Four days in

[tonybrentwood]

Hi all,
Well, I started my CPAP experience on Wednesday night, and I think I've been extremely lucky so far with it. The first night I put the mask on, decided not to use the ramp, lay down and closed my eyes and that was it until the morning. I woke with the mask still on and nicely sealed, only problem being a dry mouth, but that only happened on that first night. I sleep on my back and used a Type 1250 hoselift supplied by James which kept the hose clear of tangling. I also used a hose cover which my wife reckoned made it look a bit less 'medical'.

My machine is a Resmed S8 Escape 11, mask is Resmed Mirage Micro nasal.

I was a bit dissapointed to find that I did not leap out of bed after the first night and perform cartwheels around the bedroom as I had been reading posts that said the feeling of the first good night's sleep with the machine is amazing, but I just felt sort of normal, maybe a bit less yawney than usual. I still feel the same after three nights, but I guess it might take a bit of time to catch up on probably over 10 years of sleep depravation. My wife says that I no longer snore, I still stop breathing but apparently the machine ups it's pressure and I breathe normally again very wuickly.

I would appreciate some help with the readout on the screen of the machine, does it show how many hours proper sleep I've had, or just how long the machine has been used for? The readings are:
Used Hours-36
SW: SX467-0100
Usage 4/4

That seems to be all the info I can get from the patient menu, maybe I need to use the memory card and a reader to find out if my sleep pattern is now good. With a bit of luck I should be back behind the wheel soon, DVLA permitting of course.
A quick update re my argument with the Health Authority regarding having to buy then sign over my machine to them, I've had two articles about it in the local papers, and an email from a news agency asking to talk to me on Tuesday to see if national papers might be interested in the story. I've also had a letter from the Mid Essex Trust saying they have started an investigation and that they will get back to me.
Well that's it so far, I'm actually enjoying using the machine as it seems that I no longer toss and turn to get to sleep, my head hits the pillow and I'm gone. Hopefully after another couple of weeks I'll be doing the cartwheel thing!

By the way, when I collected the mask from the hospital the physio told me to be carefull when travelling with the machine in it's bag as they'd had a couple of machines nicked due to being mistaken for laptops, the bags are very similar to a laptop bag.

Regards,
Tony

[jossmax]

Tony I am pleased that you have rattled a few cages. It needed to be done.
With regards to reading your machine. It tells you in the hand book how to navigate through the various options and read outs. If you did'nt get a hand book then visit the Resmed site. Did you get the DVD?

[Brummie Jon]

access to menus

Hi

I don't have a RESMED but I couldn't access all of the menus on the Remstar... a quick google took me to another forum that showed how to unlock the other menus, locked by the technician... try it for your machine....

BJ

[tonybrentwood]

Hi Guys,
I didn't get a dvd with the machine, and I think the Specialist must have locked the menu for finding out how much shut eye I'm getting. I think I've worked out the SW stands for software?. I'd like to know how I'm doing as I'm going to try to get my license back in a week or so and I want to be able to tell the DVLA how much kip I'm getting. Another member has kindly given me info on a card reader etc to buy, but it involves cutting things to fit the Resmed card, and I'm not very technically minded, so would probably muck it up.
I've ben reading about nasal pillows on the site, looks interesting, I might give one a try when I get some money come in, any thoughts on which one and how good they are?

[Brummie Jon]

Taken from elsewhere on the internet

This is for a RESMED S8

By pressing the Left and Right buttons and holding for 4-5 seconds Efficacy Data will appear on the LCD screen. From then on it is a simple matter of pressing the Left button to Enter, Right button to Exit, Up button to return to the previous screen and Down button to proceed to the next screen. Data available from the Efficacy Data menu are the 95th percentile of Pressure and of Leak, that night's AHI, AI and the compliance (usage) data, i.e. number of hours used that night, number of hours used and number of nights used. The Efficacy Data averages for the past week, month, 6 months and year are also available. You can NOT alter your therapy settings intentionally or accidentally from this advanced patient menu. IF Efficacy Data doesn't appear w/this button combo press then your local DME supplier didn't turn access to that menu on in the Clinicians Menu and you will have to ask them to turn that access on or go into the Clinicians Menu to turn access on yourself.

If you discover how to access the Clinicians Menu - BEFORE you attempt to go into the Clinicians Menu make sure you have a pen and paper handy and write down what appears on EACH screen before you proceed to the next screen so that if you accidentally or intentionally change any of your therapy settings you will know what they were and can change back to them if you need or want to.

The Resmeds can't be beat for ease of access to and the amount of data via the LCD screen.

Try it

BJ

[tonybrentwood]

Hi Jon,
Thanks for the info, you inspired me to try to enter the clinicians menu and I've done it!
I just had to press the up and right buttons and hold for a couple of seconds and I was in!
Even in this menu I can't seem to see if it tells me how many hours sleep I've had, but i got into th menu just as I was about to go out so I'll have a closer look tonight.
Thanks for the info again,
Tony.

[Astreb]

Summary data

Hi Tony
I think you'll find you only have access to summary data (not detailed) on your machine. Not AHI and pressures etc.
Regards
Tony

[Astreb]

Data availability

Hi Tony
See this site for data availability:

http://www.resmed.com/au/products/resscan/resscan-data-access.html?nc=clinicians&sec=true

Regards
Tony

[Floatyboaty]

I'm not sure but I don't think that cpap shows AHI and pressures, even in the clinicians menu. An apap will apparently. Cpap are usually set to whatever the clinic diagnosed from your sleep study.

This is from what I have read on these forums so I may not have understood it correctly.

[tonybrentwood]

Hi Guys,
Thanks for your info and thoughts, I'm very confused with all this lark, what is AHI? I'm guessing it's Actual Hours something, also do CPAP machine's memory give actual hours that I am sleeping, and does it record the number of times I stop breathing if I am still suffering episodes? Sorry if I sound a bit thick but I'm just a bit baffled as to what is recorded. I still like the idea being able to read the data card myself, but it seems from other helpfull info from another Forum Member that the equipment can be bought but the card has to be cut to fit the reader so too complicated for me. I'm still chuffed that you guys got me to experiment and get into the clinicians menu so maybe my understanding of the workings of CPAP machgines will increase.
Tony.

[tonybrentwood]

Sorry Guys (and Gals, I refer to everyone as Guys),
I forgot to mention that I've had a reply from my MP regarding provision of CPAP machines by my Health Authority, he says he has written to the Chief Exec of the Trust and will contact me when he gets a reply.
Also last night I woke at 3am to find myself ripping the mask off and being in a bit of a panic. It's the first time I've had a problem with feeling claustrophobic using the mask, but I had a glass of water, realised that I was feeling very hot (my wife says to say that I was hot only in a sweaty way lol), turned on a fan aimed at my head and tried the mask again. The air seemed to be coming out of the mask a bit warm, I had put the CPAP in the side cabinet by the bed, perhaps it had got a little hot in there. I was worried, because I'm prone to a bit of claustrophobia but once cool I drifted off again untill the morning. I'd be very interested in your experiences with nasal pillows as I think it would make me feel less 'closed in' than the nasal mask, but I'd need to be sure that it would work for me before commiting to buying one. I know that it would be a waste of time asking the hospital if they could provide one to try, I've already had my one yearly mask and that came with conditions (you can tell how annoyed I am with the CPAP provision by the way I keep moaning about it). I'm feeling positive again now after my fright, I'm moving the machine into open space and putting the fan on before I go to sleep so fingers crossed I'll wear the mask all night.
Regards,
Tony.

[Astreb]

SA explained

Hi Tony
See below for quick explanation of AHI etc:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_apnea

If you have the Resmed S8 Escape 2 like me then you can only download or see basic data not including AHI etc.
Other Resmed models supply this data though - see my previous post for info on this.
I still like to see the limited downloaded data from the S8 though as it a good record of useage etc.
Regards
Tony:

[tonybrentwood]

Hi Tony (seems like I'm talking to myself lol),
Thanks for the info, it's very comprehensive and I'm pretty well informed now. Ain't the Forum great, ask a question and always get a nice polite answer- Thanks Mate.
Tony (not you, me!)

[Floatyboaty]

Hi Tony and other Tony and Others!

I have been having sinus problems which causes toothache and when I am suffering even the slightest pressure from the mask is excruciating. I explained this over the phone to the sleep clinic and they put me on the waiting list for nasal pillows. They arrived the other day but not tried them yet.
Might be worth trying this with your lot, nothing to lose! On examination of the new mask there is much less facial cover so I think you will feel less claustophobic.
I too use a fan at night it really helps keep cool. From posts I have read on here it may be your upper and lower pressures are wrongly set for you, cpap are normally set as standard factory settings.
On my cpap I upped both of mine in the clinicians menu by 1 and it stopped this mask ripping off in the night malarky!
Have a read around the forum re the advice on pressures, worth it I think. As you say this forum is full of useful advice

[James @ Intus]

Many people with claustraphobic feelings towards nasal or full face masks opt for nasal pillow masks. A humidifier may be needed for comfort and to ensure the nasal airways stay open. Nasal pillows are not a good idea if your sinusses are blocked chronically.