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+--- Thread: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings (/Thread-Need-Help-Understanding-BiPAP-Clinical-Settings)
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Jake B - 11-14-2020
My bed comfort is fine, it's only a couple years old. I usually sleep through the night with the exception of 1 or 2 restroom breaks and a few tosses and turns, and I've never had much problem falling asleep. Not sure if that answers your questions but let me know if I can provide any more info.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Crimson Nape - 11-14-2020
You are down in the comfort range. When you're as low an AHI as yours, how you feel means a lot. Waking up feeling refreshed and not feeling like 9 miles of bad road is a good indicator.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Sleeprider - 11-14-2020
The settings still look good, and there is not a meaningful change in event rate from the previous night. Flow limit has remained very low and all the respiratory data looks very good.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Jake B - 11-14-2020
My numbers are good but I still don't feel much different. I'm still going to give it a good while and see what happens.
Another thing I've noticed is I yawn a ton during the day. Not sure if this is an oxygen/co2 thing or something else.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - SarcasticDave94 - 11-14-2020
One thing to keep in mind that is likely applicable. Supposing you had some type of apnea and unrested sleep for a few years, but now the PAP machine brings that back to being rested. It doesn't just undo years of negatives overnight, it's not a light switch action. Stick with the therapy and within the month you will notice some differences though. The setting edits have gotten your therapy to be on the right track, are more tuned in and more effective. With that it's much better therapy, the negatives of the past will soon be removed and you will then begin to notice more positives like better rest. Remember how a frog can be boiled to death by slowly raising the temperature over time? Similarly, your sleep has been slowly getting worse for some time yet you didn't realize it was happening. Give it a month of well rested sleep and I bet you'll notice it has gotten noticeably better.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Jake B - 11-18-2020
Hello again, another topic I'd like to discuss:
So I noticed while looking at my data that while I'm wearing the machine while awake (laying in bed the time before I fall asleep) my tidal volume, minute vent, insp time, exp time, etc are all significantly higher than when I'm asleep. I still feel like when I'm trying to fall asleep I could be getting more air, like I need to inhale deeply to get enough. Then when I fall asleep according to the charts, all of this data drops way off. See the first screenshot attached - notice the 20-30 minutes while I'm awake compared to the rest of the night.
While awake:
Tidal Volume 1034
Minute Vent 9.49
Insp 2.19
Exp 2.53
While asleep:
Tidal Volume 434
Minute Vent 6.59
Insp 1.17
Exp 2.79
So is it typical to breathe less while asleep? It may be completely normal, I'm just trying to come up with anything to explain why I'm not seeing any progress yet.
I wake up in the mornings with my eyes burning/hurting and my head feeling as though I've been up all night (however-this subsides a bit after a while for the most part and I'm just left with the normal tirendness and yawning all day). Am I still not getting enough oxygen? Not enough CO2 expelled? I did check my O2 after I woke up and it was at 99%. AHI is below 1...leaks are zero...I'm a results oriented person and if I'm not seeing any change by now I start to get concerned. I'm not too interested in going back to my doc yet, I don't think the will be much help. You guys have provided more assistance than anyone could so far.
Just an update of my current settings:
Max IPAP 15
Max EPAP 9
PS 4
TI Max 2.3
TI Min 0.5
Trigger High
Cycle Med
Second screenshot is my normal chart.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Sleeprider - 11-18-2020
You are taking long deep breaths as you first go to bed and it takes you about 1/2 hour for things to settle down. This is common, although most people will fall into a sleep rhythm faster. You will probably note your breaths per minute are fewer during that transition period, and your sleeping rhythm is about 15-16 bpm. There is no need for setting changes. Try to wind down your activity level a bit before masking up. It looks like you jump into bed and mask up immediately while your respiration and heart rate are still high. There is no problem with that, but you will see this pattern if you don't settle first.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - mesenteria - 11-18-2020
Jake, I'm only a single data point, but I NEVER....EVER....felt sleepy during the day, or yawned, or needed to nap. I NEVER fell asleep, or felt strongly that I needed to, watching TV at any time of the day or evening. But, after diagnosis (it was AFib that tipped the hand), I found a whole nuther living experience. It's just a fact of life for me that I have changed, and it only took place once I commenced PAP therapy. Now I'm like my mother's father who would nod off soon after supper when in his easy chair. I wondered why anyone would do that ( I was 7 at the time). Yet, here I am at about the same age as he was, and I am like Grandpa Joe, dozing while my wife manages to watch an entire programme.
You may be yawning because you are learning to relax a bit, and you are beginning to derive some benefits from your therapy, especially now that SR has you pretty much dialed-in. Don't be surprised if you go through other changes as you adapt to the therapy. Some of those changes may be distinctly unwelcome and intrusive in a novel way.
Also, it is a fact, I have begun to accept after reading so many posts here for nearly three years, that a great many people well into their correct therapy report that they don't notice an improvement in their mood, their energy, or in their cognitive vitality. They report brain fog, irritability, and other complaints. It's a conundrum because they can place so little faith in what are great apparent results.
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Jake B - 11-18-2020
That is just so odd to me. A person can go through all the tests and KNOW there is a problem (apnea), and the treatment says it's working great but either doesn't help any or makes them feel worse. It's like I say I have a headache, so I take some Tylenol and it turns it into a migraine.
I'm a results oriented person, I think everything have to have an answer and if it's broke it needs fixing. That's why this have driven me crazy for so long... because I can't figure out how to fix it. I'm far from giving up yet, because I'm not sure where to turn if this fails. Everyone knows the saying...I'm much too young to feel this old!
RE: Need Help Understanding BiPAP Clinical Settings - Phaleronic - 11-18-2020
(11-18-2020, 12:55 PM)Jake B Wrote: That's very frustrating, I would have the same sentiment if my treatment wasn't making me feel better too. I wish you luck.That's very frustrating, I would have the same sentiment if my treatment wasn't making me feel better too. I wish you luck.
That is just so odd to me. A person can go through all the tests and KNOW there is a problem (apnea), and the treatment says it's working great but either doesn't help any or makes them feel worse. It's like I say I have a headache, so I take some Tylenol and it turns it into a migraine.
I'm a results oriented person, I think everything have to have an answer and if it's broke it needs fixing. That's why this have driven me crazy for so long... because I can't figure out how to fix it. I'm far from giving up yet, because I'm not sure where to turn if this fails. Everyone knows the saying...I'm much too young to feel this old!