New to the apnea world. Need a little help

[chaddy511]

About two-three years ago, i started getting tired easy. And quickly turned into this horrid fatigue. Everyone was mad at me because thay thought i was getting lazy. Or they thought i was on drugs. Because i was a no show all the time, with no excuse for it. I w
Had a busy life. I own a plastering business.. I own a recording studio, and workd as a music producer. And i had anoyher business cultivating medical marajuana.
So i was no slouch. But little by litle i had t let onebusiness go at a time.


I got so fatigued that i became depressed. I couldent pay my bills. And my whole world was going to cave in around me. But i couldent get out ofbed. I would just lay there and cry.

My Kaiser doctor ran all the test and hthey kept coming back normal. Then he sent me to the mental health department. Where they didnt do crap, just put me on antidepressants. About 3 months latter im laying in bed. And im not depressed as much. But i realized that it wasent depression causing this fatigue.

A couple months later. I was in real trouble. Because i could no longer help myself anymore. I would just sleep for weeks and weeks straight. I went through all my cash. And all my credit cards. I couldent even pick up the phone to call the doctoe. Kaiser sucks btw..

Finally i got a sleeps study. And i have Apnea. They puta cpap on for half of the study. And i felt greatthe next day.

So. I got a cpap few weeks later. And the dr gave me adderall and provigil so i can get out of bed in the morning. Because i was gonna loose it all. And game time was over i told him. The aderall or provigil does help me in the morning for sure.

Ive had the cpap for 6 weeks. Im gradually getting better. But today i fell to my knees in a mental and physical exhaustion. How long does it take for tjat fatigueto go away? And has anyone had tne mental fatigue thati bet as well?

And does my story sound familiar to anyone?

Thanks. chaddy

[zonk]

Hi chaddy, welcome to the board
Yep your story sound familiar not many can take to CPAP like duck to water
for most it is a gradual improvement over time weeks or months so hang on and don,t despair it can get better.
I don,t know about the medication you,re taking and how it affect the therapy.
CPAP therapy works and if the fatigue is CPAP related then you've find out what are the issues and try to sort it out with your doctor and tells us here so we can try to help you.
The S9 LCD screen data shows your nightly AHI and leak and hours used so you need to check before noon
Read through this thread about CPAP common problems
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...g-with-PAP
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...n-problems

[zimlich]

Wow, sorry things got so bad for you before you got diagnosed. What you are feeling is probably normal. Even though you were sleeping a lot you weren't getting good sleep so you probably have a "sleep debt" to repay. I recommend you see the doctor again though (sleep doc). Be sure you take your machine with you so they can download the data.

[PaulaO2]

Your body and all its pieces parts have to adjust. There will be plateaus just like with anything else. Don't stop. Keep going.

Depression is a big thing to get rid of.

So your body (and brain) is having to adjust to several things at once.

Don't stop any of your medications unless you talk to a doc first.

And we are here to help, even if only to read your words.

[Dreamcatcher]

Hi Chaddy again saying what other have said, it takes alot of adjusting to cpap but it is worth it in the end. To say when you will get benefit is like asking how long is a piece of string as some get benefits straight away and some it takes a little longer.

We are also not just here for problems with cpap/apap we are your new extended family and if its tea and cakes and a natter then just let it out or if you want to have a good moan then again let it rip because we know where your comming from.

[iSnooze]

Hi Chaddy5511


I'm just piggybacking on what the others before me said. Cpap is an adjustment and few people feel like their old selves the first few days. For some people the improvement is so gradual that it takes months to notice the difference. The problems caused by sleep apnea didn't happen overnight (no pun intended). Sleep apnea has a cumulative affect. Since your apnea was bad enough that you ended up sleeping with a cpap machine for the last half of your first sleep study, I suspect you have severe sleep apnea. It could take a while before you feel fully rested. As others have said, don't give up! Keep using the machine!! Over time you can look back and see the changes in your sleep and lack of fatigue even if you can't right now.

I would also recommend looking at the data from your machine. How many events or apneas do you have and in what amount of time? If your numbers are good, then you know the cpap therapy is working. If the numbers aren't good, then you need to talk to your sleep doctor to see what needs to be adjusted.

Unfortunately I can't comment on how the meds you're taking are affecting your fatigue. That might be something to talk to your doc about also.

Although we might not have gone through the same negative situations you had before being diagnosed, almost all of us use cpap machines because sleep apnea was negatively affecting our lives. We are here for you, and will help you whenever we can.

[chaddy511]

Wow, sorry things got so bad for you before you got diagnosed. What you are feeling is probably normal. Even though you were sleeping a lot you weren't getting good sleep so you probably have a "sleep debt" to repay. I recommend you see the doctor again though (sleep doc). Be sure you take your machine with you so they can download the data.

Thank you!! I am gonna follow your advice sor sure! I appreciate you taking the time to help!!

[chaddy511]

Your body and all its pieces parts have to adjust. There will be plateaus just like with anything else. Don't stop. Keep going.

Depression is a big thing to get rid of.

So your body (and brain) is having to adjust to several things at once.

Don't stop any of your medications unless you talk to a doc first.

And we are here to help, even if only to read your words.

Thankyou kindly for taking the time to help. And the encouraging words,

[chaddy511]

Hi Chaddy again saying what other have said, it takes alot of adjusting to cpap but it is worth it in the end. To say when you will get benefit is like asking how long is a piece of string as some get benefits straight away and some it takes a little longer.

We are also not just here for problems with cpap/apap we are your new extended family and if its tea and cakes and a natter then just let it out or if you want to have a good moan then again let it rip because we know where your comming from.

I feel fortunate that i hiave found people with experiences similar to me here. I have felt very alone. And aim listi ing to all ur advi e carefully,,

---

Hi chaddy, welcome to the board
Yep your story sound familiar not many can take to CPAP like duck to water
for most it is a gradual improvement over time weeks or months so hang on and don,t despair it can get better.
I don,t know about the medication you,re taking and how it affect the therapy.
CPAP therapy works and if the fatigue is CPAP related then you've find out what are the issues and try to sort it out with your doctor and tells us here so we can try to help you.
The S9 LCD screen data shows your nightly AHI and leak and hours used so you need to check before noon
Read through this thread about CPAP common problems

Thank you those links helped a lot!!