Old Card Reader

[SkiSmuggs]

Just thought I'd share something I found interesting. Been having issues waking during the night for the last couple of years off and on, well more like floating up to awareness level and not really sleeping deeply. AHI has been ok, minimal Hypopnea's (yeah, i'm lucky, don't seem to have CA's or OA's), just the lack of deep sleep and waking up tired and not feeling "refreshed".

Had a chat to my clinician and she suggested i drop my exhale pressure and guess what.....look at the charts! I'm now sleeping all night apart from the dogs making me get up at 5 AM to rescue a hedgehog this morning. Waking up and feeling great, refreshed and like I've had a decent sleep. Long may it continue

 

I've commented to my wife that I just sleep better in the RV. I realize that the mattress is a little firmer, but also realized that my old RemStar Pro with C-Flex (bi-PAP, I think) is what I keep out there while I have a CPAP in the house. So I got excited about getting a report from the RemStar, but found (it is 17 years old) that it has a "smartcard" that looks like a large credit card with a chip embedded in it. Now where would I find something to read that with???
I just found this thread and it looks like I am out of luck even if I bought the SmartCard reader. http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...o-Software

[Sleepster]

You can probably get better responses here in the main forum. There are lots of reasons why you might be sleeping better in the RV, but it would be nice to know if it has anything to do with the settings on the different machines. Your old machine is really outdated and should be replaced with something newer. I've found a lot of good deals on craigslist.

By the way, the native power source for Respironics machines is 12 volts dc. If you run with the humidifier off you'll get a lot more battery life.

[SkiSmuggs]

You can probably get better responses here in the main forum. There are lots of reasons why you might be sleeping better in the RV, but it would be nice to know if it has anything to do with the settings on the different machines. Your old machine is really outdated and should be replaced with something newer. I've found a lot of good deals on craigslist.

By the way, the native power source for Respironics machines is 12 volts dc. If you run with the humidifier off you'll get a lot more battery life.

I understand about the humidifier. My old RemStar Pro came with a humidifier that is merely a water tank with hose connections. I quit using it because I didn't seem to have dry throat much of the time. My new one has an integral heated humidifier and not only would use more battery for the heater, but the 24 volt to 12v adapter is $80 so I won't use the AirStart in the RV at all.

[sheepless]

I haven't looked at the thread this was split from so apologies if you've already discussed the following.

are the pressure settings for the two machines the same or different?

have you tried sleeping with the remstar in the house recently to determine whether sleeping better / worse is due to a difference in machine capabilities vs environmental factors (mattress, light/dark, noise level, pets, whatever)?

[SkiSmuggs]

I haven't looked at the thread this was split from so apologies if you've already discussed the following.

are the pressure settings for the two machines the same or different?

have you tried sleeping with the remstar in the house recently to determine whether sleeping better / worse is due to a difference in machine capabilities vs environmental factors (mattress, light/dark, noise level, pets, whatever)?

Both are set at 10psi, but the RemStar is a biPAP and I haven't tried it in the house since getting two other CPAPs. Sleeping in the RV used to be bad until I covered the web base with thick plywood which made the mattress firm instead of saggy and firmer than the one in the house. The small dog sleeps quietly on the bed in either place and the house bedroom is actually darker.  Both places have fans running all night.  The wife might object to the return of Darth Vader, so I don't know if I will ever know why I sleep better in the RV.  And there is the issue of nasal pillows in the RV and a nasal mask in the house, but that is something quickly and easily changed. None of this is keeping me awake at night, though.  

[sheepless]

"None of this is keeping me awake at night, though."

that's the name of the game! and all that really matters I suppose.

mattress issues it is then. if it's firmer you like, you can always try sleeping on the floor! if that's no good, it might at least make the softer mattress seem better by comparison. lol :-)

[Sleep2Snore]

The old RemStar is a lot noisier though!

[sheepless]

yeah, I was mostly joking. this time I wasn't suggesting using the noisier remstar inside. not good to annoy your spouse. while suggesting the floor was more or less tongue in cheek, it sounds like it's not a difference in the machines since both are set to fixed 10cm, so sleeping on the floor or on different mattress or in different bed (other than the rv) with your home machine might be a way to test the firmness of mattress theory. but maybe not necessary because it sounds like you already determined it's probably a mattress issue.

[SkiSmuggs]

So I unpacked the Aloha nasal pillows that I had in reserve. The straps were less complicated than I remember (it was my first nasal pillow) and was a perfect fit on the first try with medium pillows.  Other than a couple of bio breaks, I slept really good for 8.5 hours in the house.  Changes were the pillows to replace the nasal mask and turning on EPR which I had know about prior to this forum.  While one night does not make a pattern, implementing these changes were a direct result of this forum and I am grateful for it.  Thanks, everyone!

[SkiSmuggs]

I tried to edit the above for clarification, but the Edit button just didn't work.  One sentence should have said "and turning on EPR which I had not known about prior to this forum."