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What do you do to improve?
#1
What do you do to improve?
I would like to know what you do to improve (improve might be the wrong word) your sleep.

Do you sleep on your side or your back?
Is one better than the other?
If you have better numbers on your side, how do you keep from rolling to your back?
Does your spouse or partner disturb you?
Do you still "need" naps?
If you have a bad night and your numbers go up... can you tell why?
Maybe you don't eat anything a certain amount of hours before bed?
Do you take a sleep medicine?
If you snore, do you do anything to try and control it?
Are there a certain number of hours you must get to feel rested.


The reason I ask... I get better results if I sleep on my side, but I habitually sleep on my back. My reports read that I consistently snore... but my husband says he does not hear me... I've only had my cpap one month, and the first week, was great... no problems with the mask, I felt so much more rested... this week, I'm tired when I wake up.
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#2
RE: What do you do to improve?
(05-02-2013, 08:40 AM)VickiJohnson Wrote: I would like to know what you do to improve (improve might be the wrong word) your sleep.

Do you sleep on your side or your back?
Is one better than the other?
If you have better numbers on your side, how do you keep from rolling to your back?
Does your spouse or partner disturb you?
Do you still "need" naps?
If you have a bad night and your numbers go up... can you tell why?
Maybe you don't eat anything a certain amount of hours before bed?
Do you take a sleep medicine?
If you snore, do you do anything to try and control it?
Are there a certain number of hours you must get to feel rested.


The reason I ask... I get better results if I sleep on my side, but I habitually sleep on my back. My reports read that I consistently snore... but my husband says he does not hear me... I've only had my cpap one month, and the first week, was great... no problems with the mask, I felt so much more rested... this week, I'm tired when I wake up.

Hi Vicki:
I'll answer the best I can. There will be others who hopefully will respond with other suggestions.
1.I sleep on my side.
2.If on your back apparently your throat can block easier than if on your side.
3.I tuck a pillow at my back.
4.No
5.There are days when I'd like to nap.
6. Usually if my numbers go up it's due to a leak.
7. Have a light snack at bedtime. (Crackers)
8. I take 2 Gravol at bedtime
9. I haven't snored since using CPAP.
10. I find the older I get the less sleep I need.

Hope these will help. Remember it takes a while for your body to change, nothing happens overnight.
Hang in there it will get better.
Coffee
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#3
RE: What do you do to improve?
I get my best results sleeping on my side.
I use a small backpack for carrying a laptop computer.
I stuff 3 tubes of tennis balls in it (while still in the tubes)

Not many folks can roll over on that. It works!
Wear a t-shirt so it wont chafe you with the shoulder straps.

Smile
"With ordinary talent and extraordinary perseverance, all things are attainable." - Thomas Foxwell Buxton

Cool
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#4
RE: What do you do to improve?
I sleep on my side and stomach. I can't remember the last time I slept on my back. I always want to roll to the side.
My spouse does not disturb me. He makes jokes about the mask but he doesn't bother me when I have it on and the sound it produces doesn't bother him either.
I still take naps on the weekends. Naps are frowned upon at work.
I have good AHI numbers with CPAP so a bad night for me is probably better than many people's good nights. I don't worry about the numbers going up and down and trying to find out why. I do look at leak rates and respiratory arousals (which I don't fully understand but look at that data anyway).
My hubby says I no longer snore but SleepyHead software says that I do. I think it's the exhale ports being partially blocked when my face is smashed into the bed or covers.
I really need to average just over 8 hours of sleep to feel rested. I often get 7+ during the work week and then make up for it on the weekends. I know that everyone is different.

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#5
RE: What do you do to improve?
(05-02-2013, 08:40 AM)VickiJohnson Wrote: I've only had my cpap one month, and the first week, was great... no problems with the mask, I felt so much more rested... this week, I'm tired when I wake up.

Vicki, what I found and others I know have said, is that after the first night and sometimes the first week of CPAP use, you get a sudden rush of new found energy, I believes it's because we have been so oxygen and sleep deprived for so long, our bodies can really feel the change. Then it seems to taper off for a while and we are still tired during the day and during the following months it slowly seems to get better. We probably can't see that effect as it is slower than the initial burst. Obviously it also depends on CPAP compliance, proper sleep hygiene etc.
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#6
RE: What do you do to improve?
Hi Vicki,
I do better when I sleep on my side but my favorite sleeping position is on my stomach. I tend to turn quite a bit some nights and roll over on my back but I don't do as well, so, when I discover that I'm on my back, I turn over..
My husband says I rarely bother him at night, especially since I've switched to the Wisp nasal mask.
Your body is still getting used to this new way of sleeping so give it more time, it will get better, just hang in there.
trish6hundred
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#7
RE: What do you do to improve?
(05-02-2013, 08:40 AM)VickiJohnson Wrote: I would like to know what you do to improve (improve might be the wrong word) your sleep.

Do you sleep on your side or your back?
Is one better than the other?
If you have better numbers on your side, how do you keep from rolling to your back?
Does your spouse or partner disturb you?
Do you still "need" naps?
If you have a bad night and your numbers go up... can you tell why?
Maybe you don't eat anything a certain amount of hours before bed?
Do you take a sleep medicine?
If you snore, do you do anything to try and control it?
Are there a certain number of hours you must get to feel rested.


The reason I ask... I get better results if I sleep on my side, but I habitually sleep on my back. My reports read that I consistently snore... but my husband says he does not hear me... I've only had my cpap one month, and the first week, was great... no problems with the mask, I felt so much more rested... this week, I'm tired when I wake up.

I thought that once I started CPAP I'd be able to sleep on my back, but I just can't do it. It's side or stomach for me. My wife says I no longer snore when I'm on CPAP and the numbers confirm.

I don't notice any connection between my numbers and how I feel. For me it's quantity and quality of sleep that determine how I feel. When I don't wake frequently during the night and I sleep more than 8 hours, that's a good night.

I used to nap a lot when I started CPAP, but not much anymore. Today is my 18 month CPAP anniversary!

I think what you're experiencing in your second week is a normal fluctuation. You will go through periods where you feel worse, and then periods when you feel better. But when you look at the big picture -- as the months go by -- you'll notice huge but gradual improvements.

I think I may have been cognitively impaired from sleep apnea my entire life. Maybe. I'm 57 and I'm going back and learning relativity all over again. I studied it when I was in college and was fascinated. But of course confused because it's a challenging subject. Now I'm rediscovering the logic of it, and it's like I'm fitting the pieces of a puzzle together in a way where they finally fit. It's awesome!
Sleepster

INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.
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#8
RE: What do you do to improve?
I find I feel better if I increase my pressure a bit above the point where my data shows no apneas. I assume I'm getting some sort of airflow restrictions that aren't bad enough to show up in the data.

YMMV. A little cautious tinkering may be warranted.
Get the free OSCAR CPAP software here.
Useful links.
Click here for information on the main alternative to CPAP.
If it's midnight and a DME tells you it's dark outside, go and check it yourself.
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#9
RE: What do you do to improve?
I am a roller, although I tend to roll form side to side and less to my back itself. My frau does not have a problem with it, and her so long as I stick to my third of the bed and she still occupies her two thirds and has control of the duvet, their is no problem for her. My problem is that she kicks in her sleep. Punches, too.
I still record snoring, but that is normal - snores recorded by the machine are not necessarily audible, but are the vibratory movements in the throat and uvula that indicate snoring - usually you will find these clustered around low pressure events or too high pressure events, and not distributed throughout the night.
I take no sleep medicine, but occasionally a pain killer and a muscle relaxant when my back is too much for me. I sleep pretty much a clear six hours, have since I was teenager. What I don't do now is get up to pee, I don't have to, and I suspect that I did because I was waking regularly, and that was making me feel the bladder pressure.
For a long time I didn't feel sleepy during the day, but now I do again, although my numbers are good.
Mostly, you will go through several different adjustment periods as your brain learns how to sleep again, and your body benefits from it. It usually happens in fits and starts, so give it time and relax. You will feel tired for a while, and in some it never really goes away, because there are other reasons for the tiredness besides the apnoea. Get your weight down, don't drink milk products less than two hours before bed (phlegm producing) and keep your mask and hose clean. More than that, have patience. It takes time for the benefits to truly kick in.
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#10
RE: What do you do to improve?
(05-02-2013, 09:50 PM)Sleepster Wrote: For me it's quantity and quality of sleep that determine how I feel.
Today is my 18 month CPAP anniversary!
+1
Congrats

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