RE: New to CPAP & Needing Support
allynpsych
Welcome to the forum, I see your getting great advice from OpalRose. She was very helpful when I started therapy. It is wise to follow her advice as she will put you on the right path for successful Therapy.
2004-Bon Jovi
it'll take more than a doctor to prescribe a remedy
Observations and recommendations communicated here are the perceptions of the writer and should not be misconstrued as medical advice.
RE: New to CPAP & Needing Support
Hi allynpsych,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
I know CPAP can take some getting used to, but just stick with it, it does get better over time.
The mask is the hardest part of this therapy, so don’t be shy about asking to try as many masks as you need, ‘till you find one that works for you.
Hang in there for more responses to your post and much success to you with your CPAP therapy.
trish6hundred
RE: New to CPAP & Needing Support
allenpsych,
You need to get the clinician's manual for your Airsense A10 Autoset. You can click on the link "CPAP setup manuals" at the top of the page and request the clinician's manual. There is no charge. Read up on your machine and what its capabilities are. Also the manual will tell you how to access the "secret" menus that the techs use to set the machine up. You will be able to tell what mode your machine is set to and what pressure or pressure range it is set to.
The mask leaks are due to the fact that you have the head strap tensions set to the lower pressure. The machine has a mask fit option that will give you your full normal pressure so that you can adjust the straps for that. When adjusting the straps do the bottom straps first and then the top straps. Make sure that the right and left straps are set equally. Then touch up any areas that still need adjustment. Do not just crank the straps down really tight. Tighten them a little at a time until you just eliminate the leaks the set of straps are controlling. When fitted properly at 15 cm/H2O the bottom straps should be fairly tight but not agonizingly so. The top straps should allow the forehead stabilizer to be somewhat off your forehead a little. One other thing that I found helpful once you have everything adjusted and the mask on, is to lift the mask away from your face a little to ensure that the seals get properly inflated.
It is helpful to clean your face where the seals will contact just before you go to bed to remove the oils from the surface of your skin so the seal stays anchored well. Another thing to keep in mind is that you need to clean the silicone seals on a regular basis to keep any oil from your face from building up on the seal.
One last thing about the Simplus mask. Hopefully the tech gave you the right size mask. The mask should allow a little latitude in how far up or down the bridge of your nose it sits. The mask generally works best if it rides a little below your brow.
Hopefully this will help to reduce your leaks and keep any from leaking into your eyes, which woke me up every hour or two when I was starting out. Then maybe you can get some better sleep and start optimizing the rest of your therapy.
Best Regards,
PaytonA