hi everyone,
i have been reading the forums and learning what i can but i figured i would just ask
some questions and see what kind of specific advice i can get from you all.

im a 40 year old male, overweight, full beard, no insurance, insomnia up the a** (to paranoid to goto sleep)
and its time to do something about this! i cannot afford a sleep study so i talked with my doctor and he
is prescribing a machine and i have to decide what i want to get? im thinking about the Respironics
Remstar Plus with C-Flex & humidifier.

is that a good machine and what kind of mask should i get? i used to only breath through my nose but over the
years my sinuses are always clogged on one side or the other (sometimes both sides) and the past year im
always having a dry mouth so i must be snorring a lot more?

im a very light sleeper so im really worried about all this headgear stuff im supposed to wear cause i cant
believe i could ever get used to it? lol

with a nasal system on this machine with the humidifier will that clear my sinuses up at all or will i need a full
face mask? a mask just for my mouth or mouth & nose or what?

i kind of need to try and get this right the first time and i know thats going to be hard. also, what other costs
are involved with a machine? what needs to be replaced or cleaned and how often? (filters, etc...)

i cant think of anything else right now, so thanks for your time and comments!

Northerner wrote:

hi everyone,
i have been reading the forums and learning what i can but i figured i would just ask
some questions and see what kind of specific advice i can get from you all.

im a 40 year old male, overweight, full beard, no insurance, insomnia up the a** (to paranoid to goto sleep)
and its time to do something about this! i cannot afford a sleep study so i talked with my doctor and he
is prescribing a machine and i have to decide what i want to get? im thinking about the Respironics
Remstar Plus with C-Flex & humidifier.

is that a good machine and what kind of mask should i get? i used to only breath through my nose but over the
years my sinuses are always clogged on one side or the other (sometimes both sides) and the past year im
always having a dry mouth so i must be snorring a lot more?

im a very light sleeper so im really worried about all this headgear stuff im supposed to wear cause i cant
believe i could ever get used to it? lol

with a nasal system on this machine with the humidifier will that clear my sinuses up at all or will i need a full
face mask? a mask just for my mouth or mouth & nose or what?

i kind of need to try and get this right the first time and i know thats going to be hard. also, what other costs
are involved with a machine? what needs to be replaced or cleaned and how often? (filters, etc...)

i cant think of anything else right now, so thanks for your time and comments!

You are heading down the wrong road here. In fact a dangerous road, and probably expensive.

To properly diagnose sleep apnoea you need to have a sleep study.

There are many symptoms to sleep apnoea, many of them are silent and could kill you.

You need to get away from this doctor and get properly diagnosed.

You might read my recent post on GP awareness of sleep apnoea.

Daniel


_________________
The untreated Sleep Apnoea sufferer died quietly in his sleep.......
Unlike his three passengers who died screaming !!!!!!

(Anon)

like i said, i have no insurance and i cant afford to have a sleep study done!

Northerner,

There is a non-profit organization out there (please forgive me for not remembering the name) that might be able to help you get a proper sleep study and equipment if you are diagnosed.  Somebody, please chime in with the name of the organization.  I believe they assess need by your income level and a few other things.  You might try to contact them if somebody else can please put the name to the organization I'm thinking of.  I have the teflon coated brain... nothing sticks!  Best of luck!  CPAP has totally transformed me.  I wish the same for you!


_________________
<>< Sleepy Scott <><
Job 7:13-15

that would be really awesome if there was some kind of help out there for me!
better yet would be help from some organisation to pay for getting my tonsils out!
i have had a sore throat for almost 3 years now and i bet it would help a lot if i
could get them taken out!

thanks for any info you can provide!

PS. how come im not getting email notices when someone replies to this thread??

....



Last edited by another_guest on Tue Oct 31, 2006 10:39 pm; edited 1 time in total

Northerner wrote:

like i said, i have no insurance and i cant afford to have a sleep study done!

I appreciate that you have no insurance, but the machine plus mask being prescribed for you is probably going to cost as much as a sleep study..............and you still won't know whether or not you have OSA.

The most important thing is, if you do have sleep apnoea, and its not obstructive, but central apnoea or mixed, with a high level of central, the cpap machine will be useless, and they don't have a second hand value.

I suggest that you have the test, or at least a limited home test and look at the possibility of a retooled machine (second hand with a warranty) which are often available from the DME suppliers.

Best of luck.

Daniel


_________________
The untreated Sleep Apnoea sufferer died quietly in his sleep.......
Unlike his three passengers who died screaming !!!!!!

(Anon)

Your doctor could also give you a preliminary at home test - called oxymetry (sp)  That measures your oxygen level and pulse rate overnight.  If he has access to the little machine, you could find out if there is a problem there.  That would be a start.

thanks so much for that weblink, im going to fill out that application and see what happens!