How to get better sleep

[acoe2]

Hi, I use an autoset Resmed S9 with Humidifier, currently with a Resmed Quatro Air full face mask. I continue waking up throughout the night, often removing mask without knowing. I have used nasal pillows and nasal masks over the last 6 years with only moderate success. I currently average just over 4 hours mask usage per night and looking at ways to improve keeping my mask on. I have also tried hypnotherapy, sleep music and also been to a Sleep Psycologist. If anyone can offer suggestions how to keep my mask on better I would appreciate the comments.

[mayrlin]

Hi, I use an autoset Resmed S9 with Humidifier, currently with a Resmed Quatro Air full face mask. I continue waking up throughout the night, often removing mask without knowing. I have used nasal pillows and nasal masks over the last 6 years with only moderate success. I currently average just over 4 hours mask usage per night and looking at ways to improve keeping my mask on. I have also tried hypnotherapy, sleep music and also been to a Sleep Psycologist. If anyone can offer suggestions how to keep my mask on better I would appreciate the comments.

Hello
I had such problem sometimes. My best answer was auto-hypnosis and relaxation. The worst thing is anxiety and obsession. Every hour has to become positive or is a bad hour. ? Try to keep it positive with auto-suggestion. Read a book. Drink a cup of something you like, live something you like.. Think about one good thing you've lived. If You fall asleep that's ok, if you don't, that's also ok. It seems easy to speak like that but that's how it works for me.
I hope you will soon get well

[Peter_C]

I *HAD* to wear my mask every moment I slept. So between self-talk, and wearing my mask (without the hose) when reading a book, or watching TV it didn't take me long. Wear the mask anytime you are at home and awake (when you can force yourself to) - self-talk is telling yourself why the mask is good, and sleeping without the mask is bad.

Also, turn on the "high leak" alarm, and turn off the "auto-start/stop" - that way if you take your mask off, but do not turn off the machine, the alarm should wake you.

Best luck to you.

[me50]

Hi, I use an autoset Resmed S9 with Humidifier, currently with a Resmed Quatro Air full face mask. I continue waking up throughout the night, often removing mask without knowing. I have used nasal pillows and nasal masks over the last 6 years with only moderate success. I currently average just over 4 hours mask usage per night and looking at ways to improve keeping my mask on. I have also tried hypnotherapy, sleep music and also been to a Sleep Psycologist. If anyone can offer suggestions how to keep my mask on better I would appreciate the comments.

Part of your problem could be your pressure range. Download SleepyHead software (or look at Rescan) to see what your 95% pressure is during the night. Post your graphs here so we can see them and help you tighten up your pressure range. Having your pressure range wide open like this is probably contributing to your mask removal.

If you don't have a copy of your sleep study, ask for it and ask for the WHOLE report. Others will have other suggestions for you. The main thing is don't give up.

[me50]

Part of your problem could be your pressure range. Download SleepyHead software (or look at Rescan) to see what your 95% pressure is during the night. Post your graphs here so we can see them and help you tighten up your pressure range. Having your pressure range wide open like this is probably contributing to your mask removal.

If you don't have a copy of your sleep study, ask for it and ask for the WHOLE report. Others will have other suggestions for you. The main thing is don't give up.

[PaulaO2]

Some have had success attaching the mask hose to their shirt or pillow so that when they take the mask off, it doesn't go anywhere and the noise wakes them.

[retired_guy]

Also, turn on the "high leak" alarm, and turn off the "auto-start/stop" - that way if you take your mask off, but do not turn off the machine, the alarm should wake you.

Best luck to you.

Part of your problem could be your pressure range.

Some have had success attaching the mask hose to their shirt or pillow so that when they take the mask off, it doesn't go anywhere and the noise wakes them.

These are great suggestions. What is probably happening is when you are sound asleep your mask shifts and begins to leak. Then with your max pressure set to 20, it gets really noisy and leaky. So much so that the machine thinks you have taken the mask off so it shuts down.

Now everything is nice and quiet, except you aren't getting any air. So still asleep, you remedy the situation by removing the mask. Much better now, you sleep on........

You do need to know where your therapeutic range is. Checking your results in Sleepyhead should tell you that. It also should tell you if I'm right in that the pressure went crazy go nutz just before the machine shut down. If you can find your average pressures for when you were asleep, then you can begin moving the minimum pressure upward, and the maximum pressure downward, until you have a nice little range surrounding you.

A pressure range of 5 to 20 is definitely asking for complications. So start skinnying it up a little and I think you'll be fine.

[trish6hundred]

Hi acoe2,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
Hang in there for more responses to your post and best of luck to you as you try the suggestions above and with finetuning your CPAP therapy.