How long before therapy actually works ?
I have started using my cpap machine since yesterday and today arvo I already feel a bit tired and want to take a nap even though the dreammapper app says I did well last night. It's almost like the therapy is working the other way round for me. Personally, I don't think I need to use a cpap machine as I have no obvious symptoms of sleep apnea other than snoring. I sleep well, dont wake up gasping, dont feel the need to sleep during the day, dont feel lethargic etc. But I will trust the specialist and continue on. I strongly feel may be I am misdiagnosed, but the specialist insisted that I need to be therapy.
During my titration study, I slept for about 2.5 hours lesser than my required hours. I woke up feeling a bit 'different' in my head (- almost the same feeling I had this morning). Drove home and around 11 in the morning I dozed off sitting on the couch. Woke up thinking the cpap was supposed to help with not sleeping during the day !
How long before one can see an improvement/difference in their day to day life after they start on CPAP ? Do people usually feel different during early days ?
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
Days- weeks- months- ...... it varies for everyone.
You sound similar to me, I have only very mild apnea, and only snore if forced to sleep on my back (all my life I have been a side sleeper, but was forced to sleep on my back for the titration test, subsequently I "failed" and was deemed to have sleep apnea)
The fact that I was on my fourth long day, had slept poorly the night before (chronic poor/short hours sleeper for the last 20 years or more) and had my work accident 14 hours in to my work day, was not considered a possible cause for me falling asleep at the wheel of my work vehicle.
Now I have to stay compliant to CPAP use to maintain my commercial driving licence.
CPAP has benefited me by "forcing" me to get seven or eight hours a night of sleep, some mornings I think I have woken more refreshed and sharper due to using the CPAP, but I can also miss using it for a night and still wake feeling fairly good.. as long as I've had eight hours of undisturbed sleep.
It may take you a while to get it tweaked for you personally, but once you get to that point you should start to feel it is helping.
One thing it does for me that is noticeable is that I get less angry or stressed than if I have had a bad night with no CPAP.
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
Some people get instant results, but most take a little while to get accustomed to the machine. For a lot of us it feels like we're going backwards at first, but once you get used to it you will see and feel an improvement.
In my case the first sign it was working was a reduction in nocturnal toilet trips. The second was the elimination of heart palpitations, followed by the fact I could drive to work each morning and not have to pull over for a rest by the side of the freeway!
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
I thought it helped from the first night. It took about 6 months with added oxygen to make a big change. I feel that had I used cpap sooner in life I would have not been as bad off, low oxygen and sleep loss have had a cost.
Good Luck to you with adjusting. 
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
The therapy works immediately as evidenced by data collected on your SD card. The period of time for you to notice the difference varies a lot based on individual. I personally noticed a HUGE improvement on my first day. Others take months.
04-06-2017, 10:42 AM
(This post was last modified: 04-06-2017, 11:19 AM by Marillion.)
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
It can also depend on how much of a sleep debt you have accumulated and how long it takes your body to recover from it. A CPAP machine is not a cure in and of itself. Really what it does is allow you to sleep deeply enough (once you get used to using the machine) so that the body can repair itself.
For me I noticed differences in the first couple of days. But I am still noticing small improvements even a month and a half in. Mainly in energy levels during the day and not feeling drop dead tired in the afternoons anymore.
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
Just a couple weeks into this therapy for me. I felt better right from the 1st morning. For several days I still wanted an afternoon nap, but that's gone and it seems like every few days I notice something else I am feeling or doing better.
Generally there are two things that xPAP therapy seem to be effective on. One is sleep disruption, not sleeping the right amount of time in the right proportions, and the other is to prevent oxygen desaturations. You would have to post your sleep and titration study results to see what's affecting you. You may need to beg, borrow, steal or buy a recording pulse oximeter to see if you are having desaturations if you sleep is adequate in duration and composition. But post what you have and we all can take a look see.
Good Luck, and I hope your therapy straightens out.
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
Takes a while to get used to the machine.
The machine at the start can waken some people just about as much as having apneas.
However, you might not even be aware of waking.
Having said this, you might adjust quickly to the machine and go onwards and upwards.
Let's face it, we are not programmed to have a mask on our face and high pressure air blown into it, so it will take a while to get used to things, just try to persist with it and you will get used to it. Then with a bit of luck things should go better for you.
The first two nights I ever had was on an APAP machine, I kept waking up due to pressure changes, however, I must have slept better than having Apneas as I did feel better almost instantly, then I had to wait to go for full testing and things went downhill fast.
That is when I decided that when I got a machine of my own it was going to work or had to work.
After I got my own machine, it did take a while to get back to my usual self, though there was an instant boost, it did take a while to get my life back. Keep trying, things should improve as you get used to the machine.
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
(04-05-2017, 10:36 PM)BHappy Wrote: How long before one can see an improvement/difference in their day to day life after they start on CPAP ? Do people usually feel different during early days ?
I felt better on day one, no more terrible morning headaches or waking up multiple times during the night
Feeling better is a working progress ... adjustment and tweaking took few months, finding the right mask is quite important
The secret is putting your heart and soul into making this life saving therapy to works
Best of luck
RE: How long before therapy actually works ?
Thank you for your replies. Today morning is much better than yesterday. I am hoping the therapy is working and will improve everyday.
I did notice I didn't get up to pee since I started. And I have constant Heart rate monitor (had to buy a band when a specialist misread my sleep study and said my HR goes up to 250 a night ! $#$#$#$!). So, my heart's resting a lot better - has never dropped to 40's (bpm) in a night but it has over the last two nights.
I will keep at it.
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