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Some more questions - Sparkle - 01-25-2015
Hi everyone - Hope you are all having a restful weekend! Here in Boston we are getting smackered with snow with more to come - Ugh!
I use the AirSense 10 Auto Set CPAP - now going on my 13th night. I have signed up for myair which gives me small reports every day and also sends tips to my email account. Today I received a short congratulatory email for continuous use of the machine and the email stated that studies have shown with continued, consistent use of the machine for 7 or more hours per night sleepiness will return to normal in three months.
I was curious - do any of you still experience, after several months of usage that you are feeling better and better?
Another question - as they say hindsight is 20/20 and it isn't until now that I am seeing exactly how horrible my sleeping has been over the past couple of years. One of my experiences is that any noise - no matter what it was - indoor or outdoor - would "wake" me up. It seemed I was hypersensitive to the slightest noises. At one point I was attributing my inability to get to sleep due to the fact that all of the noises in the neighborhood and beyond found their way directly to my windows (even in winter when the windows are closed). Since starting CPAP I am sleeping through the night undisturbed by any noises at all. Even the snow plows last night - which were running through the street outside my house when I went to bed didn't prevent me falling asleep or awaken me through the night. I have to say it is quite a nice effect of the therapy to not awaken at the slightest noise.
Final question - is there a relationship between allergies and sleep apnea? About two years ago I adopted a long hair cat - never been a pet owner but wanted to share my home with an animal that needed a home and a dog was out of the question due to my work hours. So, Bootsie, who is such a love, came to live with me. She is constantly at my side. I wonder could I have developed an allergy to her that brought on the sleep apnea? I don't have any other traditional "allergy" symptoms - no runny noise, scratchy or itchy eyes or nose so its probably a dumb question but with so much wisdom here I wanted to ask.
RE: Some more questions - PaytonA - 01-25-2015
Allergies to cats and dogs are generally an allergy to their dander and it can be very narrow or broad in scope. You can be allergic to one cat and no others and vice versa and any combination in between.
Yes I still have moments where I feel better, even after 4 years. Then there is Peter C who is feeling better now after 15 years of CPAP.
Best Regards,
PaytonA
RE: Some more questions - PaulaO2 - 01-25-2015
If you find yourself choking (on food, drink, or spit) during the day or having trouble breathing during the day, then perhaps your airway has been narrowed due to swelling from allergies which makes it "easier" for it to collapse during sleep. Other than that, no, an allergy cannot cause sleep apnea simply because of the word "sleep" in there. You would be reacting to the cat all the time, not just when you are sleeping.
RE: Some more questions - Evpraxia - 01-25-2015
Greetings Sparkle,
On the subject of cats, allergies and sleep apnea. I have not heard of allergies causing sleep apnea, that does not mean it couldn't happen; but I don't really see how it could. Given your lack of allergy symptoms during the day and lack of usual allergy symptoms I agree with the other folks that you are not having allergic reactions to your cat.
I am also cat staff (GRIN!) to a long haired cat. Her name is Vanya, and she is a Siberian. My avatar is a photo of her.
Siberians are known to be a low-allergen cat and some Siberian breeders will test and strive for low allergen levels. Most, if not all, of the Siberian breeders encourage either visits to their catteries or will send fur to the prospective buyer so they can see if there are any reactions.
So, here is a meow from a cat lover!
Evpraxia
RE: Some more questions - retired_guy - 01-26-2015
(01-25-2015, 09:11 PM)Sparkle Wrote: Hi everyone - Hope you are all having a restful weekend! Here in Boston we are getting smackered with snow with more to come - Ugh!
Enjoy the snow! Here on the beautiful albeit (often) very wet Oregon coast we had temps in mid 60's, crystal clear skies, and barely a breeze. It was suddenly spring in the middle of January.
(01-25-2015, 09:11 PM)Sparkle Wrote: Since starting CPAP I am sleeping through the night undisturbed by any noises at all. Even the snow plows last night - which were running through the street outside my house when I went to bed didn't prevent me falling asleep or awaken me through the night.
We had snow here once. But the snowplow driver happened to be on vacation that month so we didn't get the roads plowed. Come to think of it, I'm not sure the snowplow driver actually owns a snowplow.
(01-25-2015, 09:11 PM)Sparkle Wrote: Final question - is there a relationship between allergies and sleep apnea? About two years ago I adopted a long hair cat - never been a pet owner but wanted to share my home with an animal that needed a home and a dog was out of the question due to my work hours. So, Bootsie, who is such a love, came to live with me. She is constantly at my side. I wonder could I have developed an allergy to her that brought on the sleep apnea? I don't have any other traditional "allergy" symptoms - no runny noise, scratchy or itchy eyes or nose so its probably a dumb question but with so much wisdom here I wanted to ask.
I really don't think your kitty could cause your sleep apnea issues. Well, maybe if you swallowed her or something.... That would be the definition of "world class hairball."
But you would think the sleep techies would have noticed that when you went in for your sleep test. So no, I think the kitty is not the problem.
One thing is clear however, and that is you are doing very well with your therapy. Good job that...
Give our best to the kitty.
RE: Some more questions - archangle - 01-26-2015
Some people get a miracle cure the first night. Some people take a while. Some people never feel better. Some people actually feel worse until their brain and body get used to the equipment and not being strangled all night long.
I'm not sure we have a good measure of how quickly people feel better. I'm guessing most people who are feeling the effects of apnea feel better within a week or two to some extent.
Even if you don't feel better with CPAP, untreated apnea will kill you slowly if you don't get treated. Apnea can be damaging your brain, your heart, and other organs without any noticeable symptoms that you feel. For some people, the first symptom could be a stroke or heart attack.
Watch out for the idea that just using the machine 7 hours a night will cure you. Insurance usually requires you to use the machine 4 hours a night to get paid. Unfortunately, many doctors and DME's (CPAP salesmen) only check for usage and assume it does the job.
You need to check the results to be sure the machine is stopping your apneas. Just using it won't do the trick, even with an Auto machine.
Luckily you have an excellent, fully data capable machine that sort of gives you a mini sleep test every night. It records every breath you take and every apnea you have.
AirView gives you some useful data, especially if it reports everything is good.
There's also a free program you can use yourself without any online connection called SleepyHead. SleepyHead is much more capable than AirView. You can also get the official ResMed monitoring program called ResScan from here:
http://www.apneaboard.com/adjust-cpap-pressure/free-sleep-apnea-tracking-software-for-your-computer
ResScan gives access to most of the same data as SleepyHead, but I find SleepyHead easier to use and understand.
RE: Some more questions - Sparkle - 01-26-2015
(01-25-2015, 11:58 PM)Evpraxia Wrote: Greetings Sparkle,
I am also cat staff (GRIN!) to a long haired cat. Her name is Vanya, and she is a Siberian. My avatar is a photo of her.
So, here is a meow from a cat lover!
Evpraxia
Thank you for your post.
Vanya is beautiful! I love the phrase "cat staff". Yesterday I was doing homework and I had my papers printed out on the desk next to my laptop. When I got up Bootsie goes right to the desk and of all the "clear" space on the desk she sits right on top of the papers - lol funny. She does it all the time!
Tricia
RE: Some more questions - Sparkle - 01-26-2015
(01-26-2015, 02:22 AM)retired_guy Wrote: [quote='Sparkle' pid='98246' dateline='1422238265']
Enjoy the snow! Here on the beautiful albeit (often) very wet Oregon coast we had temps in mid 60's, crystal clear skies, and barely a breeze. It was suddenly spring in the middle of January.
[quote='Sparkle' pid='98246' dateline='1422238265']
So lucky - I am so stressed over this storm - they are saying up to 2 feet - ugh!
[quote='Sparkle' pid='98246' dateline='1422238265']
I really don't think your kitty could cause your sleep apnea issues. Well, maybe if you swallowed her or something.... That would be the definition of "world class hairball."
One thing is clear however, and that is you are doing very well with your therapy. Good job that...
Give our best to the kitty.
Thank you - your post made me giggle - too funny about the plows and the hairball
RE: Some more questions - Sparkle - 01-26-2015
(01-26-2015, 06:52 AM)archangle Wrote: Even if you don't feel better with CPAP, untreated apnea will kill you slowly if you don't get treated. Apnea can be damaging your brain, your heart, and other organs without any noticeable symptoms that you feel. For some people, the first symptom could be a stroke or heart attack.
Watch out for the idea that just using the machine 7 hours a night will cure you. Insurance usually requires you to use the machine 4 hours a night to get paid. Unfortunately, many doctors and DME's (CPAP salesmen) only check for usage and assume it does the job.
You need to check the results to be sure the machine is stopping your apneas. Just using it won't do the trick, even with an Auto machine.
Luckily you have an excellent, fully data capable machine that sort of gives you a mini sleep test every night. It records every breath you take and every apnea you have.
AirView gives you some useful data, especially if it reports everything is good.
There's also a free program you can use yourself without any online connection called SleepyHead. SleepyHead is much more capable than AirView. You can also get the official ResMed monitoring program called ResScan from here:
http://www.apneaboard.com/adjust-cpap-pressure/free-sleep-apnea-tracking-software-for-your-computer
ResScan gives access to most of the same data as SleepyHead, but I find SleepyHead easier to use and understand.
Thank you - I am slowing letting go of the hope that I can be "cured" from this. It is a tough pill to swallow but I am coming to the realization that I am very lucky to have caught it and have avoided a much bigger wake up call (and fortunate to have found this board!).
Seeing improvement, for me anyway, helps to justify the means but like you said there is that "invisible" benefit that doesn't make itself so obvious until it is too late. I get that and appreciate it.
I am dying to try the software but am a little hesitant. One of these days soon I will get the nerve to put the datacard in my computer and see if I can get either ResScan or SleepyHead to work - I am afraid of ruining the SD card by accidentally overwriting it.
Thank you!
RE: Some more questions - BigEars - 01-26-2015
Sparkle, your OSA was probably causing you to fall into a shallower sleep whenever you were roused by an event. It would be easier to be awakened from this lighter sleep by external noise.
Now your therapy allows for a more normal sleep pattern, you are probably asleep to deeply to be roused by minor disturbance.