Hi there,

I am new here and have been a sleep apnea sufferer for years and finally found why I have it and now I am battling with the cpap machine. But I am not giving up I want my sleep back....I am hoping this new sleep doctor that I will see soon will help resolve my sleep apnea I am getting frustrated...I am forty years old and I dont want to feel this way anymore..

Paulie


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Paulie

I'm new here also and I'm very interested in information pertaining to sleep apnea. Sometimes I wake my fiance up at night because he stops breathing and it scares me; once I stayed up until 4am afraid that he'd stop breathing all together and never snap out of it. Sometimes he sits up really fast, gags and coughs, and then rolls over and goes right back to sleep and he has no recollection that he does this ever. I've never heard of sleep apnea until I recieved a tip from RealAge and I started reading up on it, and the more I read the more it sounded familiar.
Anyway, the reason for this posting was to actually ask you what a cpap machine is and what does it do?
Thank you for listening!


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-Paczki
-Micci

Paulieg -  You say that you're "battling" with CPAP.  I know it's a difficult transition, but keep telling yourself that CPAP is your friend and it will help you to sleep better and feel alive again. In fact, it may very well help you to live longer.  My first week was hard, but after that it's second nature.  Try relaxing before bedtime.  When I first started CPAP, I would try to turn off the TV and the computer about 1 hour before bedtime to un-wind and relax.  You might try playing some soft music while relaxing and while trying to fall asleep.  At first, I would concentrate on the music to take my mind off of the CPAP and before long, I would be sound asleep.  

Paczki - do an internet search on CPAP and you will see what we're talking about.  It's a machine that has a hose which connects to a mask you wear over your nose and/or mouth.  It blows a constant pressure of air which acts as a splint to keep your airway open while you sleep.  Your fiancee will need a sleep study to determine whether or not he has sleep apnea and then another study (called a titration) to determine whether or not CPAP will work for him and how much pressure he will need to keep his airway open.  Sometimes a sleep center will do a "split night" study where both studies can be done in the same night.  Your fiancee is exhibiting classic signs of sleep apnea.  Urge him to see his doctor (go with him if you can) and tell the doctor exactly what is going on.

Best of luck to you both!

Hi Merlin and Paczki

Thanks for responding to my post. Interesting that Merlin says to make your cpap your friend, a machine a technology that suppose to help you. I had to live with a small technology all my life and would you think thati I dont mind using any type of machine to help me with my problems?? well, I do..for some odd reason I am really not comfortable with the cpap the more I fight it the more I dont want ot use it..I wear hearing aids all my life and it took me years to accept that and now I have to deal with living with another "gadget" yet at the same time I am a strong advocate of assistive technology believing that it would help many folks with independance. However,  I am determine to try again.

I found a local support group and I will try and see if they are still running so that I can get more information which I should have done a year ago. My sleep apnea is getting worse I keep falling asleep more and more..I am drinking caffiene trying to eat suger to stay awake..bu this is effecting my dieting.

Paczki  Like Merlin says, do alot of internet search on cpap machine there are so many different  types of them which I didnt realize at all cuz the one I have is out of date and well I am not even sure if it will help me so Ineed to try and see which cpap will help and also I found a mask that might work for me...so keep doing those research and encourage your fiance to go to a support group to get the support that he needs including you...both of u will benefit from it...


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Paulie

Thanks to the both of you, thank you very much! I want to do a little more research before I confront hm about it. I can barely get his to use his glasses, never the less a machine. His excuse being, "I've made it this far havne't I?" He's not much for medicine and helpful technology, but he's an understanding person. Thank you again! I really needed the reassurrance and the help!
Sincerely,