Connect
← Return to Cpap and getting better sleep: What's your experience?
Discussion
Cpap and getting better sleep: What's your experience?
Sleep Health | Last Active: Sep 15, 2022 | Replies (356)Comment receiving replies
I have been recently diagnosed with sleep apnea and have been told that I have an average of 30 events per hour. This is my second night of using my CPAP machine which is a Philips Respironics Dream Station with a Dreamwear Gel Pillow Mask. I am not falling asleep until 2:30 a.m. and waking up at 4:30 a.m. I am basically getting two hours of sleep a night. I am beside myself and feel like this CPAP machine has stopped my life. I have an appointment today with the respiratory therapist because I feel like the mask does not fit me properly and the machine makes a loud whirring noise when I inhale, keeping me awake. I am very sound sensitive. I guess I am looking for reassurance that I will eventually find the right combination of machine and mask and get used to my new sleep scenario.
Replies to "I have been recently diagnosed with sleep apnea and have been told that I have an..."
@cece55- Glad you found us and you will find several members that I'm sure will chime in on your post.
I have used C-pap therapy for over 20 years and you will notice on many of my previous posts on this subject that I believe that finding the right mask for you is the most important part of this therapy. It would be rare to find anyone that early in their use of C-pap would not find it fustrating and many of masks have been ripped off in the middle of the night!
I would definetly work with your sleep therapist on securing the right mask for you. It took me over 6 different masks before I found the right one for me. Because I am a mouth breather I tried several full face masks initially, but I seem to have what my therapist referred to as a "tweener" sized face which means that it seemed I was in between sizes and consequently had leakage all the time. I also didn't like the clostrophobic aspects of the full face mask. I swithed to the Fisher Paykel Zest nasal mask with a chin strap. This works great for me although my grandsons are scared when they come to wake grandpa up! Lol! Jim @thankful
Connect
Hi, @cece55. Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I moved your discussion here to this discussion, "CPAP and Sleep," so that you can connect with others who are discussing their CPAP machines. Simply click VIEW & REPLY in your email and you will be able to read previous posts and respond to other users' posts to you, like @johnbishop, @bernese53 @sleepy0 @thankful @alanbruce @johnhans.
Sounds like it's been challenging with trying to get used to the machine. I would say that many Connect members have talked about an adjustment period of becoming comfortable with the machine, its noise and feel, and with masks - often trying out multiple to find the most suitable one.
Good to hear you have an appointment today with a respiratory therapist. Are you hoping to figure out a way to better adjust your mask, or get a new mask to try?