Newbie seeks CPap for Dummies help

[Carla]

Again I want to thank everyone who has posted to this thread as well as the many others I have been reading. I see that I am definitely not alone in that my machine was delivered and that was it. At the two week mark I started seeing improvement after increasing the humidifier to 3. A small change but helpful. Unfortunately this week I had a major mask disaster with air leaking into my eyes one night. Talk about migraine and dry eyes. EEK! I placed an order for a nasal pillow mask, I believe it's called Swift FX Bella. I have not been able to adjust to the mask they delivered to me. Too bulky. I feel like I'm wearing a scuba mask and it was hot too. I'm in Texas where the thermostat is set to hades.

I did check the information settings for AHI. All I have is therapy hours. No AHI after I scroll down.

Thanks again everyone. I'm determined to stick with this. I've had way too many years of fatigue.

[JJJ]

I did check the information settings for AHI. All I have is therapy hours. No AHI after I scroll down.

The data is also on the machine, but not visible in the little display. The machine also saves the data to an SD card which you can access from the back. Just push it in and release it and then you can take it out. To view the data you need software on your computer and an SD card reader. If you have a laptop it probably has an SD card reader built in. If you have a desktop you may need to buy a USB adapter. The USB adapters are only a few dollars.

For software to view the data on the SD card I use SleepyHead, which is free. You can download it from Sourceforge. You can also use the proprietary software from Respironics, but it runs only on Windows.

I've been doing this for a little over three months and I'm still tweaking and fiddling with things. Tomorrow I will be buying my sixth mask, and that is not unusual. It takes some people a long time to find the right mask. In fact, getting the right mask for you is the hardest part of the process.

Hang in there.

[zonk]

I did check the information settings for AHI. All I have is therapy hours. No AHI after I scroll down.

Thanks again everyone. I'm determined to stick with this. I've had way too many years of fatigue.

I don,t use PRS1 but the user manual (page 11) say it need to be enabled (unlocked in the clinical menu) in order to display AHI on the screen

AHI - The device accumulates individual Apnea/Hypopnea indices (AHI) for each session the patient used the device. This screen displays the average of these individual nightly AHI values over a 7 day and 30 day time frame (provided the device has at least 7 or 30 days of data respectively). If the device has only 5 days of data to use for the calculation, the 5 day average value will be seen under the 7 day display.

This screen only displays if your home care provider has enabled it.

http://respironicsremstars.respironics.c...Manual.pdf

[mjbearit]

I did check the information settings for AHI. All I have is therapy hours. No AHI after I scroll down.

Thanks again everyone. I'm determined to stick with this. I've had way too many years of fatigue.

I don,t use PRS1 but the user manual (page 11) say it need to be enabled (unlocked in the clinical menu) in order to display AHI on the screen

Zonk is absolutely right! I do use the same machine and you have to go into the settings and enable the feature to show the info you are after. If you have not already received the manual for your machine, please do so (look up at the top of the page and look under CPAP Setup Manuals) and unlock the settings, then scroll through the current settings (I started a spreadsheet and typed out each setting category and the value in case I screwed up so I could set it back) and as you scroll down you will see the setting that asks if you want to enable those settings, just change the value to indicate you do want to change it and you will be good to go! If you need help drop me a PM and I'll be happy to assist you.

[trish6hundred]

Hello again Carla, It's GREAT to hear that you are so determined to continue with your therapy and I hope your new mask works out for you but if it doesn't, don't be shy about trying as many masks as it takes 'till you find one that you can work with.

[SleepyGreg]

I started with the medium Resmed nasal pillows, which caused a cut inside my nostril that re-opened every night...
I tried small nasal pillows - couldnt even get through one hour of those, and eventually have settled on a nasal mask - although I have only been on that a week, which is far too short a time to make a decision on.
Especially as after the first 4 days my nose was left feeling "wind-burned" and swollen, and by day I resembled a long time alcohol abuser!
Dont worry though, if it doesnt work, there are always more masks to try until you get one you like.
Stick at it and keep it up - it is very positive that you felt so good after your trial - they kept waking me up during mine to re-fix wires and things! <grins>.

[Sleepster]

I started with the medium Resmed nasal pillows, which caused a cut inside my nostril that re-opened every night...
I tried small nasal pillows - couldnt even get through one hour of those, and eventually have settled on a nasal mask - although I have only been on that a week, which is far too short a time to make a decision on.

Once you feel the injury to your nose has healed, you might want to go back and try the nasal pillows again. This time apply HPA Lanolin to the inside of each nostril before bedtime using a q-tip. You can find it in the baby aisle, sold as a salve for nursing mothers.

I wonder if nasal prongs would help with this problem. On Nov 4 I come up on my one-year anniversary and will be due for a new mask. Maybe I'll try the nasal prongs.

[SleepyGreg]

Thanks Sleepster,
I tried using a beeswax based moisturiser with little effect, and changed to the nasal mask, with which I have had good results until last night.

I woke this morning with a red patch on theleft hand crease of my nose, about half way up, and another mark across the bridge. This time without the uncomfortable sun burn effect. There are no headgear marks in my skin, so I am discounting the mask being too tight, and AHI last night was 2.5, so it hasnt wobbled around TOO much I dont think....

Perhaps I should go back to the nasal pillows at my next rotation (Saturday cleaning day), and see how I get on. Thankfully, I have both.

[lonnieb]

Hi Carla,
Welcome to the Apnea Board
I had so much trouble with my mask to start with but after geting it set everything got better,the head piece was what made mine leak, after setting it all way to the top it was a lot better ,hang in there it will get better and you will learn,it just takes a while.

[Sleepster]

There are no headgear marks in my skin, so I am discounting the mask being too tight, and AHI last night was 2.5, so it hasnt wobbled around TOO much I dont think....

You really need to look at the leak data, not the AHI, to tell if your mask is fitting properly.

Perhaps I should go back to the nasal pillows at my next rotation (Saturday cleaning day), and see how I get on. Thankfully, I have both.

It is nice to have the other mask as a back up. I remember switching back and forth between two different nasal masks, always liking the one I switched to.