I have the cpap model...not the elite

[quiescence at last]

OP is indeed struggling, and primary is help getting more sleep. Now that we know that leak and AHI being reported is within band, her current machine is clearly helping her. More sleep is needed. Ideas for more sleep can either be via consult with her physician/care team, or family and friends.

[by the way, OP probably has decided what the next step will be.]

One more bit of friendly advice - use the machine every time you sleep, take sick days or portions to make up sleep. just keep getting up when you are not comfortable sleeping (i.e. can't seem to breathe or sore body somehow) take a break, then go back to sleep. Taking showers or baths, meditating, listening to cool music, taking medications that seem necessary. This is job one!

Feeling satisfied with the results, feelings, etc. is downstream. Trust the process. Satisfaction will come. For some, it takes a while.

mzzy d, what did the sleep study say your AHI or RDI was?

btw. usually progression is slow (measured in months versus weeks or days) in severe cases of sleep deprivation. keep connected with physician and a good friend.

QAL

[bwexler]

If it were me I would demand the Airsense 10 Autoset for Her and nothing less.
You should print out this entire thread and take it and your current Brick to the DME on Monday.

Without a full data capable machine NO ONE will have any idea of how well your therapy is working, or not working.

vShailine provided the clearest explanation, as he often does.

[mzdawn74]

OP is indeed struggling, and primary is help getting more sleep. Now that we know that leak and AHI being reported is within band, her current machine is clearly helping her. More sleep is needed. Ideas for more sleep can either be via consult with her physician/care team, or family and friends.

[by the way, OP probably has decided what the next step will be.]

One more bit of friendly advice - use the machine every time you sleep, take sick days or portions to make up sleep. just keep getting up when you are not comfortable sleeping (i.e. can't seem to breathe or sore body somehow) take a break, then go back to sleep. Taking showers or baths, meditating, listening to cool music, taking medications that seem necessary. This is job one!

Feeling satisfied with the results, feelings, etc. is downstream. Trust the process. Satisfaction will come. For some, it takes a while.

mzzy d, what did the sleep study say your AHI or RDI was?

btw. usually progression is slow (measured in months versus weeks or days) in severe cases of sleep deprivation. keep connected with physician and a good friend.

QAL

Thank you for your responce. My AHI was 10.5 and 34 during REM. My RDI was 11.4

---

If it were me I would demand the Airsense 10 Autoset for Her and nothing less.
You should print out this entire thread and take it and your current Brick to the DME on Monday.

Without a full data capable machine NO ONE will have any idea of how well your therapy is working, or not working.

vShailine provided the clearest explanation, as he often does.

Agreed!

[kaiasgram]

Hi Dawn,

I was trying to help you on the other forum. I hope this will help you and clarify some things for others here:

I reviewed the product information for the CPAP model and the Elite model in the Healthcare Professionals section of the ResMed website. Please, Dawn, take your time to read this and take it in:

In terms of data, both models show the AHI. The difference is that the Elite breaks down the AHI event types (obstructive, hypopnea and central), while the CPAP model only shows the total AHI. This would certainly be a handicap if your AHI was too high but right now that is not the case. Your AHI is below 1.0 every night so far. So even if all your events so far have been centrals, it would not be a clinical concern because the total is well below 5.0.

The second difference is that the CPAP model does not record data in such a way that you could use software (like SleepyHead) to generate graphs of night-long activity. So you have an AHI and a leak number, but you can't see what happened at what point(s) during the night. This would be a bigger disadvantage if you were on an APAP machine with changing pressures and you needed to see if the pressure fluctuations were associated with apneas, leaks or wakes. With a single fixed pressure there's less to examine since your pressure doesn't change -- though it could prove helpful to get a closer look at your leak graph -- your leaks are in the acceptable range but it might be helpful to see if your leaks are mostly running low, or if they're jumping around a lot during the night and potentially disrupting your sleep.

To be clear (and obvious) -- there's no doubt that a full data machine (Elite or Autoset) is the best choice under any circumstances, and less than two weeks into your therapy I agree that it is worth trying to obtain a full data machine now. But in the meantime and while you're working this out you should know that your apnea is effectively under control and you are not getting suboptimal treatment. Your CPAP model blowing at 8cm pressure is delivering the exact same therapy as an Elite blowing at 8cm pressure or an Autoset blowing at 8cm pressure.

The biggest concern is the fact that you're feeling worse and not better. This is really not unusual. It's hard for most people to get used to all the strange sensations of using a CPAP machine and that often means things get worse before they get better. Unfortunately you were already feeling terrible before you even started treatment. You will likely be someone who needs to give this a lot more time, and to go well above and beyond just having effective apnea control before you start to feel consistently better. For example, the depression may have been brought about by untreated sleep apnea, but it is real and it still may need attention now. Doesn't necessarily mean medication, but some kind of real attention while you're waiting to get adjusted to CPAP and to start turning the sleep deprivation around. Stress management is another important priority.

I hope your doctor is agreeable to writing a new RX next week because in the long term there are many reasons to have access to the advanced data reporting. In the meantime I hope you can rest assured that currently your machine is treating your apnea as well as the top-of-the-line machine. Bottom line: The fact that you're feeling worse right now is not because of the machine you're currently using. In terms of the more advanced data reporting features it definitely falls short, but in terms of delivering PAP (positive airway pressure) it is doing its job.

Hang in there.

[mzdawn74]

Hi Dawn,

I was trying to help you on the other forum. I hope this will help you and clarify some things for others here:

I reviewed the product information for the CPAP model and the Elite model in the Healthcare Professionals section of the ResMed website. Please, Dawn, take your time to read this and take it in:

In terms of data, both models show the AHI. The difference is that the Elite breaks down the AHI event types (obstructive, hypopnea and central), while the CPAP model only shows the total AHI. This would certainly be a handicap if your AHI was too high but right now that is not the case. Your AHI is below 1.0 every night so far. So even if all your events so far have been centrals, it would not be a clinical concern because the total is well below 5.0.

The second difference is that the CPAP model does not record data in such a way that you could use software (like SleepyHead) to generate graphs of night-long activity. So you have an AHI and a leak number, but you can't see what happened at what point(s) during the night. This would be a bigger disadvantage if you were on an APAP machine with changing pressures and you needed to see if the pressure fluctuations were associated with apneas, leaks or wakes. With a single fixed pressure there's less to examine since your pressure doesn't change -- though it could prove helpful to get a closer look at your leak graph -- your leaks are in the acceptable range but it might be helpful to see if your leaks are mostly running low, or if they're jumping around a lot during the night and potentially disrupting your sleep.

To be clear (and obvious) -- there's no doubt that a full data machine (Elite or Autoset) is the best choice under any circumstances, and less than two weeks into your therapy I agree that it is worth trying to obtain a full data machine now. But in the meantime and while you're working this out you should know that your apnea is effectively under control and you are not getting suboptimal treatment. Your CPAP model blowing at 8cm pressure is delivering the exact same therapy as an Elite blowing at 8cm pressure or an Autoset blowing at 8cm pressure.

The biggest concern is the fact that you're feeling worse and not better. This is really not unusual. It's hard for most people to get used to all the strange sensations of using a CPAP machine and that often means things get worse before they get better. Unfortunately you were already feeling terrible before you even started treatment. You will likely be someone who needs to give this a lot more time, and to go well above and beyond just having effective apnea control before you start to feel consistently better. For example, the depression may have been brought about by untreated sleep apnea, but it is real and it still may need attention now. Doesn't necessarily mean medication, but some kind of real attention while you're waiting to get adjusted to CPAP and to start turning the sleep deprivation around. Stress management is another important priority.

I hope your doctor is agreeable to writing a new RX next week because in the long term there are many reasons to have access to the advanced data reporting. In the meantime I hope you can rest assured that currently your machine is treating your apnea as well as the top-of-the-line machine. Bottom line: The fact that you're feeling worse right now is not because of the machine you're currently using. In terms of the more advanced data reporting features it definitely falls short, but in terms of delivering PAP (positive airway pressure) it is doing its job.

Hang in there.

Hi!!

I'm so happy to see you here. I couldn't handle all of the vindictive nasty people on the other forum. You always had great advice and offered your support and I greatly appreciate that. The people here, like you, are very supportive, understanding as well as being extremely knowledgeable.

Thank you for taking the time out to write that very helpful and informative post. It really changed my outlook on continuing treatment with my brick if all else fails with getting an APAP. I'm hoping my doctor will just do it and not giveeven grief. Worst case scenario I am just going to have to work harder to ensure I get all of the benefits of my current machine and therapy.

Talk to you soon.

[kaiasgram]

You're welcome Dawn, glad I could help a little.

[Sleeprider]

Kaisagram, I hope you will stay and be part of this community as well. You have an exceptional ability to help people, and there is a bit less noise here. Welcome.

[kaiasgram]

Kaisagram, I hope you will stay and be part of this community as well. You have an exceptional ability to help people, and there is a bit less noise here. Welcome.

Thanks for your warm welcome.

[mzdawn74]

Kaisagram, I hope you will stay and be part of this community as well. You have an exceptional ability to help people, and there is a bit less noise here. Welcome.

Very true! Please stay!!:grin:

[kaiasgram]

Kaisagram, I hope you will stay and be part of this community as well. You have an exceptional ability to help people, and there is a bit less noise here. Welcome.

Very true! Please stay!!:grin:

Thank you Dawn.