I have officially joined the club!

[wheaton4prez]

Well see there you have it, if you are awake when it is happening, as you go to sleep then it is just the unit picking up data that doesn't really matter. If when you are asleep there is nothing than you are doing better. I'll ost a chart so you can see, and compare.

Mr Youtube can be found at http://www.youtube.com there are many videos there after a search of what you are looking for.

Hah. I thought there was someone on the board using the nickname "Mr. Youtube". My APAP is obviously not working 100% yet.

Looking at some youtube videos, I think I might need a different cushion for the mask. Can I just get those direct somewhere or do they also require a subscription order via doctor?

Interesting. The graph shows that many of the events are happening as I'm going to sleep. In fact, almost all of the Clear Airway events are at that time. The OSA events almost completely go away after the first 30 minutes.

There are a lot of "Vibratory Snore" events later during sleep...

Anything that occurs when you're awake doesn't count. It's called "Sleep Apnea" because the breathing thingies that occur when we're asleep are different than the breathing thingies that occur when we're awake. The machine, not being Santa Clause, cannot tell the difference between when we're awake and when not. So your observation regarding the CA's showing up while you're going to sleep make sense. They're bogus, and can be ignored.

Vibratory snore does not necessarily mean "snore" snore. It may just be mask leakage.

Got it. Is there a way to "trim" the data so that I can remove the unhelpful part of the data from the numbers?

[Galactus]

Here you go if you look at the events at the end there that was just me laying in bed awake, and the machine recording me while I was awake. That data can be ignored. And if you subtract those number of events you will have a truer ahi count.

[Galactus]

AHI = Hypopnea + Obstructive Apnea + Clear Airway Apnea, and those numbers are calculated as events per hour, so you can do the math and back them out of the calculation. But if they are all in the end and all in the beginning you can pretty well ignore them. By the way that graph I consider tio be a good night even with all the events still a good night.

[wheaton4prez]

Got it. Looks like it's working for me during actual sleep times then. A lot of my "events" might have been me telling my daughter to go to sleep through the mask.

I didn't feel this yesterday. But, today I have a persistent sort of tingling in my chest. It doesn't necessarily feel like a bad thing. Maybe just my body getting used to breathing differently over night? Is that something anyone else has reported when starting out? Anything to be concerned about?

[becker44a]

. . .
I did not have a titration study. The guy giving me the machine said that the doctor probably didn't know what to prescribe so just gave me the full range. I figure that it shouldn't matter much if the machine automatically goes to where it's supposed to, right?

The profile is filled out now reflecting what I have so far.

They did not give me the humidifier. They said that the doctor has to specifically prescribe that separately or insurance won't cover it. So, I have to go back to the doctor and have them send that px in and they'll ship it to me. After one half night of using the mask, I feel a little painfully dry. So, this has to be done.

I thought that I might have nasal problems and needed the full mask. But, I used it for only half the night and I found that I started breathing through my nose and kept my mouth shut with it on. Without CPAP I only breathe through my mouth at night.
. . .

Hi wheaton,
Good job on getting a full-data machine - that was the first big step.

I'm not surprised you're finding that the humidifier should be helpful. This is normally considered a "Comfort" feature, and usually doesn't require a separate Rx. I suspect your DME is using this as a means to bill something more than if the humidifier was delivered with the machine.

Regarding the pressure range. You are correct that the machine will eventually find the pressure level that will be sufficient to control your apneas, or hit the top of the range. But if the bottom setting is too low, it takes the machine some time and you will have some apneas that could have been controlled. Also, some people have a sensation of "not getting enough air" when the pressure is too low. Many find a starting pressure of 4 is too low to be comfortable, and prefer it to be up around 6 or 7.

On the upper side, you want to pressure to be enough to counter the apneas, but not much more. Pressure higher than is needed can cause some discomfort or other undesirable effects. Generally, the higher pressures make for more leaks. If you are prone to air-swallowing (aerophagia), excessive pressure can make this problem worse. For a few people, pressures near the upper limits can affect the eyes, inner ears, etc.

For many, optimizing therapy will mean watching the data, checking and controlling the leaks, and understanding what pressures are needed to control your events.

Once you have the software set up and start checking your data, you can certainly post results here and ask for help in interpretation.

Good luck on your journey.