Hello Guest, Welcome to Apnea Board !
As a guest, you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use.
To post a message, you must create a free account using a valid email address.

or Create an Account


New Posts   Today's Posts

question from a new breather
#21
RE: question from a new breather
(12-23-2012, 06:05 PM)Cindy Wrote: My lungs hurt again and my ears hurt. I have a:

Phillips Remstar Auto A-Flex system wondering if 11 is just too high.


Hi Cindy,

I think you will need to look at your machine's data to see what is happening. For example, what is your AHI?

Do you have the Clinician's Manual for your machine? As a member of the forum, it is available to you.

I am not familiar with the PR Auto system, but perhaps you can ask your doctor to have your machine put in Auto mode for at least a week with a minimum pressure around 8, and a max pressure of at least 11.

I suggest not allowing anyone to set the minimum pressure to 4 or 6, because a really low pressure may make you feel like you are suffocating, and you may be unable to fall asleep, or you may wake up in the middle of the night feeling suffocated from a lack of fresh air.

Take care,
--- Vaughn


The Advisory Member group provides advice and suggestions to Apnea Board administrators and staff on matters concerning Apnea Board operation and administrative policies.  Membership in the Advisory Member group should not be understood as in any way implying medical expertise or qualification for advising Sleep Apnea patients concerning their treatment.
Post Reply Post Reply
#22
RE: question from a new breather
(12-23-2012, 06:05 PM)Cindy Wrote: My lungs hurt again and my ears hurt. I have a:

Phillips Remstar Auto A-Flex system wondering if 11 is just too high.

I would suggest a trip to the Doc. Where I am there is a viral respiratory infection going around (infection getting in ears too). Those things can go into pneumonia real quick. I ain't no Doctor (as evidenced by my use of the word "ain't" and double negative), but probably a good idea to get it checked out.

Post Reply Post Reply
#23
RE: question from a new breather
(12-23-2012, 06:05 PM)Cindy Wrote: My lungs hurt again and my ears hurt. I have a:

Phillips Remstar Auto A-Flex system wondering if 11 is just too high.

Please put "PRS1 Auto" as your machine type in your profile so we'll know in the future.

"ResScan" under your software listing doesn't make sense if you have a Respironics machine.

It's always possible that chest pain is heart problems or some other serious problem.

Many people have soreness in the chest as their muscles adjust to breathing out against the pressure. If that's what happens, it should soon go away. 11 is a reasonably low pressure.

Are you using the "Flex" feature on your CPAP machine? That can help some people.

You're better off not using ramp at all if you can stand not to. Sometimes, newbies need it, but you should stop it once you get used to the pressure.

If you don't press the ramp button, does your machine start at 11 on the display?
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.
Post Reply Post Reply
#24
RE: question from a new breather
Yes it shows 11 to start, it ramps for 20 minutes, low pressure is 4.

I went to my family physician last week because my right ear ached so bad and I don't have a bug or ear infection, she told me sometimes people with sinus problems have a harder time with a CPAP.

I tried calling my sleep dr and he is on vacation. I didn't sleep with the machine last night and I feel normal again, of course my hubby didn't get any sleep but my chest and ears don't hurt.

I lowered the pressure just for tonight vs not using it, I'll call the sleep dr's nurse in the morning. I did call CPAP person and he couldn't give me suggestions Smile

Thanks for helping with this, I'm reading my manual and trying to learn all the features you are asking about.
Post Reply Post Reply
#25
RE: question from a new breather
Cindy, are you taking decongestants?
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.
Post Reply Post Reply
#26
RE: question from a new breather
(12-26-2012, 10:42 AM)Sleepster Wrote: Cindy, are you taking decongestants?

I live in KY, the sinus capital of the world. I take something occasionally for the fluid on my ear.

Update. I got in touch with the dr and he told me to have the pressure set back to 8 Smile Doing a whole lot better. I go back in the 31st for a check.

Only thing I notice now is I drift off quickly and then I'm wide awake. Trying to skip the ramp if that's doing it.

Post Reply Post Reply
#27
RE: question from a new breather
Ramp is a good thing to have if it takes you a while to go to sleep or if you just cannot fall asleep with the treatment pressure. Try turning it off completely. It may take you a few nights to get used to it being full-on so sit up with it on for a little bit each day until you get used to it.

I used to have problems falling asleep. I felt as if I was not getting enough air. I was, but I didn't feel like I was. At first, I made the ramp time longer, thinking that if the pressure increased slower, I'd fall asleep. Then I shortened it and that seemed to work most of the time. But I noticed I was falling asleep not long after it finally reached treatment pressure. So, I turned it off altogether. And I almost always fall right to sleep. If I don't, its for other reasons.

I used to belong to another forum, I guess it's been five, maybe 6 years ago. I went there to ask for help with the above problem. The machine I had, a Resmed S7, to change the ramp time, I had to get into the clinician menu. No one there would help me with it so I did a big Google search and found it. I then updated my thread to tell them I had changed the ramp time and I was doing better. You'd think they would have been relieved I was now getting better sleep. Nope. I was attacked. Lambasted for changing the ramp time. I was even put back on moderation status so I could not tell anyone where I found the information. So I dropped out and just did things on my own. Because I had been out of the CPAP loop, I didn't know how much better machines had gotten. So I accepted possession of the S9 Escape. And then I came here. I love being encouraged to have control over my own health!
PaulaO

Take a deep breath and count to zen.




Post Reply Post Reply
#28
RE: question from a new breather
(12-23-2012, 08:08 PM)vsheline Wrote:
(12-23-2012, 06:05 PM)Cindy Wrote: My lungs hurt again and my ears hurt. I have a:

Phillips Remstar Auto A-Flex system wondering if 11 is just too high.

I think you will need to look at your machine's data to see what is happening. For example, what is your AHI?

For some of us, our good for almost nothing machines don't have that capability. But at long last I duke it out with my resp therapist tomorrow. In 23½ hours. Assuming she got my answering machine message, she KNOWS that her existence is almost redundant since I announced that I couldn't wait this long - I set the pressure myself. I didn't say that I entered the clinician menu - yet - but rather stated that "there are ways" hinting that I possibly used ResScan - she knows I have a copy "Why, that's the same program we use here!" But I couldn't wait all this time at an 8.0 pressure when my doctor prescribed 11.0 back on December 20. And I'll have to make her face up. She has no excuses anymore to deny me an AutoSet. It's fine with the government who provides my funding and it's fine with the manufacturer. Closing in on 23¼ hours.... doing a countdown.
Post Reply Post Reply
#29
RE: question from a new breather
Don't get me wrong, data-capable machines are wonderful, but they are no magic bullet. It takes time to get used to the therapy. Once that happens, and you get your leaks and AHI under control, the data-capable machine doesn't really do much more for you than a brick.
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.
Post Reply Post Reply
#30
RE: question from a new breather
(01-08-2013, 04:22 PM)Sleepster Wrote: Don't get me wrong, data-capable machines are wonderful, but they are no magic bullet.
magic in the sense made my compliance with the therapy that much easier
as was able thru monitoring the data to optimize my therapy otherwise would not be possible with a brick Too-funny
yes data is tool can be utilized to pinpoint problems and address them along the way

Post Reply Post Reply


Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  nose breather in training cberistain 5 665 01-11-2023, 09:05 PM
Last Post: cberistain
  [Symptoms] Shallow Breather and Airsense 10 Issues Keri2000 11 1,849 04-27-2022, 08:55 PM
Last Post: Keri2000
  mask for long narrow face? (mouth breather) onlyconnect 0 424 11-08-2021, 06:33 AM
Last Post: onlyconnect
  Newbie - Stuffy nose turning me into mouth breather Bert S 16 1,849 10-15-2021, 03:13 PM
Last Post: Bert S
  Sleep study on mouth breather -- how do those nasal canulas tell you ANYTHING?!? cathyf 5 892 08-23-2021, 10:02 AM
Last Post: NelsonM
  Mask for side sleeper mouth breather BobbieM 17 2,711 04-18-2021, 06:16 AM
Last Post: JeffT
  Snoring, mouth breather. Amerikiwi1 18 1,832 03-12-2021, 01:57 PM
Last Post: Amerikiwi1


New Posts   Today's Posts


About Apnea Board

Apnea Board is an educational web site designed to empower Sleep Apnea patients.