Gonna be doing a different kind of vaping tonight...

[MissyG]

First night to try to sleep with a CPAP machine. Doctor recommended a sleep study, but my Dad has a spare machine and a friend who programs them so we went today and had it set to a very low pressure and got me a nasal pillow mask. I knew I could not stand one of those full face masks. Gonna see if I can even stand to sleep with one before I add another medical bill for the sleep study to my already too tall pile. If I can handle it then I will probably go to the sleep study so I can see exactly what pressure I need. I know I snore but neither my parents (who I live with now) or my husband have ever noticed I stop breathing, but my nutrition doctor thinks my snoring is interfering with my sleep and thus interfering with my ability to lose some weight.

A CPAP machine has a water tank where you put distilled water in so you get water vapor to keep your nasal passages moist....sure wish I could put some ejuice in there! It might make it more bearable!

 

[Ryedan]

My wife got a CPAP machine in the spring and it completely did away with her apnea. It did however take her a week to get used to sleeping with it. She also didn't think she was any more rested in the morning until she didn't use it one night and saw the difference the next day. She is using a small mask covering her nose only. She also prefers a setting on it that only supplies pressure when she inhales.

It's working very well for her. Hope it's not too hard for you to get used to. There are also other machine settings and features that can help with that and the different mask types.

Good luck and let us know how it goes

 

[celticluvr]

My mom never noticed if my dad stopped breathing but when he went for his sleep study he stopped breathing once every 10 minutes. I don't want to alarm you though. Everyone is different and I hope it all works out for you.

It really would be cool if you could use e-liquid in it.

 

[MissyG]

My wife got a CPAP machine in the spring and it completely did away with her apnea. It did however take her a week to get used to sleeping with it. She also didn't think she was any more rested in the morning until she didn't use it one night and saw the difference the next day. She is using a small mask covering her nose only. She also prefers a setting on it that only supplies pressure when she inhales.

It's working very well for her. Hope it's not too hard for you to get used to. There are also other machine settings and features that can help with that and the different mask types.

Good luck and let us know how it goes

The mask I got only covers my nose too. My dad has had a CPAP for years and uses the mask that covers more of his face. I tried it on and knew immediately that that particular mask was not going to work for me. The nose only mask seems like it will be more bearable. Luckily for me I already taken Ambien to help me sleep. The nerve damage in my feet causes a lot of pain and I have a bit of nerve damage in my spinal cord that causes muscle twitches so I already don't always get the best night's sleep. I take medication for the neuropathy and I am hoping the Ambien will help get me over the hurdle of falling asleep initially.

 

[MissyG]

My mom never noticed if my dad stopped breathing but when he went for his sleep study he stopped breathing once every 10 minutes. I don't want to alarm you though. Everyone is different and I hope it all works out for you.

It really would be cool if you could use e-liquid in it.

I was in the hospital for two months because of my neuropathy (I lost the ability to move my legs for a year and a half). I was closely monitored the whole time so if I do stop breathing with my snoring, I don't think it is horrible. My mom remembers lying in bed and waiting for my Dad to start breathing again and having to give him a sharp elbow poke several times to make him breath before he got his CPAP. If I do okay with it, I will book the sleep study, I just hate to spend the money on the study if I KNOW there is no way in heck I can handle the mask and machine and wouldn't use it anyway no matter what the study said. I have been through a ton of surgeries and medical procedures and the looming threat of the CPAP machine has been what I have dreaded most. I come from a LONG line of bad snorers down from my father's side, so I knew this day would come someday.

Eliquid in a CPAP would be pretty rad wouldn't it? They should figure out a way to flavor the water if you use the water portion of the machine. That would be awesome!

 

[alisa1970]

Get your thyroid checked--seriously. All your other issues, including sleep apnea, can be caused by being untreated or undertreated. A "normal" standard lab value (TSH) means nothing. My apnea and obstructive snoring literally disappeared once I started replacement hormone. You can PM me if you like.

 

[loxmythe]

Good luck. They really do work wonders. I used to actually fall asleep driving
Took a few weeks of trying masks to find one that worked for me but once I did it was amazing how much better I felt in general.
Look into a bipap machine - it actually breathes with you so you don't have the forceful blowing that feels like your driving 100 mpg with your head hanging out a car window.
Also look into a hybrid mask like the resmed mirage liberty. I love mine.

 

[Hammerfyst]

I currently have a BiPap and I love it. I was falling asleep while driving, at my desk, everywhere. Went to the sleep study and they put one on me that night. 4 hours of sleep with it and I was new man! I felt great!

 

[DC2]

My wife has some pretty bad sleep apnea, which got worse when she gained some weight.
I used to lie awake at night waiting for her to stop breathing, and I may have gotten less sleep than she did.

But she went on Weight Watchers and lost 20 pounds, which believe it or not made a big difference.
But then she was only 5'4 and 150 pounds so that 20 pounds was a lot for her.

The second piece of the puzzle was to train her to sleep with her head in the proper position.
Which to this day still means never sleeping on her back, and when on her side sleeping with her chin tucked.

That makes a HUGE difference with her, for whatever that's worth.

When she sleeps on her back, or on her side with her head up, she has problems.
When she sleeps on her side with her chin tucked she sleeps like a baby.


It always sounded counter-intuitive to me, this thing about sleeping with your chin tucked.
I would have thought that would close your airways more than open them, but apparently it works the opposite way.

Who knew?

 

[HauntedMyst]

CPAP rocks! I can't sleep without mine. It's like a sleeping turbo charger. My problem was the opposite of DC2's. I'd wake up with my wife holding a pillow over my face whispering "Just go to sleep...forever...." Now with the CPAP it doesn't matter how much she pressed on my face, I can still breath.

 

[MissyG]

I have been using it now for a little over a week I guess and it is awesome. I have no problems getting to sleep and I can definitely see an increase in energy. NOW if I can just be disciplined enough to go to sleep at a reasonable time. When you don't have to wake up at a certain time for work it is hard. Because of my health issues I live with my parents right now and my mom gets me up at 8:45 or so every morning, but that does not stop me from staying up late because I know I can always take a nap. I have always been a night owl though so it is hard. I get it from my mom. When she was younger she would stay up till 2 or 3 in the morning sometimes reading. My dad goes to bed at 8:30 pm, lol. He is retired and doesn't have to get up early, but he is the opposite and has always been an early riser. He get up around 6:30 and lets the dogs out and makes himself breakfast and watches the news or reads the paper. It does let my mom sleep a bit longer though because she doesn't have to worry about getting up early so the doggies can go potty, lol.

 

[Iffy]

I'd wake up with my wife holding a pillow over my face whispering "Just go to sleep...forever...." Now with the CPAP it doesn't matter how much she pressed on my face, I can still breath.

 

[Ryedan]

I have been using it now for a little over a week I guess and it is awesome. I have no problems getting to sleep and I can definitely see an increase in energy.

Good to hear it's working for you MissyG

 

[drift]

I used to fall asleep standing up..... Or with the TV remote in my hand pointed at the TV and changing channels-drove the family nuts. They'd be waiting for the channel to change and not realizing that I was completely gone because my hand was in mid air pointing the remote at the TV. When they tested me, they found I stopped breathing 61 times an hour. And I snored loudly enough to knock down a house. It was awful..... The CPAP machine literally saved my life. I use a Hybrid Full Face CPAP Mask with Nasal Pillows and it is a joy. Is it a PIA? Yeah. Is the hose annoying at times? Yeah. Would I ever sleep without it again? HELL NO!

 

[drift]

Have to admit, I've been temped to drop a couple menthol crystals in my water tank just to see what it's like....... Haven't worked up the nerve to mess with something that is working so well for me now but getting there. LOL. Good luck with your cpap.

 

[HauntedMyst]

When it's winter and I get a stuffy nose, I put some Vicks in the hose for a nice Mentholy sleep.

 

[Crash Moses]

When it's winter and I get a stuffy nose, I put some Vicks in the hose for a nice Mentholy sleep.

This. Or just put some Vick's mentholated rub on top of the tank (inside but not "in" the water). I love that.

 

[AndriaD]

My husband and I have had to go to separate bedrooms, his snoring and "sleep jumping" is so extreme. He had a sleep study at one point, and the doctor says, "do you know you move 20 times in one hour?" My husband's like, "yeah, my wife told me I move every 3 minutes, she lays there and counts, since I'm keeping her awake!"

After a lot of reading, I advised my husband to try iron supplements; a lot of the sleep-movement issues seem related to iron deficiency, which he has a history of in any case, and it helped him a great deal, but after he was diagnosed with hypertension, they made him quit taking the iron -- which is when we finally decided separate bedrooms were the only way to save the marriage.

He's another of these folks who can fall asleep at the drop of a hat -- if he holds still for 30 seconds, he drops right off -- trying to watch TV with the man is infuriating! But I wonder if this is more because of the godawful snoring than the jumping around in his sleep. His sleep study showed no indication of apnea, so they never suggested the cpap, but I have to wonder. It's not normal to fall asleep that quickly.

Andria

 

[Stringplucker]

I've been using a full face CPAP mask and machine for nearly 2 years now. When I went in for the sleep study, I went to sleep at 10pm. At 1am, the tech was waking me because I had stopped breathing so many times, that the attending nurse had called for a crash cart to be placed outside my room. I was setting off every alarm they had me wired to. They woke me to put a mask on me, and I slept like a baby.

My machine is set to 17, and the max on this machine is 20. I, too, have the humidifier tank on the side, which I adjust according to my needs. The bad thing about it is that I wake up with seriously dry mouth, and have had to use a special mouthwash due to thrush a few times.

I have noticed no difference in my CPAP needs since I started vaping, other than the lack of that persistent smoker's cough I used to have. I wish I was able to put some sort of a menthol liquid in the water when I have a cold. At best, I open a jar of Vick's and place it next to the air filter after putting some on my upper lip to help keep me open and free of congestion.