AHI of 0.0. Woke up exhausted.

[dalderson66]

I’m 5 and a half weeks in Cpap treatment. I’ve not had an issue with my mask or leaking. My pressure was prescribed at 16 but I had trouble so dropped it down to 10 for a few weeks. Last week increased it to 11 and will continue to climb as and when it feels right to do so. 

Last night my machine recorded an ahi of 0.0. I woke up really tired (like always). I’m just wondering if I’m expecting too much. I sort of generally feel better but it’s not linear and it’s becoming a rollercoaster ride. Up then down. Glimpses of what not being exhausted all the time feels like. I would have though 0.0 would have resulted in feeling more alert. I guess I’m wondering at what point do I have to consider it’s something else? I’m getting 4-5 hours solid sleep. When I inevitably wake up at around 2am it’s hit or miss if I fall back to sleep. I have insomnia issues kind of on top of apnea issues it seems. I’ve been too tired to exercise every day which usually helps me get a good nights sleep. Sometimes I’m just too aware of mask/pressure to just drift back to sleep. I’m wondering if this slows the repaying of sleep debt. 

I know I should keep going. But it’s such a drain. I’m tired of being tired and my life has just shrunk because of this. Work is extremely difficult. I guess I’m looking for some hope and wisdom from anyone who took a while to really see the benefits.

[sawinglogz]

Welcome! I too have been in the world of 0.0 AHI but still feeling awful, but am much improved, so there is hope!

It sounds like something is going on for you. Did you wake up around 2am before CPAP? Do you take your mask off at 2am now, or do you keep trying to use it through the night? How long do you wait before you decide you're not going back to sleep?

(Edit: I see that you're already using OSCAR and posting screenshots, so discussion of how to do that removed.)

[dalderson66]

Thanks for replying. Yeah my sleep has always been spotty. No problem getting to sleep but having a tendency to wake up and not get back to sleep has always been there. So far it’s rare I take my mask off. It doesn’t provide much discomfort so I can keep it on. My average is about 7 hours a night. On a bad night I’m aware of my breath so much and the sound of breathing it can keep me awake. I’m thinking I have a generalized insomnia issue that is kind of separate from apnea issues that is keeping me awake/spotty sleep and slowing down my recovery. I’ll post some Oscar screenshots when I’m home from work but I get the feeling that everything is working as it should. I don’t appear to have large leaks. I’m usually aware I’m going to be awake for the rest of the night after around 15-20 minutes. I’d say this happens 4 nights a week.


I guess there are things I can do to better my sleep hygiene if I’m honest. I’m almost there. One thing is I’ve gotten into the habit of napping at lunchtime. I used to go to the nearby gym but I feel so tired I end up snoozing in my car for 10-15 mins. Im going to try and break that habit this week.

[Dog Slobber]

If you had an AHI of 0.0 and are getting a fair amount of nights well below 1, then moving to your target pressure of 16 from 11, may not be necessary. Perhaps post a few OSCAR charts.

An AHI of 0.0 doesn't mean you will get a good restful night's sleep. It just means that Sleep Apnea is probably not the culprit. 

You're still relatively new to CPAP, could be you are still adjusting to sleeping with a foreign object hanging off your face.