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My first cold virus after going on APAP - super7pilot - 01-21-2025
Just relaying my first experience with having a cold after going on APAP. I of course just hung the mask up for 4-5 days as coughing, sneezing and Columbia river levels of runny nose just make wearing any mask a no go.
The hard part was the timing on returning to APAP.
I felt better and the nose was 'mostly' cooperating. But the junk moved to my lungs and I felt as if my lungs just couldn't except the pressurized air. I.E. My max therapy pressure went from my normal 11 to 15. The lungs seemed stiff and wouldn't fully fill. And of course the flow limitations were ugly.
After 1.5-2 weeks I'm finally back to my typical good numbers.
Will have to go through the same thing in a few weeks when I have a VivAer nasal treatment done https://vivaer.com/hcp/
So another 2(ish) weeks of no APAP.
YES! a boring post. But I haven't seen what others do when a respiratory virus comes knocking.
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - Lucid - 01-21-2025
The last cold I had was in September 2023, and I continued to use CPAP throughout. I wouldn't have been able to sleep without it. I had a wide range of symptoms with that cold, but they tended to quiet down and be helped by CPAP after I blew my nose one final time and put the mask on. I would encourage trying to use CPAP during a cold, even if it means changing out nasal cushions, etc., and washing them more often, but I realize everyone's colds and noses are different.
I tend to have less coughing and sneezing with colds and more nasal congestion. We all have our particular Achilles heels. While I don't have any true allergies, I routinely use Flonase for non-allergic rhinitis and was probably using Allegra throughout the cold. I do remember having one cold (or maybe it was RSV?) long before I started using CPAP that left me prone to coughing for weeks afterward; not sure if that one would have forced me to suspend CPAP or not.
There have been a lot of nasty respiratory infections going around, including something that is literally called Walking Pneumonia. I have a younger colleague who never gets sick who was out of commission with a cold last fall. Glad to hear you are better, super7pilot, good luck with the VivAer treatment, and best of luck to everyone!
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - super7pilot - 01-21-2025
Lucid, I was told by a Dr. that CPAP is actually good for pneumonia and lung congestion. Not so sure about a runny nose. And a stuffy nose can be partially overcome by a pressure increase.
The biblical flood amount of snot flowing had me reaching for a tissue every 15 minutes or so. I wasn't going to get sleep either way. I just couldn't imagine having that much stuff forced down my throat from my nose into my lungs. apnea is bad enough, but drowning is a whole lot worse. Not to mention the clogging of the exhaust ports on the P-10 that would likely happen.
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - Lucid - 01-21-2025
That sounds like such a miserable cold! What a great doctor, though.
Super7pilot, was it you who started or contributed to the thread about replacing an internal button battery inside ResMed machines that has to do with the memory. I have been searching for that thread in order to ask for more specifics on the necessary parts, so that I can buy and keep them on hand for the future. My searches have been fruitless due because I keep coming up with posts about travel batteries.
I thought I had saved a link to that post but I guess not. I'd be grateful to anyone who can point me to it.
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - super7pilot - 01-21-2025
No that wasn’t me.
I bet you could find something on youtube. I would think it might not be to difficult.
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - Lucid - 01-21-2025
YouTube is a great idea!
I suddenly had the idea to search for "button battery" and found the thread here I was looking for, or at least one of them:
https://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-Resmed-A10-Motherboard-Battery?page=3&highlight=button+battery
RE: My first cold virus after going on APAP - Deborah K. - 01-21-2025
I used my pap during covid with no problem. I think it helped.