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Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
#21
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
Hi Nash and welcome to the forum,

I clean the silicon cushion of my mask each morning with Johnson's Baby Shampoo which is mild and seems to do a really good job. My humidifier gets the same weekly treatment as mentioned in one of the earlier replies. And then the hose gets cleaned monthly (+/-) with a weak solution of white vinegar and water, let it soak for 20 - 30 minutes, rinse thoroughly and hang up to drain and air dry. Eventually the silicon cushion seems to get more difficult to seal and that's when a new cushion is needed.

Please stick with it and also work on the other issues, you should see encouraging results soon but sticking with it is important. Hoping for good results for you and looking forward to reading about them.

Stan
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#22
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
stanleydean, Thanks for the encouragement! I can always use some. I like the baby shampoo idea. I think I will try some wipes first. I will definitely use the vinegar trick once a month. I am afraid of letting some kind of bacteria grow in there. I am going to make this work one way or another! With the help of this board. I am anxious to try a night. I am still waiting for my mask to arrive but I am going to program my machine tonight with the good advice of above posters. All experts were beginners once, right?  Thanks so much for your response!
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#23
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
Regarding the ramp: these machines generally dont go below 4cm H2O, so 4 or 4.5 is a logical starting pressure. It will then build up from that to your therapeutic pressure ( which I suggested as 7). Some people find that 4 is too low and start the ramp at higher pressure. That's fine - this is all about your comfort. Eventually you'll probably wean yourself off the ramp completely.
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#24
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
(02-23-2017, 07:07 PM)DeepBreathing Wrote: Regarding the ramp:  these machines generally dont go below 4cm H2O, so 4 or 4.5 is a logical starting pressure. It will then build up from that to your therapeutic pressure ( which I suggesred as 7). Some people find that 4 is too low and start the ramp at  higher pressure. That's fine - this is all about your comfort. Eventually you'll probably wean yourself off the ramp completely.

DeepBreathing - I have been setting up the machine and changed that already to a 4.5. I could always change it back if you think I will encounter a problem. While I was in there I noticed a setting for "SmartRamp". I was wondering if you think I should use this? It is set to off right now. I was also wondering about the "Mask Type". I am getting a AirFit F10 in the mail (soon hopefully). Do you have a suggestion for the setting?

Here are all the settings in Clinician mode. Any suggestions or if you think I have done something wrong please let me know. I would like to be able to plug in the mask and go when it gets here in the mail.

Mode = auto
Optistart = on
Ez Start = off
Auto Min = 7.0
Auto Max = 16.0

Humidification = fixed
Humidifier = 2
Tube Temp = 2
SmartRamp = off
Ramp Time = 0.10
Ramp Start = 4.5
Flex = A-Flex
Flex Setting = 2

Tube Type = 15 (changes automatically to 15H when I plug in tube)
Tube Type Lock = off
Mask Type = off
Mask Type Lock = off
Check Mask Fit = off

Show AHI/Fit/PB = on
Automatic On = on
Automatic Off = off

Thanks for all your help!
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#25
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
I think that all looks pretty good, but perhaps a Philips user could chime in and confirm? I believe the smart ramp tries to sense when you're asleep and automatically increases pressure after that time. Personally I wouldn't bother with that and I'd stick with the manual setting.

I believe the setting for non-Philips masks (such as your Resmed F10) should be "off", but again I'd defer to somebody who has this actual machine.
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#26
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
(02-23-2017, 09:13 PM)DeepBreathing Wrote: I think that all looks pretty good, but perhaps a Philips user could chime in and confirm? I believe the smart ramp tries to sense when you're asleep and automatically increase pressure after that time. Personally I wouldn't bother with that and I'd stick with the manual setting.

I believe the setting for non-Philips masks (such as your Resmed F10) should be "off", but again I'd defer to somebody who has this actual machine.

From searching around it looks like you are exactly right about leaving the "Mask Type" = off. I will take your advise and not mess with that other stuff. Just wanted to make sure everything looked OK to you. Thanks again DeepBreathing. I feel like I am starting to get a grasp of all this. Can't wait to get my mask! I think someone hijacked the USPS truck. 

Any other suggestions for my first night?
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#27
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
Quote:Any other suggestions for my first night?

Don't expect miracles. Some lucky people do indeed get an instant result, but apnea is a chronic disease and for most of us it's a gradual recovery. Just go to sleep like you normally do, make yourself comfortable and place the machine / tube so you won't get tangled up if you roll over. (And make sure the machine is in a position where it can't get dragged / knocked to the floor).

Don't worry if it doesn't go smoothly at first - it does get better with practice. The first sign that it's working is usually a reduction in the number of toilet breaks during the night.
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#28
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
Nash, the SmartRamp feature incorporates the auto titrating algorithm to ramp, rather than just using a time and pressure approach. If it detects flow limitation or other cues that would normally cause an increase in pressure, it does indeed increase pressure, and ramp is terminated if the minimum auto pressure is reached. It's a good thing to have on. Without autoramp, the pressure simply starts out at the set minimum ramp pressure, and pressure increases gradually for the time the ramp is set. No drawback to using this feature.

Optistart on the other hand is a minimum pressure override. With this ON, the machine will use a minimum pressure equal to the 90% pressure of the previous session. You will often hear us advise new members on the forum to increase minimum pressure to prevent events. This feature simply does that automatically. So, even though you have set 7 as a minimum pressure, it's very likely with Optistart, your minimum pressure could be 9, 10 or higher, depending on what you needed the night before.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
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#29
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
(02-24-2017, 10:23 AM)Sleeprider Wrote: Nash, the SmartRamp feature incorporates the auto titrating algorithm to ramp, rather than just using a time and pressure approach.  If it detects flow limitation or other cues that would normally cause an increase in pressure, it does indeed increase pressure, and ramp is terminated if the minimum auto pressure is reached.  It's a good thing to have on.  Without autoramp, the pressure simply starts out at the set minimum ramp pressure, and pressure increases gradually for the time the ramp is set.  No drawback to using this feature.

Optistart on the other hand is a minimum pressure override.  With this ON, the machine will use a minimum pressure equal to the 90% pressure of the previous session.  You will often hear us advise new members on the forum to increase minimum pressure to prevent events.  This feature simply does that automatically.  So, even though you have set 7 as a minimum pressure, it's very likely with Optistart, your minimum pressure could be 9, 10 or higher, depending on what you needed the night before.

Sleeprider - So you think the SmartRamp is harmless to use and can actually help but the Optistart should probably just be left off? Appreciate your help!
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#30
RE: Newbie Desperate for General Help - Introduction
(02-24-2017, 10:23 AM)Sleeprider Wrote: Nash, the SmartRamp feature incorporates the auto titrating algorithm to ramp, rather than just using a time and pressure approach.  If it detects flow limitation or other cues that would normally cause an increase in pressure, it does indeed increase pressure, and ramp is terminated if the minimum auto pressure is reached.  It's a good thing to have on.  Without autoramp, the pressure simply starts out at the set minimum ramp pressure, and pressure increases gradually for the time the ramp is set.  No drawback to using this feature.

Optistart on the other hand is a minimum pressure override.  With this ON, the machine will use a minimum pressure equal to the 90% pressure of the previous session.  You will often hear us advise new members on the forum to increase minimum pressure to prevent events.  This feature simply does that automatically.  So, even though you have set 7 as a minimum pressure, it's very likely with Optistart, your minimum pressure could be 9, 10 or higher, depending on what you needed the night before.

I've been wondering this info!!!  Thanks for spelling it out. I wish the clinician's manuals had these explanations.
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