Yes, be warned that what is happening to me could happen to you !! You could have absolutely no problems, sleep well and awake refreshed.  Your very first mask could fit fine.  Don't say I didn't warn you.  (he,he,he)

OK, I'm posting this because Ive just got to tell somebody and the people on this forum would understand that amazing feeling of sitting on the side of the bed in the morning and feeling GOOD, RESTED and ALERT.  Wow, it's GREAT!!.  Is this what 'normal' people feel each morning?   Got my machine two days ago and have had NO problems with the machine or mask; slept 8 hours the first night and almost 11 hours last night. (Just got up and not a yawn in sight).  When I've awoken these past two mornings I find I lay there for 20 minutes just breathing because it is so soothing and I feel so good.   I know it's only been two nights and there are many hurdles that I'll probably have in future months but right now that bluebird is indeed sitting on my shoulder !!

I've been reading this forum and everything I can find on apnea avidly for the past 6 weeks since I heard the word Sleep Apnea for  the first time as something that might apply to me.  "Me?" I said.  "Heck, sleep is my strong suit, no problems there!  I can sleep anywhere, anytime.  Er, Excuse me while I take a nap".  My impression from the posts and from friends and relatives who told me horror stories about masks was to expect lots of problems with everything.   But it didn't happen that way!   OK, the sleep test was no fun and the titration(sp?) was not much better but the home health people were great, the maching is great and the very first mask (nose Comfort Gel) fits fine.  I am wide awake!!           [/b]

some take toi their CPAPS and masks very well and easily
positive thinking always helps
others arent so lucky, it tool me a full 3 months to get used to mine and from what Ive heard, up to half never get used to their CPAPs
there were cases of these people leaving their CPAPS running at night without using them to make the hour meter change so they could tell the sleep doc they were using the machine to keep the doc happy, people can do strange things :-)

philchenevert wrote:

  OK, I'm posting this because Ive just got to tell somebody and the people on this forum would understand that amazing feeling of sitting on the side of the bed in the morning and feeling GOOD, RESTED and ALERT.  Wow, it's GREAT!!.  Is this what 'normal' people feel each morning?   Got my machine two days ago and have had NO problems with the machine or mask; slept 8 hours the first night and almost 11 hours last night. (Just got up and not a yawn in sight).  When I've awoken these past two mornings I find I lay there for 20 minutes just breathing because it is so soothing and I feel so good.   I know it's only been two nights and there are many hurdles that I'll probably have in future months but right now that bluebird is indeed sitting on my shoulder !!

I've been reading this forum and everything I can find on apnea avidly for the past 6 weeks since I heard the word Sleep Apnea for  the first time as something that might apply to me.  "Me?" I said.  "Heck, sleep is my strong suit, no problems there!  I can sleep anywhere, anytime.  Er, Excuse me while I take a nap".  My impression from the posts and from friends and relatives who told me horror stories about masks was to expect lots of problems with everything.   But it didn't happen that way!   OK, the sleep test was no fun and the titration(sp?) was not much better but the home health people were great, the maching is great and the very first mask (nose Comfort Gel) fits fine.  I am wide awake!!           [/b]

Congratulations!
This is what we all wish for, and it can happen!  Yes, it can happen.
Happened for me, and I did continue to have problems, but I felt good.
I'm glad you described your success.   In the last few days I've been in the chatroom and several folks who are about to receive their cpap machines are desperate for it to work.  I wish them all well.  Yes, it's not a quick fix for everyone, but it's what we dream about.  And we need to keep the hope alive.

Hope it continues to be this way for you.  Enjoy it!
This is what it's all about!


Linda

Phil! Congratulations!

I started treatment last Wednesday with a Respironics BiPAP Plus machine and a Mirage mask. Although I did wake a few times during the night (the "LUKE, I AM YOUR FATHER" noise the mask makes did take a little getting used to... winks), BUT I did actually SLEEP too!

The following nights were the same... about 7 hours sleep... real sleep. Today I took a nap for an hour and a half (me and my new best friend) and felt like a bajillion dollars afterwards!

Are there downsides? Sure... anything that isn't the "norm" has a downside. But are the advantages with this gizmo so much more than without it? ABSOLUTELY.

I pray that everyone finds a treatment method that works for them.

Donna

PS: The RT who delivered my equipment bragged that Apria Home Health has a 95% compliance rate with its customers... I do not believe it unless Phil and I are their only customers!!!! ha ha ha

Phil,

I am so happy for you.  I get my CPAP - TOMORROW!!  I am just sure my experience is going to be just like yours!  (Praying hard here - can you tell?)  

I also wanted to say - I am ROFLOL about the Darth Vadar comment.  My son, (15) keeps making jokes about me being Darth Vadar since I was diagnsoed - just wait til he finds out Darth Vadar is a girl and really does live at our house!  LOL

Enjoy your SLEEP!

Pat-Momof2inMO

My wife told me that I sounded like Darth Vader riding a Hoover when I first got my CPAP!

I got my machine yesterday, used it last night  and to day I am celebrating my RE-BIRTHDAY!  I found this forum by accident and I can tell I will become an avid reader and hope to learn a lot from you people.  Thank you!

The coolest thing for me was that my eyelids lost about 10 pounds each!  Before CPAP, I could hardly keep them up because I was so tired.  No I feel like they are WIDE OPEN all day and it takes no effort!  Truly amazing what the proper treatment can do for you.  

To those that may be having difficulties getting used to their gear... HANG IN THERE!!!  You will, over time, get accustomed to it and then wonder how you ever lived without it!   "You can doooo it!!"

Isn't it great to get your life back and feel awake and full of energy all day.  NO MORE NAPS!  Hooray!

Yes, the "thing" is a pain, but how it makes you feel is its own reward.  Talk about positive feedback!

It sure is great to hear another success story, and for those having problems, PLEASE hang in there.

i AM GLAD TO HEAR IT WENT SO WELL FOR YOU! I STARTED USING THE CPAP MACHINE IN APRIL AND I STILL CANT BELIVE HOW MUCH BETTER I FEEL. IT WAS AN ADJUSTMENT BUT WELL WORTH IT AS YOU KNOW !!! STAY WELL       JOE

I have some issues with my physicians about getting the machine to me, but that's my problem.  When I awoke at sleep center after the titration session, to use the bathroom, I felt great after about seven hours continuous sleep.  The first good night's sleep I remember.  I'm 53, and have no health issues except this and a bad knee.  My wife has serious issues with my sleep habits and activities while I sleep.  One night convinced me that this therapy is a godsend, and may save my life and marriage.

I've read a lot of postings about the troubles cpap users have.  Well, I had trouble for about three months when I had my knee scoped in '86--put up with a lot of medical and therapeutic !@#!, but now I walk the golf course 2-3 times a week, and am glad I put up with all the so called nonsense to get my knee well.

I may never get off cpap therapy.  But if I don't, and if I feel as well as I did when I awoke on August 17, I can put up with the machine, and the nasal pillows, EVEN IF I HAVE SHAVE MY MUSTACHE.

I have been using my CPAP for about three weeks and am starting to wonder if my doctor may have given me the wrong diagnosis. I went to him with sinus problems and he ordered a sleep study. I was diagnosed with OSA and did another study. My doctor is not on the ABSM list and I'm not doing well. Maybe I just need time with the machine and nose thing. I still have sinus problems and I am sleepy during the day at work. I never did sleep well and my answers to the doctor's questions were probably the reason for the diagnosis. I suspect the sleep study tech. may not have been qualified. I did not sleep at all during my second study. My first study was interrupted by a fire alarm test and the usual problems with the wires since I move around alot at night. During the second study one of the probes kept coming off and needed to be replaced. I was really looking forward to "feeling like a new man" as I had been told I would feel with the treatment. I am now very disappointed and wonder if I have OSA at all.

Hello to all of you, who have been helping me through this process...

I have been reading your posts since my GP ordered a sleep study, in July.  Of course I waited weeks for the test, was given the CPAP during the night, which they said they only do if you show signs of OSA.  Then waited two more weeks for the appt. w/respitory doc.  Yes, the sleep study showed OSA, w/some CSA.  It has been a week, and now I go to get fitted for my mask, and recieve a resprionic/w/humidifier~ CPAP, and will try on different masks...

while trying to keep positive, this just is plain hard to fathom that this is what I have to do!  During the sleep study, the mask they used, left marks and a rash for a couple of days...that makeup didn't cover up!...and sleeping w/it was, well you know!  
I am hoping I can use nasal pillows, but I know that during the nights I open my mouth, so I guess I need to get a chin strap....Oh what a beauty I will be!

I have been on pins and needles since the beginning of this diagnosis, although my husband has said for a long time that I stop breathing during the night.  I have been complaining of fatigue for so long, but I thought it was just me multi-tasking to much!  I can relate to so many of the comments on this post!  What scared me the most was the overwhelming fatigue, more like a blanket of cement while driving a couple of times, and then falling asleep at 9:00am in a board meeting, after a "good nights rest".

All this said, I am scared about my new best (or not) friend, sleeping everynight w/the mask and tubing, lots of emotions....However, if I wake up feeling AWAKE, and if I can feel more energy, then I know it will be worth it.  It also worries me, that there are folks who have posted that they didn't get good results, even after months.....

I know that my snoring and laspe in breathing keeps my husband awake, although he never complains!
I hope the noise of the CPAP will be less intrusive for him.
I am not relishing my new look...not quite "sexy" to say the least!  How do the rest of you deal with this?
When do you put it on?  I like to read before going to sleep, or watch tv....and we all know what that means!! Yep, we fall asleep!  I know it will take time to get used to, but at this point I think I  want to put in on and then turn the lights out!!!


I was thinking of taking a nap this afternoon, after I get my CPAP, just to orientate myself before tonight....I woke up every hour on the hour last night...OSA or stress???

Any suggestions, words of encouragement will be greatly appreciated!
And thanks for letting me have a place to vent!!

Hope all of you have a great three day weekend.
Melanie

Melanie, your concerns are valid ones.  No one can tell you how to feel or not feel about something as big as this in your life.  The best advice I can give you is not to worry about it so much!  When someone breaks a leg, then must adapt to wearing a cast and walking with crutches all day - every day for however long it takes to heal. That may not be the best analogy since OSA doesn't really 'heal', but humans are remarkably adaptive creatures.  If CPAP treatment does make you feel better, you will have to adapt to its usage at night - every night - to improve your quality of life.  
 
As for your spouse, I can tell you that MY spouse has never been happier since I went on CPAP.  I don't snore anymore, I'm not grouchy and moody during the day, and I have way more energy to do the things I haven't been doing for years!  The Respironics machine that I have (Remstar Plus) is EXTREMELY quiet.  The only thing my spouse can be annoyed with at times is the occasional blast of air she may feel as I roll over in my sleep!  I too was uncomfortable with the mask in my sleep study, so I opted for the Breeze headgear with nasal pillows.  My nostrils were a little sore for the first week or so, but a little Vaseline around them did the trick nicely.
 
Remember that unlike the person with the broken leg, the only person(s) that will see you with your 'beauty' kit on are those that love you.  [My kids think its 'cool' and wanted to try it out!]  It can be a drag sometimes if you forget to put your mask on before going to sleep, but as SOON as you wake and realize its not on... PUT IT ON!  I am one who likes to fall asleep to the TV as well.  Interestingly, my view of the screen is not blocked by my gear since the front of the Breeze is only the size of a small tube and lines up with the center of my face.
 
You are truly not alone here.  And you have a BIG advantage that I did not have when I began CPAP... this Board!  I wish it was around a few years ago when I went through everything that you are going through now.  Good luck with your treatment, do NOT give up, and remember we're all in the same boat here!
 
Vince.