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+--- Thread: Giving up for now. (/Thread-Giving-up-for-now)
Giving up for now. - DeannaM - 09-01-2014
First of all I want to thank this board for all of the information and help you provide. It truly is a public service. I have tried my best to adapt to this, the problem is the masks. I have tried one nasal mask and two different nasal pillows. Nothing seems to work well. My sleep apnea is mild my untreated AHI is 12. Someone mentioned buying my own mask and if that one worked, tell the DME to supply me with the one I chose. That actually seems like the best, although costliest, advice. That being said, I feel that this is too much as a lifestyle change. It may make my chronic pain from fibromyalgia better, but my meds work well. It would probably make my excessive daytime sleepiness better, but so does my Nuvigil. Cpap treatment seems like a blessing for those that can commit to the change in lifestyle. Right now, I am just not in a place where I feel I handle this much change. Between the DME, I'll fitting masks, and maintenance of the equipment, it's just too much. For now.
RE: Giving up for now. - Peter_C - 09-01-2014
It is your life to live as you see best.
Most people here will not agree with your choice being the 'best' choice under almost any conditions.
Of course, your untreated AHI is a big point when making this type of decision. Just know that many factors can cause this number to change - from health issues, to meds, to age, to weight change, to food/drink/etc... The danger of OSA, is by the time a medical issue is created by the untreated OSA, it may be too late to 'get better'.
I am not you, and do not pretend to know what is best for you at all. If you have yet to do so, I honestly would discuss this with a Doctor or two that know you.
My untreated OSA was 'life-threatening', and created a heart issue that both CPAP and meds have taken almost a dozen years to repair - my life-style was such that I had no clue I had OSA - I was a long-haul truck driver that slept basically when I wished to do so, drank (still do) a lot of Pepsi, became a smoker, and a 'grazer' - all ways to naturally keep me both awake and alert. I thought my ability to sleep at any moment to be a 'skill' I had taught myself. A yearly health check caught my normal resting heart-rate of '80', to be '122', and it could not be lowered either by rest, or by valium. Much testing later I learned it was caused by my OSA - Blood O2 dropping into the low 60s at night, and so on. So for me, the choice was both then and now very simple - I do not even take a 20 minute nap without my dream machine.
You are very correct - fighting with masks is one of the hardest problems when starting CPAP. It does take time, some adapt quickly, others do not.
The only point I will leave you with, is, OSA does not magically go away - there is no known 'cure' (that I am aware of), only treatment. You're a big kid, so you get to make the big kid choices, rightly or wrongly.
I do hope the best for you, and please do not be a stranger.
RE: Giving up for now. - zonk - 09-01-2014
(09-01-2014, 05:57 PM)DeannaM Wrote: ... I feel that this is too much as a lifestyle change.As the old saying goes ... no pain, no gain
Either use it now and make it works or find out the hard way .... come back in few years time in worse shape than you,re now
Sleep apnea does not goes away
![[Image: Tea-Pot.jpg]](http://www.apneaboard.com/Tea-Pot.jpg)
RE: Giving up for now. - Galactus - 09-01-2014
Nothing is easy in life. You have to fight for what you think is right for you. Luckily you have something that can be treated. It may take a little discomfort to get used to, but so are so many things we do in life. I would suggest you hang in there and keep trying, but I'm not here to tell anyone what to do. So I wish you the best no matter your choice.
RE: Giving up for now. - trish6hundred - 09-01-2014
Hi DeannaM,
I'm sorry to hear that you are giving up on CPAP therapy. Yes, it can take time and lots of trial and error I know, but there are so many different masks out there and I hate to see you cheat yourself out of something that could REALLY help you in the long run.
Hang in there for more responses to your post and I hope you will reconsider your decision.
Best of luck to you and keep us posted on how things go for you.
RE: Giving up for now. - PhyllisBalboa - 09-01-2014
Deanna, I wish, wish, wish I had known about my apnea decades ago when it started to manifest. If you only knew the time and money I've spent trying to get correctly diagnosed, while steadily losing ground health wise. The damage really gained speed in my forties, and all the medicines and drugs just made it worse. Now some things are gone for me, for some things it is too late.
If only someone had offered me the diagnosis and treatment when I was younger, my life would have been something different.
RE: Giving up for now. - retired_guy - 09-01-2014
Well, you have given this life-changing therapy a whole 10 days, haven't you? ..and you started out with a sinus infection, so maybe those early days don't actually count, but even so you've given it the better part of a week I'll bet.
Sometimes things take more than a couple of days to turn our life around. Sometimes not. Sometimes we work with a program, medication, or therapy until life improves. Sometimes we quit 5 minutes before the miracle.
With apnea, a reasonably high number of people drop out. I get that. I don't get why, but I get that they do. I suppose a reasonably high percentage of heart patients decide they would rather not take their meds too because they're too much trouble, or too expensive, or look funny. Or a lot of Diabetics say scrxx it, I'll eat whatever I want and to heck with the doc's advice. I get that too.
But I find it a shame. There are so many people out there that can genuinely be helped with this therapy. ..and so often the answer is "no thanks." That, I do not get.
RE: Giving up for now. - Daso - 09-01-2014
Is an oral appliance appropriate for your level of OSA? I Have mild sleep apnea and have decided that I too am not fully happy with engaging the machine, so I'm having a mouthpiece made to see how that works. Seems like there are a few options price wise and it might be something you are willing to do while at least helping you a bit more than nothing at all?
RE: Giving up for now. - becker44a - 09-01-2014
(09-01-2014, 05:57 PM)DeannaM Wrote: . . .
I have tried my best to adapt to this, the problem is the masks. I have tried one nasal mask and two different nasal pillows. Nothing seems to work well. My sleep apnea is mild my untreated AHI is 12. Someone mentioned buying my own mask and if that one worked, tell the DME to supply me with the one I chose. That actually seems like the best, although costliest, advice.
. . .
Hi Deanna,
If you haven't obtained a copy of your PAP prescription, do so. This will enable you to purchase masks from online suppliers, as some of them permit a return FOR FULL REFUND within 30 days. This way, you can try out as many masks as necessary, to find the one that works for you.
All that being said, I suspect you are using the mask / expense issue to give yourself an excuse to drop the therapy. PAP therapy can work well and make life-altering changes for those who choose to commit themselves to making it work.
I am one example of this, one of many here on the board. Some of the flags for OSA are daytime sleepiness, nocturnia (frequent nightime bathroom calls), falling asleep while driving, memory issues, and of course, the classic snoring. I have seen improvement or extinction of most of these issues. But it took more time than a week to get there, and a determination that no issue would stop me from succeeding. I believe that since there has been improvement in the issues I can observe, there is likely corresponding improvement in areas that are difficult or inconvenient to assess.
The list of serious and debilitating or life-threatening conditions for which OSA is a precursor, or which it aggravates is already imposing (heart disease, stroke, diabetes, dementia). Only you can look at this list and decide whether the inconvenience of adjusting to PAP therapy is worth it to better your odds of avoiding becoming victim to one of them.
I hope you rethink your decision.
RE: Giving up for now. - NickDanger - 09-02-2014
I'm sorry you have decided to give up. I don't agree with your decision, but it is your decision to make. Maybe you'll try again later and be more successful next time.
I wish you well.