My Last 3 Weeks On Provent

[BG50]

First time poster here

To make a very long story short, I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea about 5 years ago.  My whole life I was an athlete and in shape and never had any issues snoring or stopping breathing during sleep.  That all changed after I got married and put on about 80+lbs.  I am 6'2 so I am like a linebacker these days. My neck size has always been around 16 most of my life and has gone up to 19.  Since that happened I have developed "severe" sleep apnea.  When I did the sleep test if i remember right my AHI was 54.  The doctor was very nice and  prescribed a Philips Dreamstation.  I followed up with a second opinion from a different doctor and he said the same thing. 

I tried the Dreamstation for about 6 nights and couldn't do it.  The mask fit perfect and the machine is great.....the issue is me.  I couldn't sleep.  It was so frustrating that I even cried one night.  I stopped for about a week and tried it another night and couldnt do it. 
So I gave up the machine.

Went to my dentist got fitted for an oral appliance.  I tried the oral appliance for a few weeks and its extremely difficult to use since the upper and lower have to lock together.  I tried it a few more times and gave up.

Have not done anything to treat my sleep apnea in the last few years.  A few relatives have varying degrees of sleep apnea and said the CPAP has changed their lives.  One of them had a box of Provent they were not using and actually he never even tried it.  So it was an unused box.  He told me to try it and see what happens.

They fit like band aids over your nose.  I said what the hell and gave it a shot.  It is difficult to breathe with them so it took a few nights to adjust to them.  

I have now used them for 3 weeks.  They have worked great for me.  They will move around if not attached correctly.  For me it was easier than using a CPAP.

My wife is my only resource to tell me how I am doing.  Later I will have to do a follow up sleep study with these to get the official data.

She has told me:
That if my snoring was a 10 (on a scale of 1 to 10) its now only a 5

When I used to stop breathing before I would stop for 30 seconds normally and at times even 40 seconds.  I would never stop breathing before for anything shorter than 30 seconds......now I only stop for 5 seconds max.  There are one or two times a night where I stop for 10 seconds but its only once or twice.

I still do stop the same amount overall.....its just I dont pass 5 seconds vs the 30 seconds before.  She also told me before when I did breathe again it was a big coughing up sound when I got back to breathing and now when I stop breathing for 5 seconds and get back to breathing, I no longer do that coughing up sound.

I wake up feeling much better than before and I do not wake up foggy and needing time to wake up.  I have been desperate for alternatives to the machine and the Provent seems to "help". My guess is my apnea with the Provent is moderate instead of severe as it was before.

My question for those on this board is: should I be happy with those results?  Should I keep trying with the machine or is this OK for right now.  I spoke to a few more doctors on the issue and they said losing 50+lbs should be my first priority  and that MAY make a drastic difference.  Easier said than done, I know

Thanks for reading this and I appreciate everyone's input on this

[Sleeprider]

Since you don't tolerate CPAP, you need to do what you can. Provent can open the nasal passages a bit, but oe of the most important things you can do is to protect your airway from what we call positional obstruction or chin-tucking http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...onal_Apnea

That link it to a wiki and shows how many members have experiened clusters of apnea that CPAP could not resolve, because their airway was obstructed by their head and neck position, or pressure on the soft tissues of the neck from chin tucking. I'll put it out for your consideration, and if you think it might help, a very effective solution for CPAP users, or perhaps yourself, is the soft cervical collar. http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...cal_Collar

CPAP is a very good solution, and if you ever want to give it aother try, we can help you to find settigs that might be more comfortable. For some people the Dreamstation is not as effective or comfortable as a Resmed. The Dreamstation is slow to respond to events and it could be you needed different settings to make it more effective.

[Coffee Man]

I would think with an initial AHI as you had, that CPAP is better in the long term. You have no objective way to know how well Provent works. At least PAP machines can show you your AHI every day.

Getting used to the machine and mask takes some time, but is worth it.

I remember taking NyQuil every night for a week or so because I couldn’t fall asleep otherwise. After that I was used to the mask and things were good. For what it’s worth, my sleep doc had said that if over the counter sleep meds didn’t help, he would have prescribed prescription medication for a few weeks, but you should check with your sleep doc whether over the counter sleep aids or prescription medication would help during the acclimation period.

I have tried 11 masks so far (started APAP in March 2018). For the life of me, I can’t get used to the full face masks. But, I can wear any nasal mask just fine. So, it might be worth trying a different type of mask.

If you are using Provent, you might consider looking into the Bleep Dreamport as that “mask” has no headgear and instead sticks to your nose, like the Provent.

I find that my sleep apnea therapy has changed my life and am glad I was able to get through the initial acclimation period

[ardenum]

Went to my dentist got fitted for an oral appliance.  I tried the oral appliance for a few weeks and its extremely difficult to use since the upper and lower have to lock together.  I tried it a few more times and gave up.

There are as many types of oral appliances as there are dentists. Meaning each dentist will make a slightly different appliance, unless its something standardized like Narval or Panthera or O2vent. Don't give up on it just because one didn't work. There are many options out there.

[DreamDiver]

First time poster here
...
I tried the Dreamstation for about 6 nights and couldn't do it.  The mask fit perfect and the machine is great.....the issue is me.  I couldn't sleep.  It was so frustrating that I even cried one night.  I stopped for about a week and tried it another night and couldnt do it. 
So I gave up the machine.

Went to my dentist got fitted for an oral appliance.  I tried the oral appliance for a few weeks and its extremely difficult to use since the upper and lower have to lock together.  I tried it a few more times and gave up.

...
My question for those on this board is: should I be happy with those results?  Should I keep trying with the machine or is this OK for right now.  I spoke to a few more doctors on the issue and they said losing 50+lbs should be my first priority  and that MAY make a drastic difference.  Easier said than done, I know

Thanks for reading this and I appreciate everyone's input on this

You're not alone. I assume you're talking about a DreamStation Auto, so all of my suggestions will stem from that understanding.

It may be as simple as changing brands to the other popular machine, ResMed Airsense 10 Autoset. While the two machines are considered equivalent in therapy delivery, how they handle delivery is drastically different. Rather than go into the various particulars, I'd like to suggest that the algorithms used by Respironics in the DreamStation brand of machines is much coarser in therapy delivery than ResMed's AirSense line. 

I started with a Respironics M-Series Pro, and I couldn't stand it. Not too much later, I adopted the ResMed S9 Autoset. It was like night and day. Still, each time I went in to get lab tested after that, the labs used Respironics Machines. I couldn't sleep because Respironics kept making drastic and quick pressure changes as part of its therapy algorithm. ResMed's line of machines use a more subtle pressure change algorithm that doesn't act as a wake trigger.

Granted, some people thrive with the Respironics algorithm. For those who are frustrated and don't understand why, I suspect more often than not... IMO... it's the coarse algorithm.

If your insurance will cover it, it might be worth going back to your local DME and trying a ResMed AirSense 10 Autoset instead. If you like it after trying it out and can afford it, you could just buy one. If you were given a straight CPAP machine, well even more reason for trying an AS10 Autosense. Straight CPAP machines don't account for positional change in AHI or REM changes in AHI. 

Yes, losing 50 lbs probably would help. But until then, if you're willing to give it another shot, try the other brand. No guaranties, but if you're looking for suggestions, maybe this is the one for you.

Chris

[vrapche031]

Im a bit late to the party but maybe you still notice it.

I think the most important thing here is that you dont know if this is actually helping you or not. Also, are you 100% sure that the only apneas you get are because of your nose ?

If I was in your shoes I would definitely go get another sleep study while using those things for your nose to make sure it actually helps.

Losing the weight apparently improves sleep apnea for most people, I know that its not easy but that should probably be your top priority since it will benefit you more than one thing.



ps. I have been struggling with CPAP therapy for almost 4 months. It got to a point where I fell in really bad depression and was badly sleep deprived. I ended up lucking out with a mask that actually fits me with a combination of a CPAP pillow ( that made a huge difference ). Last night I was finally able to sleep through the full night without taking of my mask since this new one doesnt bother me. Hopefully now I will just be able to keep sleeping with it and recover from the sleep deprivation. But it was difficult and I had to try 6-7 different masks, a chin strap and this pillow.