto cpap users!

[Spleenstomper]

I have been diagnosed with "significant" sleep apnea.

Insurance wouldn't agree to a split sleep study, and the nurse said they would have put me on cpap after 2 hours of sleep. I stopped breathing for nearly a minute once and oxygen went down into the 60s.

Doc wrote me a script for a cpap and said to get one today. Nope. No cpap for me. Had trouble with one place that told me 2 weeks and I have an appt with the second place Thursday at 9:30.

He ordered an auto cpap with humidifier and min setting of 7 with max of 20.

Did you have to wait 3 plus days before actually getting the machine?

Also, my RV doesn't have a bed end table. Can I put the CPAP on the floor?

[Supercharged]

Been on one for over twenty years, two nights without, couldn't sleep, getting a in line battery now for a trip to the far east.
Get the one that works for all elv. from sea level to 12 thousand ft. if you RV you will need it.
I'm on my fourth or fiveth one. They don't count as a carry on bag if you fly a lot.

The wife calls me the mask man.

[scrapnread]

My cousin died from sleep apnea at the age of 39 in 2011. I soon realized that my husband was exhibiting symptoms. So I finally talked him into going to the doctor. A sleep study was ordered and during the middle of it, the technician woke him up and fitted him with a CPAP. He was waking up 96 times in an hour! No wonder we were always tired. He has always snores so loudly and been so disruptive but I've never slept with any one else so I thought it was normal. But I started sleeping later every day and still felt tired. My husband has always complained about sore ribs and I realized it was from me poking him all the time to make him breathe. After getting his machine in 2012, he has only missed using it one night. It takes awhile to get used to it, but now I have a hard time falling asleep without listening to the machine. We bought the 12v adapter for our trailer and during the first trip back to the factory, a 12v receptacle was installed just under the shelf above our bed. So he sleeps like a baby when we go camping and so do I.
If you are diagnosed with sleep apnea please take it seriously. There are many causes and results that you don't want to experience.

[Oldme]

The wife got hers thru the Insurance provider.
The Dr.office set it up and periodically read the
memory card, until we bought it.

I got a small Cobra brand inverter to run it when we do
not have Shore power. She just puts it on the floor for the night.

[rkentzel]

Just a tip for the military veterans out there. You can get almost all your CPAP supplies from the VA.

If you are not registered with the VA, get your DD214 and go there. You will have to fill out some paperwork, attend one orientation, see the primary care physician they assign you, and you're good to go. The PCP will hook you up with the right people, and they will do or order a sleep study for you if you haven't had one. If you have already had one, you will need to provide a copy of that to the VA. Now all I have to do when I need supplies (mask, headgear, filters, hose, water chambers, etc) is call them and it arrives via FedEx/UPS within 2 weeks. They will also provide you with a CPAP machine, and it isn't a cheap one.

It doesn't cost me a dime today, we've all prepaid for that with our military service. YMMV, as the VA classifies you according to your service and physical history. If you're a Vietnam Vet, with actual service IN Vietnam, you're gold. The only thing you're going to pay for is $8 a month for any Rx you get from them.

I get all my supplies and machines thru the VA also. Get sleep center here takes good care of me.

[SuzzeeeQ2012]

any updates?

Spleenstomper wrote:
My 24 hour sleep study starts Monday night-- really hoping i get some answers as to why im still sleeping 12-14 hours a day. Its like a have a veil of sleepiness covering my head. Even my "fat pants" are tight right now-- I need to turn this around and get to moving again.

I had a long talk with the RT at the DME about why my respironics apap seems possessed-- i find the filters across the floor in the morning (caused by coughing or sneezing with mask on) and about my mask leaks (because im sleeping so much, my full face silicone craps out after 2 weeks).

She is of the opinion (her pressure for herself ranges 13-15) that it is inevitble that the higher the pressure, the tighter the straps need to be because the mask (talking full face here) isnt going to be able to "float" on the face with higher pressures. I also found out my machine has a "comfort" feature which basically makes it an auto bipap with breathing in at higher pressure and breathing out against lower pressure. My doc wants to try me at min of 12 pressure (cureently at 10). I can tolerate breathing in at that high, but find it hard to exhale against it.

We will see what monday and tuesday shows and will adjust accordingly.

[tomman58]

I have begun to use a sleeve that goes over my machines hose. I was getting condensation inside the hose do to the coolness of our bedroom in the trailer in winter. The sleeve makes the unit much quieter and also insulates it from our very cool bedroom.

[real4u2c]

Partner, I got mine from the veterans administration, couldn't beat "free". I quit breathing something like 15 times in 30 minutes, I have minor health issues, I love to eat, and I have asthma, anyway, I have tent camped with my C-PAP, I have bungeed it to rocks, laid it on my pack, used it on my friends fishing boat, its not water proof or shock proof, but, its portable for my travels camping.

[Spleenstomper]

Golden_HVAC wrote:
I keep my CPAP far away from me, and it has a 7' long hose. I am just getting used to the noise of the machine, and it is a fairly quiet one. I bought a CPAP that was a Fisher Paykell, and it was only set for about 5 cm water colum, so I felt suffocated when I put it on, it was not giving enough air flow, probably set up for a 120 pound person, I am 300# and 6'2" tall. . .

When I got some surgery, the doctor recommended that I have a CPAP, and Kaiser provided one that night I went home. I guess my oxygen levels dropped during the night that I spent in the hospital.

60% is really low! I hope that you can borrow a O2 meter until you get the CPAP, and it has a alarm loud enough to wake you, you can clear your throat, and start breathing again!

I found that if I sleep on my shoulder, and have two pillows in front of my chest, so I do not roll onto my stomach, that I can sleep (before getting the CPAP) and breath. . Or you might try sleeping in a recliner until you get the CPAP. Or breath Right strips, to help keep your nose open, and your airway clear!

Good luck!

Fred.

Oh. BTW, i dont know if i mentioned this but after I changed my min pressure to 10, my doc sent me home with a DME pulse ox to monitor if it eliminated any desats, and the move to 10 did eliminate desats, so right now i do not need oxygen bled into the line.

[Spleenstomper]

Oh, i forgot to mention Ebay: i did buy a cozy tube cover that matches my machine for 10.00 and also i was able to get a full face replacement silicone for 25.00 and free shipping. Sealed in factory pouch. Ebay is the cheapest game in town.

I was supposed to go camping this weekend for the first time with the cpap, but my vaccinated daughter came down with the flu so im at home with her and DH and the boys are camping.

[Spleenstomper]

My 24 hour sleep study starts Monday night-- really hoping i get some answers as to why im still sleeping 12-14 hours a day. Its like a have a veil of sleepiness covering my head. Even my "fat pants" are tight right now-- I need to turn this around and get to moving again.

I had a long talk with the RT at the DME about why my respironics apap seems possessed-- i find the filters across the floor in the morning (caused by coughing or sneezing with mask on) and about my mask leaks (because im sleeping so much, my full face silicone craps out after 2 weeks).

She is of the opinion (her pressure for herself ranges 13-15) that it is inevitble that the higher the pressure, the tighter the straps need to be because the mask (talking full face here) isnt going to be able to "float" on the face with higher pressures. I also found out my machine has a "comfort" feature which basically makes it an auto bipap with breathing in at higher pressure and breathing out against lower pressure. My doc wants to try me at min of 12 pressure (cureently at 10). I can tolerate breathing in at that high, but find it hard to exhale against it.

We will see what monday and tuesday shows and will adjust accordingly.

[traveylin]

another thought, If your setting for pressure is real high 17 inches and leakage bothers you greatly try lowering the pressure by 3-4 inches. There are two approaches, 1 if using a service such as Lincare that bills back to medicare you would have to go through a formal re evauation. 2 If you own the machine a simple google search will provide the coding to reset the machine.

Another method of lowering the pressure an inch or two is to simply set the machine to high altitude operation.

I lowered mine from 15 to 13 and 80% of the leakage issues went away

[traveylin]

those folks dissing the cost of CPAP machines and supplies,,,,,if you want a cheap supplier try a wholesaler like CPAP .com Most of the supplies are sold without a prescription. To buy a machine you just need to fax them a copy of prescription from your general practioner.

Folks that really have a hang up with any cost need to understand the alternative is heart failure. My cardiologist attributes my substantial AFIB improvement to cpap supported adequate O2 sleep the last two years

[OH48Lt]

Just a tip for the military veterans out there. You can get almost all your CPAP supplies from the VA.

If you are not registered with the VA, get your DD214 and go there. You will have to fill out some paperwork, attend one orientation, see the primary care physician they assign you, and you're good to go. The PCP will hook you up with the right people, and they will do or order a sleep study for you if you haven't had one. If you have already had one, you will need to provide a copy of that to the VA. Now all I have to do when I need supplies (mask, headgear, filters, hose, water chambers, etc) is call them and it arrives via FedEx/UPS within 2 weeks. They will also provide you with a CPAP machine, and it isn't a cheap one.

It doesn't cost me a dime today, we've all prepaid for that with our military service. YMMV, as the VA classifies you according to your service and physical history. If you're a Vietnam Vet, with actual service IN Vietnam, you're gold. The only thing you're going to pay for is $8 a month for any Rx you get from them.

[ol__yeller]

After my near fatal heart attack I was diagnosed with severe Sleep Apnea. I was a rude and very unpleasant patient during my sleep study as I felt at that time that it was a scam. It was emotion not logic that put me in that position. I have been on my Resmed for 5 years now and can't sleep without it. If power goes out during the night, I wake up when the machine stops. It has saved my life. Take it from one who has been there, you DO NOT want to have to live with the damage from a heart attack because you don't like the idea of a CPAP. Living with half a heart is not something I'd recommend to anyone. Sleep Apnea was a huge contributor to my condition. It is too bad that I didn't resolve it until after I had the damage. The good news is that now I get good night sleep and wake refreshed in the morning. A side benefit is that my wife also gets a good night sleep as well.

As for placement of the machine, mine has 2 filters so I never worry or have an issue with dust. At home, it sits on the floor on the carpet. In our RV I put it in the cupboard overhead and dangle the hose down to me. I never had an issue with moisture in the hose or mask except when I have a bad cold. I do use the humidifier built into my machine. I started with nose pillows and still have them to this day. I was a mouth breather but learned to train myself to keep my mouth shut when I sleep. It is much easier when your body gets the proper amount of oxygen as you sleep.