CPAP Machine

[tallishbloke]

reconsidering?

Humm.... I wonder if some of the other recent responses have got you thinking about reconsidering - I hope it has! There is a wealth of expertise and knowledge out there... some of it even from the professionals haha! I am sure if you were willing to give it another go, there is a mask / machine combo out there that would work even for you.

Hope to get a positive response

TB

[cpapfay]

After You Bought The Machine,you Had Right To Ask Their Staff To Follow Your Treatment And The Machine Adjustment.
According To Your Description,you Are Not Properly Wear Your Nasal Mask And The Machine Setting Is Not Right.
I Recommend You To Ask For The Professional Help. Cause This Machine Is Not Used Personally, It Is Used Under Prefessional Instruction.
If Any Questions,could Leave Me Message. I Will Answer Asap

[Billyc33]

Back Again

Thought an update would be good.
been called back in to hospital by the dvla to have my sleep apnea checked despite feeling better my consultant says its worse with over 100 episodes in three hours.
So i have agreed to try a cpap machine again (if not my driving liceinse was going to be suspended, blackmail by the consultanat)
According to my consultant there is only one cure for sleep apnea.
so he has told me to meet the sleep nurses and try the different masks untill I get the proper one.

watch this space

[bassetman]

Billyc33,Ive read all the thread,firstly good luck!!I think most of the people on this forum have at sometime or another experienced problems/anger/etc with cpap/apap some more than others! It sounds to me you have not been given the guidance(this helps)instruction on how to set mask up etc.I'm lucky i can telephone my sleep clinic/consultant if i am in difficulty however small or large.One of the first things i was told "It will take time to get used to any problems tel us" I'm currently off work (hgv/driver) have been for the last month,i was diagnosed May 2008 with osa ,everything went well until 5/6 months ago daytime sleepiness creeping back etc.I spoke to the sleep clinic several times but nothing seemed to improve.I had my yearly review mid Jan .new sleep study mid Feb (i'm still off work) they adjusted my machine upping the pressure which was set way to low,and i may have to take modafinil,i won't be back at work for at least another 2 weeks(i have a mortgage to pay etc)but i refuse to drive(anything) until i'm fully sorted.Just give it time ,get ref to another sleep clinic/consultant your entitled to a second opinion,but think yourself lucky i know people who can't even get treatmant/cpap. good luck

[Tricia]

I'm glad that you are going to give it a try again. Please try and persevere a bit longer than one night.

I, too, have suffered with depression before being dx with OSA. I don't believe my depression was caused by OSA, but by the weight I put on after not being able to leave the house because of the depression, and the comfort eating. I understand where you're coming from with that.

I just got my APAP last month, and got used to after about a week. It does take time, and many adjustments of the mask, but it is worth it in the end.

Looking forward to hearing your about your progress this time.

[Billyc33]

thanks for all your replies still waiting for my machine


Billy

[jackyk]

hiya billy, am pleased to hear youre giving it another go.
im 3 weeks into using cpap and still having problems, but persevering.
my first night i was hyperventillating, felt like i was suffocating, and was ready for flinging machine thro closed window, but i kept going and its getting better. i even managed a 6-hour stint on friday night with mask on. have you got good back-up at the hospital? make use of it, i have had to ring for advice a couple of times but they are great. make use of them because as i get told, thats what they are there for.
hope you get your new machine soon and good luck

[Billyc33]

Nothing can be done

Hi,
Went to a nurse today after getting a letter from my consultant sayin it was overweight that was causing my Apnoea and ask for medication to help my weight loss but was told there is nothing they can do. Isnt amazing how when you go for help your told there is no medication to help supress your appetite and to give you energy .

So now I have a potentailly fatal disease and nothing can be done

Billy

[Tricia]

I wouldn't say that nothing can be done exactly. Maybe the NHS won't/can't help you, but you can help yourself.
You can eat less and exercise more without the help of the NHS. It might be harder work, but you do have a good reason to try.

[tallishbloke]

Billy
You are on a revolving problem - You have OSA because you are overweight and so you have no energy to do anything to burn calories. Therefore you are depressed so you comfort eat and you gain more weight, and you are back at the start.
Break the cycle. Get onto CPAP - once you get used to it, you will hopefully get the OSA under control, get more quality sleep, feel less tired, have more energy ,and will be able to do activity which burns calories, thereby making some indent into the problem of being overweight. This will all add up to make you feel less depressed, and so you may not over eat, thereby further helping to reverse the weightgain, which will also improve your OSA, which in turn further enhances sleep and on and on - another cycle, but a positive one.
It may sound like people are preaching but I speak from experience - I have met many people who have gone through the process.
There are medications on the market now that can either help you with appetite suppression, or reduce the amount of fat that is absorbed from the food you eat. Speak to a pharmacist, some are available without prescription.
GO and do it!

[joeandhelen]

I totally agree with Tallishbloke!

Hi Billy,

Right, I'm a psychologist who suffers from severe SDO and chronic pain (I've got a spinal implant to control this pain and take many drugs). As a result, I have suffered clinical depression and often find myself in that downward spiral and negative cycle, as well described by Tallishbloke, which 'in-the-trade' can be referred to the 'revolving door' syndrome. You are going around in circles and need to get off at the right entrance.

You cannot lose weight by dieting alone (Recent research backs this) and it is not about dieting anyway but about lifestyle. You must try the CPAP and keep at it Billy. Boy did I have problems at the start too as I have added complications? Sleep better and you feel less worn out and tired all the time.

I have just undergone months of extreme pain following a spinal operation that failed and struggled to keep using my CPAP. I do not state this for sympathy but to show you that you are not alone with having additional problems to those of sleeping problems.

I am now fixing up my bike and walking the dogs for only short distances at a time. I am eating healthier (Not salads but meat and lots of green veg). I am a carnivore at heart!

You cannot sprint to get better, Billy, but do prepare for a marathon but a slow one. Fitness is a very successful way to treat depression, low-energy levels and weight problems as is doing some voluntary work for your community (Honest!!) and it doesn't have to be taxing. I work with a widllife preservation group and love it. I am no bloody saint nor do-gooder but feel I have had so much help from my family, friends and the NHS I wanna give a little back. I found this helped me massively as it gave me back some self-worth and pride! People know my limitations as I ma very honest abouth my physical problems and mental health issues. After all depression is no different to breaking a leg!

Plan each day with easy tasks a simple physical exercise (MY wife uses Wii), and basic meals that are not fried but grilled or boiled.

Only you can choose this line of action but please do my man. You are not the only one with these problems and extra complications and we do understand how difficult it is but anything is better than how you are feeling now! The nurse can't do it for you but only you can. There are so many diet/lifestyle websites that are free.

Good Luck my man!

JOE

[MrsDanvers]

Well done for giving it another go.

Hi Billy,

I read your first posting and you were very angry; but I wonder if that was because you thought CPAP was a miracle cure? Last week, after a year on CPAP and on my third mask I saw the GP who first referred me to the sleep clinic. She had no idea what she'd let me in for. CPAP isn't a cure, it's a treatment.

My first mask was the wrong type - nasal when I needed full-face, so it wasn't very effective. My second mask rubbed my nose sore and blew air into my eyes - I move too much in my sleep and the mask shifts position and I tightened it too much. I 'm now on mask number three - a hybrid of nasal pillows and mouth covering. I use micro-pore to stop the leakage at the nose. What I'm trying to say is that after a year I'm still trying to get it right. But I do get a better quality of sleep and my partner isn't alternately listening to my snoring or waking me because I've stopped breathing.

I'm losing weight very slowly, but it took me a long time to put this weight on so I can't expect it to drop off like a coat. My GP tells me there are a lot of drawbacks in the fat-loss drugs recently marketed and two have been withdrawn from side-effects, so they aren't the answer and she won't prescribe them. Maybe you could try Weight-watchers, Rosemary Conley or Slimming World which provide support and encouragement as well as diet plans. With Rosemary Conley you also get an exercise class.

A lot of us here were in the same boat as you when we first got the kit; shocked at the diagnosis, appalled at a future of going to bed looking like Darth Vader and pretty depressed through lack of sleep. The way I look at it this machine is potentially saving my life, and it'll do so until I can get my weight down. In fact as I'm asthmatic I could be with it for the rest of my life even if I lose the weight.

Stick with it - it could change your life - for the good.

[Billyc33]

Thanks

Hi
Thanks for your replies which is very good advice. Having oestroathritis in my hips limits the amount of exercise i do but i do excerise at least twice a week for 2 and a half hours. I do understand evryone is different just think my consultant could have helped more with meds

Billy

Hi Billy,

Right, I'm a psychologist who suffers from severe SDO and chronic pain (I've got a spinal implant to control this pain and take many drugs). As a result, I have suffered clinical depression and often find myself in that downward spiral and negative cycle, as well described by Tallishbloke, which 'in-the-trade' can be referred to the 'revolving door' syndrome. You are going around in circles and need to get off at the right entrance.

You cannot lose weight by dieting alone (Recent research backs this) and it is not about dieting anyway but about lifestyle. You must try the CPAP and keep at it Billy. Boy did I have problems at the start too as I have added complications? Sleep better and you feel less worn out and tired all the time.

I have just undergone months of extreme pain following a spinal operation that failed and struggled to keep using my CPAP. I do not state this for sympathy but to show you that you are not alone with having additional problems to those of sleeping problems.

I am now fixing up my bike and walking the dogs for only short distances at a time. I am eating healthier (Not salads but meat and lots of green veg). I am a carnivore at heart!

You cannot sprint to get better, Billy, but do prepare for a marathon but a slow one. Fitness is a very successful way to treat depression, low-energy levels and weight problems as is doing some voluntary work for your community (Honest!!) and it doesn't have to be taxing. I work with a widllife preservation group and love it. I am no bloody saint nor do-gooder but feel I have had so much help from my family, friends and the NHS I wanna give a little back. I found this helped me massively as it gave me back some self-worth and pride! People know my limitations as I ma very honest abouth my physical problems and mental health issues. After all depression is no different to breaking a leg!

Plan each day with easy tasks a simple physical exercise (MY wife uses Wii), and basic meals that are not fried but grilled or boiled.

Only you can choose this line of action but please do my man. You are not the only one with these problems and extra complications and we do understand how difficult it is but anything is better than how you are feeling now! The nurse can't do it for you but only you can. There are so many diet/lifestyle websites that are free.

Good Luck my man!

JOE

[Billyc33]

New Machine

Hi All,
I saw my sleep nurse today and collected my cpap machine I have tried a sleep this afternoon and found it quite good The new machine has a different mask which i admit is more comfortable and I did sleep for 3 hours.

I know it will take a few days or weeks to notice a difference but I willl give it ago .
So far the only side effect is sneezing lol a huge difference from the last time

Billy

[jackyk]

pleased youre giving it another go. good luck x