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Abletree's Therapy Thread
#71
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Thanks. I'm going to be checking into this. I don't understand how to interpret the OSCAR charts yet, but I have noticed mouth exhalation disturbances in my sleep that past couple of nights. I also am burping in the morning before fully awakening and after getting out of bed. These problems began when I changed my EPR from 3 to 2. I think I'll be going back to 3 tonight. If that doesn't help - chinstrap is next probably. Thank you
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#72
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Here are my screenshots from last night Nov 13. Slept well, other than burping in the morning before fully awakening and after getting out of bed. This began after I changed my EPR from 3 to 2 a few night ago. I was trying to see if I could reduce using EPR. Some of the opinions I have read about suggest using it can have various negative effects.

I'm testing minor changes here and there. Because of the burping and what I think are new mouth exhalation problems, I plan to go back to EPR 3 tonight and see if this improves.

Thank you for your comments

Abletree


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#73
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Last night I changed my EPR back to 3 after trying EPR 2 for a few nights. At EPR 2 I found myself lip-fluttering and burping from ingested air. Last night I did not have these issues. I had a very good AHI as well.

Here are a couple of screenshots. Any comments, input, observations are appreciated. Thank you


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#74
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Sounds and looks like EPR of 3 is best. Nothing more to change, just keep with it and hopefully time will improve any remaining symptoms.
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#75
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Thank you - That's the plan for the moment Smile
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#76
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Pretty decent night last night Nov 15th. Kept all settings the same - same as the sleep doc initially ordered. The only thing I adjusted was EPR from 3 to 2 for a few days. That didn't go well - lip fluttering and air ingestion. Went back to EPR 3 and those problems went away from everything I can tell

I have attached last night's daily if you would like to check it out Smile Any thoughts or comments are appreciated

Abletree


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#77
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Last night NOV 16 I remember having my headgear off a couple of times. I think somewhere between 1:45 AM and 3:15 AM I noticed difficulty with exhale pressure - like I was pushing against a brick wall.  My EPR is still set at 3. I recall taking the headgear off and putting it back on when my pressure seemed to return to normal

This is the first time I experienced something like this - where the exhale pressure seemed comfortable - but then increased substantially during the night, until I removed the headgear and put it back on

Thoughts?

I still don't know how to interpret the charts very well, but I notice the wide(tall) band in inhale/exhale in the Flow Rate section that diminishes and becomes shorter all the way to the end of the sleep - I was up and exited the bed at 4AM, but the chart seems to continue tracking until 5am. I have Smart Sense turned on and the machine sounded like it stopped pushing air when I removed it at that time. Why is the chart still showing readings past that time?

Here's some screenshots:

Thank you for your insights

Abletree


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#78
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
You were breathing until 5. If you woke up at 4 it could be that your CPAP time is off an hour (potentially due to DST, has to be manually changed or ignored).

Did you take off/stop using machine at 2:25 and 2:55? My guess is that the machine shut off on you and the reason you found it difficult to exhale was because machine was off. Smartstart is not half as smart as it thinks it is and sometimes stupidy shuts off when it shouldn't. I frankly would never consider using it, just press the button to turn on/off when needed.
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#79
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Thank you - I was definitely up and out of bed at 4am. I'll check the clock setting on the machine when I get home

So far Smartstart has been working well as far as I know, but I'll check into it - I have a "custom" setup where my machine is out of reach. It is placed on the backside of a bookcase headboard that opens out the back. My bed is in the middle of the room, not against a wall. My headgear tube is routed through a hole in the headboard above my head

This setup keeps the machine(s) - my wife also has one - out of sight & very accessible for cleaning, filling, supplies etc. Also completely silent. Having my tube come out of the headboard wall from overhead works great with my headgear tube that comes off the top of my head.

The downside is - I can't access my machine while in bed - so smartstart is an important feature for me. Of course, if smartstart messes up my sleep, I will change my setup to make my machine accessible while in bed.

Thank you very much for your input Smile
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#80
RE: Abletree's Therapy Thread
Last night Nov 17 was interesting. I actually had a nightmare and verbalized my fright loud enough to alert my wife, who came and woke me up out of it. I don't recall what time it was, but I do see a long obstructive event around 1 am followed by a mask off period

I have been struggling with some exhalation pressure issues the past several days, which I attributed to adjusting my EPR from 3 to 2. I have been back at EPR 3 for a few nights and I thought that took care of things - but???

It was suggested that SmartStart may be interfering with my pressure situation - possibly coming on/off at improper times. I will experiment with turning this feature off to see if I can detect a correlation

I find it interesting to consider how nightmares/dreams may affect the OSCAR charts and recordable sleep events - or vice/versa

I would appreciate your thoughts & have provided OSCAR charts to view

Thank you

Abletree


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