Gogirl - Sleep Apnea Thread

[Gogirl]

Thank you. It’s deleted.

[Gogirl]

So had my meeting with Kaiser colorado sleep dept and respiratory therapist. Decided on a n30 nasal mask but if I don’t like it I can get another mask free within 30 days. They are ordering me a resmed 10 or resmed 11 apap machine through apria which ever comes in first. Should be cloud to cloud but might have a sd card instead. Could be up to 6-8 weeks to get it mailed to me. Not thrilled with having it mailed but I can go into the office if I have questions. Also getting a climateline air hose. I was pretty mad at them for taking 3 months to get to this point but I guess my doctor who put in the referral didn’t think I had sleep apnea so my whole experience with the sleep department has been in the not urgent category. Next time I will make sure my referrals are urgent. I am petite and 65 and my dad had it so I was doomed to get it I guess. Anyway, I will probably have lots of questions once I get the machine. Rt is going to set pressure 4 to ramp up to 10 since I read in bed and I am not giving that up. Thanks for all your help with machine and mask advice. If you have any more advice I am open.

[Gogirl]

Oh I should also mention I am moderate 17 - so barely. They said it was my choice to treat it or not which I find crazy. But in todays modern medical world they don’t want to offend anyone. Said it may never get worse but would probably help with sleeping so I am like why wouldn’t I treat it. Has this happened to anyone else. Worried about being claustrophobic but I feel determined to sleep better.

[DaveL]

I'm claustrophobic too.
I haven't been able to wear a full face mask. I do own a Fisher Paykel Evora Full full face mask. It's really well made. However, I haven't been able to adjust it to prevent bad leaks. This mask solves my claustrophobic problem. Maybe it would work for you. Just know that others have reported leaks too. I've slept through the night with it on once. Other nights I've changed masks in the middle of the night. That's a pain.
I use an N20 from ResMed and a chin strap, and cervical collar. That's the best mask for me. Again no issues with claustrophobia. I've used this mask for at least 3 years
And I have two others.....P30i and N30i I took the P30i off after 2 hours sleep the other night. Slept well for the rest of the night. ;-)

Sorry for rambling. I think that having a good mask is my key to good treatment. And getting the settings right on the machine too.

Welcome to the OSA world.

[Gogirl]

Can anyone tell me what all this means;

5 cm low, 15 cm high with inline heated humidifier
Epr setting on #2 - full time 
Ramp auto , smart start off, essential setting on plus

[Crimson Nape]

OK, I'll take a stab at this.

• 5 cm low, 15 cm high with inline heated humidifier
  This is for an auto adjusting CPAP.  Your minimum pressure is 5 cm and the maximum set pressure will be 15 cm.  The "inline heated humidifier" is an odd spec.  Most all new CPAPs come with a humidifier.  This may mean a heated hose to help the humidification.
  
  
• Epr setting on #2 - full time  
  The EPR option is a Resmed trademark option.  Its setting (0-3) determines the amount of pressure reduction in centimeters when you exhale.  The lowest that it will allow the pressure to drop is to 4 cm.  This means that when you start at a pressure of 5 cm, it will only drop by 1 cm and not 2 cm.  No biggie!  The Full time means that it shall be used all the time and not for just the ramp's specified time.
  
  
• Ramp auto, smart start off, essential setting on plus
  The Ramp Auto, unlike its timed version, is a feature that will stay at the set ramp pressure until the CPAP thinks you are asleep.  It doesn't always guess correctly.  
  
  Smart Start is another feature that senses airflow in the mask and automatically turns the CPAP on.  Likewise, when it senses no breathing, like when you take the mask off, it stops the CPAP.   This feature is a problem child, and while a great idea, can cause more problems than its worth.
  
  Essential Setting on Plus - This option provides additional sleep information to the patient.  Nothing earth-shattering, just a few more insights.
  

I hope this may answer your post.

- Red

[Gogirl]

Thanks that was what my doctor sent to the Dme apria

[DaveL]

Crimson Nape talked about Smart Start. This feature gave me issues. I woke up several times and found my S10 for her was turned off. After I turned this feature off, I've had no issues.

[Gogirl]

Got my machine today from apria. Only took 2 weeks was very surprised. They sent me a resmed airsense autoset  11. Was surprised by that too.  Anyway got it all hooked up so simple and actually took a nap only for about 15 minutes but I did fall asleep. Wasn’t as bad as I thought but of course it was just a nap. I see this as a good sign. Hopefully tonight goes well.  Using a nasal cushion mask. 

How do I know if this machine is a cloud to cloud or a card to cloud.   Need to know as I only have an iPad and I will need to get an sd card reader.

[Jeff8356]

I believe the Airsense 11 series has Bluetooth.  You would install the MyAir app (on your iPad) and it registers with your machine via BT.  I think the app has instructions how to do it.

To the best of my knowledge it was only the AirSense 10 and AirCurve 10 series that came in the card-to-cloud versions.

But you should still be able to use an SD card in the 11, although OSCAR is not available for an iPad.