CPAP gives me 7 hours of continuous sleep, but.......

[Dingleroad]

I've been using my CPAP for about a year now. It has stopped my snoring,my wife thinks it's the best thing since sliced bread. I can get over 7 hours of quality sleep....or is it really quality sleep ?
Just recently I've been begining to doubt how good the quality of CPAP sleep is. With all that extra air and oxygen being forced into the blood stream, it certainly makes me dream a great deal more. But is that 'quality sleep' or is my brain being forced into becoming too active ? I don't know, maybe some expert could comment.

The reason I ask this question is because, after a night of CPAP sleep I wake to quite a heavy head, almost like a mini hangover which can last for several hours into the day. If I then spend the next night without CPAP, I might wake up more times during the night, but I can feel a lot more 'with it' in the morning.
Consequently if I have a really important day at work coming up, I need to make sure the previous night is without CPAP but that night needs to be proceeded by 2 or 3 nights WITH CPAP.

The answer for me seems to be CPAP, but not every night.

[pavarottiman]

Quality or not quality sleep?

That is the question?, if you are having 7hrs of undisturbed sleep that would suggest the CPAP is doing it's job, however I have this condition which occurs which leads me to a theory that even though I use a humidifier, the CPAP does cause dehydration, which in the long term causes the feeling of having been out on the jag the night before. I also care for a few people and find that they have a lot of issues that are hightened due to the amounts of liquids that they consume. The CPAP by vurtue of it's operation, is an air dryer, and the humidifiers can in no way compensate for the amount of moisture expelled during the constant blast of air, if it did, you would drown.
So make sure you have sufficient fluids during the day, this works for me and I have been experimenting with methods to reduce the condensing of water in the hose and rain out. If I put the CPAP on a stool next to my bed and coil the hose up under my pillow leading the mask end out and over the top of my pillow there is no collection of water, no rain out, I can move when needed and get the best from the humidifier without the heated hoses, 7hrs sleep no probs etc.
I appreciate there are a lot of issues with different climates, heat in bedrooms etc, this is nothing more than it is working for me, a bit of info and maybe a help to others, also, if those who give it a go find it works then it maybe another tip for other hose heads?
Best of luck.
Alex.

[Dingleroad]

OK thanks for the reply. I might just keep a glass of water by my bed to rehydrate during the night and see if this has an effect.
I don't use a humidifier, so maybe this is something I need to look at.

[Tigers Fan]

Not an expert, so.....

In my understanding........

Dreams are not caused by high levels of oxygen being forced into our lungs but because you are now getting REM sleep. Dreams indicate that your CPAP is working just fine and doing its job.

A CPAP will help your lungs work properly but you won't hyperventilate because of that.

Humidifiers are not about hydrating our bodies but are about giving us moist air to protect and maintain the mucus membranes in our airways.

If you go to bed poorly hydrated and add another seven hours without fluid intake then you are pretty much guaranteed to wake with a dehydration headache. Drink lots through the day and cut way down in the evening to give your bladder a seven hour chance.

TF

[Richard]

Quality Sleep

One of the characteristics of untreated OSA is that you never dream. To have dreams you need REM (Rapid Eye Movement)) sleep, which is step three or four along the path of healthy sleep. If you're having 'apnoeas' every few minutes or seconds, you never achieve that goal, hence you never dream.

On that single response, you can say that CPAP is working well for you, and the headache you wake up with is most likely dehydration, as Pavarottiman has said.

I have a water-cooler outside the bedroom-door and a bottle of Robinson's Orange Squash handy, so if I wake up during the night, I can get myself a cold drink and go happily back to sleep.

Unfortunately, I am now hooked on orange squash!

Seven hours a night sounds good, but it should be every night.

Keep up the good work

Richard

[Dingleroad]

Yes I see now, the mild headache I have in the morning must be due to dehydration

[Tigers Fan]

Not nessacelery

Could someone be pounding on your head every third night?

[kickpupwonder]

CPAP is for every night...

You did not say if you just started the CPAP or not. My answer is based on the chance that you just started CPAP.

7 hours might be too much too soon and your heavy head feeeling in the morning is a reflection of that possibility.

However....

If this your "heavy head feeling" is ongoing (such as 1-3 months into it), I'd just call the sleep doctor and ask if this is a normal response. Something in your medical history could be influencing your response or not. Your physician can help shed light on this possibility. Otherwise, your body will continue to adjust and at some point the heavy head feeling will pass. Are other side effects happening? (light-headedness, dizziness, bloating, etc) keep that in mind as well...

If this is ongoing (past 3-6 or more months) without additional side effects, your body is going through positive changes. There could be a "turning point of adaptation" that could arrive at anytime. That means there could be relief from that "heavy head feeling) at some point.

Hope that helps!

[Dingleroad]

OK thanks for the advice. I've had the CPAP for about a year, but I've only been using it regularly for the last 6 months

[Sleep2Snore]

You may need a humidifier if you don't have one, it might help.
A dull headache can be caused by a simple thing like the straps being to tight.
If you have just started using the machine regularly is the pressure to high?
Air leaking into the eyes can also give you a headache.
Another thing to get checked is your blood pressure.

[James @ Intus]

Indeed it could be many things. Some people have other lung function issues which causes a far from perfect CO2-O2 balance, which can cause all sorts of problems. It's not the CPAP that is 'causing' this. Unless you're one of those who actually needs BiPAP instead because of lung function problems. But that's rare in those who other than OSA are otherwise healthy.

[OldCrow]

Dream Machine

Boy do I get some interesting dreams with CPAP - which you say is REM sleep though I do wonder about all the oxygen. The dreams are never frightening but my soul certainly wanders off to some interesting places now. Have to say I quite enjoy the experience, I've always had a vivid imagination and it's better than the movies on TV, sometimes plain weird but often beautiful sunlit woodlands where I can be at peace and run and jump like a youngster or even fly...psycho-cpap???

[Tigers Fan]

In "Monroe" last week, it turned out to be a brain tumour! but in you it's REM dreams. No wonder doctors are paid so much!

[ohcrob]

I'm only here for the vivid dreams!

[Berneta]

Dreams?

Go buy or rent "Alice in Wonderland" and you will have some dreams of mine. I can't tell if Alice is Alice-- or if I am! I sleep well--but there is never a dull moment. I seem to remember them all. xx Berneta