I Think I Know What's Waking Me

[Expat31]

No, prefer clean shaven for general comfort. Just a personal choice.

[Idub88]

Once your tongue is in place, give a little swallow to create a bit of suction between your tongue and your soft palate.  And try practicing this throughout the day.

Can I ask how long it took you to get this down?

[Dormeo]

Can I ask how long it took you to get this down?

I can't quite remember.  Maybe a month before it usually worked?  And then another several months before it was pretty much fail-safe?

[Deborah K.]

Yeah, Hypafix is a good tape.  I tried it first, but it hurt like crazy.    I then tried the Cover Roll Stretch tape, thinking it would hurt less because of the stretch.  Nope, and it didn't even seem stretchy to me.  I actually liked the Hypafix better but mention the Cover Roll as I hear it mentioned a lot on the forum by people who like it.

And yes, Milk of Magnesia works great.  Yay!  You spread it by hand on your face where the tape will be applied, then let it mostly dry, then apply the tape.

Dormeo, I'm impressed that the tongue-sucking exercise worked for you!  I tried it early on, but it didn't help me.  Maybe I didn't do it often enough.  How many times per day did you do it, and how long did you have to hold the exercise each time?  Do you still have to do it sometimes now to keep it working?  Your answers could help some hoping to try it.  

[Idub88]

Would you guys mind looking at my charts from last night?  I think I got the mouth leaks under control but it looks kind of choppy.  I've found that fixed pressure is best for me because the pressure changes wake me up.  Is it possible that I should up it a bit?

   
   

[Dormeo]

Nice leak graph -- well done! I wouldn't change the settings if I were you, unless you'd like to try inching the pressure down for the sake of comfort.

Your big question, with great numbers like these, should always be how soundly you sleep and how you feel during the day.

[Idub88]

Your big question, with great numbers like these, should always be how soundly you sleep and how you feel during the day.

Honestly, I am not sleeping soundly and I feel pretty crappy during the day. It's to the point where I think I feel worse than I did before cpap. There are a lot of times I want to give up but I am reminded that I have an AHI of 59.

[Dormeo]

You're right; you can't give up. Three things for you to think about:

Guidelines for better sleep:

• Keep a consistent sleep schedule. Get up at the same time every day, even on weekends or during vacations.
• Set a bedtime that is early enough for you to get at least 7 hours of sleep.
• Don’t go to bed unless you are sleepy.
• If you don’t fall asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed.
• Establish a relaxing bedtime routine.
• Use your bed only for sleep and sex.
• Make your bedroom quiet and relaxing. Keep the room at a comfortable, cool temperature.
• Limit exposure to bright light in the evenings.
• Turn off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
• Don’t eat a large meal before bedtime. If you are hungry at night, eat a light, healthy snack.
• Exercise regularly and maintain a healthy diet.
• Avoid consuming caffeine in the late afternoon or evening.
• Avoid consuming alcohol before bedtime.
• Reduce your fluid intake before bedtime.

When I started using CPAP, I couldn't imagine that following these guidelines would improve my sleep. Finally, in desperation, I gave it a try. Lo and behold, it helped. (For me, that meant not reading in bed while waiting to get sleepy, not drinking alcohol after around 6 pm, and developing a wind-down routine.) It didn't fix everything, but it helped.

Other health issues:

Look up all your medications, prescription and over-the-counter, looking for possible side-effects having to do with sleep or tiredness. If you find some possible culprits, talk with your doctor about changing meds or dosages.

Ask for some testing that includes at least the following: thyroid, iron, testosterone, vitamin D, B vitamins, Lyme disease, and autoimmune disease, especially in the connective-tissue-disease family. Sometimes people have two things going on; addressing just one isn't enough.

Patience. This is very hard when you're suffering, but once you've taken the steps you can take (see above), giving your body time to adjust may be necessary.

Keep us posted, would you?

[Idub88]

Keep us posted, would you?

Thank you for the pointers, I really appreciate it! I definitely will keep you posted. 

I did have to switch antidepressants about 3 weeks ago so that is definitely having a negative effect. I hope things even out soon. It's starting to feel torturous.

[Idub88]

I've pretty well had flow limits under control but last night there is this huge cluster at the beginning of the night.  I did have one nostril that was congested, can that cause it?  There also seem to be moments where my breath looks pretty shallow.  I'm wondering if I should up the pressure.