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+--- Thread: Cape67's Therapy Thread (/Thread-Cape67-s-Therapy-Thread)
Cape67's Therapy Thread - Cape67 - 08-17-2024
Guess I will just make a single thread for my therapy questions rather than making new ones.
Hello there, I started on BIPAP back in December 2023 after failing my sleep study miserably. Here is the black box recording of the train wreck. Hard to believe that I was sleeping like this, every night! Wow.
[attachment=68412]
So they prescribed a BIPAP machine for me, but, as many of you also experienced, my insurance decided it would be best to attempt a try-and-fail on regular CPAP first, which may or may not be what some would refer to as (clearing throat) legalized racketeering. I was able to find one machine, after an exhaustive nation-wide search, a surplus refurbished Luna G3 Series Model B25a from a hospital supplier, and buy it for less cash than the copay would have been for a regular CPAP. It was a little risky, and the model wasn't optimal, but I felt I have no other options and so far, it hasn't been too bad. In observation, many times you will see this model referred to as a "G3" but G3 is referring to the CPAP model. However, the G3 B25a refers to the BiPAP variant, for clarity.
Armed with no other clinical or professional support excepting the the excellent advice and support from this forum, I have been able to optimize my settings as time went by. Although at times I feel like I am flying blind with one hand tied behind my back, I soldier on.
I hope that someday OSCAR will support (or at least partially support) this particular model, but I doubt that will ever happen.
I was able to upgrade the firmware of the machine to 1.00.69 from the original 1.00.57 that the machine came with. I also found that upgrading the SD card to a SanDisk Extreme Pro helped a lot, as the machine was struggling to write data, the flow and leak graphs in particular.
I go back and forth with using humidity, and even when it's on, I only have it set to "2" at the most (out of 5.) I never use the heater tube. I have tried the DreamWear full-face mask for about six months, sometimes the transduced whooshing noise from the down-tubes kind of gets to me, and it leaked quite a lot. I then tried the DreamWear nasal pillows, but found that I needed to use a chin-strap and it felt like someone was smothering me, between the headgear apparatus and the strap. I tried a cervical soft collar but kept waking up feeling like someone was strangling me, which set off some kind off odd panic attack type of thing, as best as I can describe it. I suspect that the facial presence of the device triggered a sympathetic response to facial cranial nerve pressure, a primitive survival reflex built into most of us.
As of now, my current concern is with my CA's ("clear airway" or what some apparently call central apneas) which have decided to pay me another unsolicited and unexplained visit. So that is what I am dealing with now.
Current settings
[attachment=68413]
Recent screenshot composite from BMC's PAP Link, since I cannot sadly use OSCAR with the Luna Bipap.
[attachment=68414]
Incidentally, if anyone happens to have any suggestions for dealing with the CA thing, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - quiescence at last - 08-19-2024
It doesn't seem to me that the limited data shown indicates any concern in relation to AHI, and no concern related to CA. momentary AHI is OA of 2.0, H of 2.0, and CA about 3.0. A FAR CRY from 63.xx per hour.
Congrats on your success.
QAL
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - Deborah K. - 08-19-2024
Are you showing your whole night's sleep, or as it looks, just a short expanded view? We need to see the whole night to understand much.
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - Cape67 - 08-20-2024
Hopefully this will render a better picture. Thanks again for looking!
[attachment=68525]
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - quiescence at last - 08-20-2024
That suggests that your answer is, it was a whole night, and a very short sleep.
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - Cape67 - 09-06-2024
Quick update. After using the Philips Dreamwear full face mask with mixed results for six months, then the Dreamwear nasal pillows for two, I finally decided to re-caibrate my attack strategy, and try something else, thanks to some suggestions on here.
I bought a Fisher and Paykel Brevida nasal mask and this model chin strap and all I can say is, holy cow, my numbers are much, much better. It's an older model from 2017 but I happened to find it on sale relatively cheap. My O2 score using the Wellvue has been consistently 8.7 or better, typically above 9.0
And sure, the chin strap isn't ideal and I feel like I'm getting ready for wrestling, but I think this was definitely a move in the right direction. Thanks again for the suggestions from you guys, since I signed up here.
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - quiescence at last - 09-06-2024
yay.
QAL
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - Cape67 - 10-30-2024
Hey so I was wondering if anyone has used a fisher and paynkel brevida nasal pillow mask. It has a little diffuser thingy that snaps on, that reduces the exhaust. It looks like a tiny filter about the size of your thumbnail.
Im not sure if I can wash the diffuser, or if there's any benefit to not wearing it.
RE: Cape67's Therapy Thread - Crimson Nape - 10-30-2024
I suggest that you read the thread in the Product Reviews - CPAP Mask Reviews. There is a thread with 48 posts on this mask.
Here is the link: https://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-Product-Review-F-P-Brevida
- Red