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First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - antcyd - 06-09-2012
Its been a month since I began this CPAP journey and have no had a full nights sleep since until last night. A friend told me about a kit she bought for Aromatherapy for CPAP machines and was telling me how much better she slept since using it. After doing some research I decided I was going to try but with much less expense (her kit cost $29.99) I went to Whole Foods, bought a bottle of Lavender essential oils, put a few drops on a cotton ball, placed it near the air intake area at the back of the machine and the rest is history!!! Slept 71/2 hours straight thru for the very first time!!!
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - Bompa - 06-09-2012
It works for me too although I put a couple of drops in the water.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - antcyd - 06-09-2012
I was afraid to put it in the water so thought the cotton ball was a better option. I may try a drop tonight in the water and see how that goes.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - Schnauzers 5 - 06-09-2012
Sounds interesting. I hope I don't get a headache from it, but willing to try. I like Lavender.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - pssnn - 06-09-2012
(06-09-2012, 06:40 AM)antcyd Wrote: After doing some research I decided I was going to try but with much less expense (her kit cost $29.99) I went to Whole Foods, bought a bottle of Lavender essential oils, put a few drops on a cotton ball, placed it near the air intake area at the back of the machine and the rest is history!!!
I saw the aromatherapy kits for CPAP also and I agree that they are way overpriced. I already had a lot of lavender oil on hand and have been using a few drops next to the intake on my S9 since I started in March.
I would not add it to the water in the humidifier however and it works great just placing it on an absorbant material next to the filter intake. I do not know if it makes me sleep better or not but it sure makes CPAP more pleasent for me.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - zonk - 06-10-2012
I,m happy for you guys sleeping better but no lavender for me, any perfume or fragrance of any kind would cause me headaches.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - PaulaO2 - 06-10-2012
I'm with Zonk.
Nearly everything we use here at the house is unscented. Some smells will make me feel like I literally cannot take a breath.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - JJJ - 06-10-2012
(06-10-2012, 11:44 AM)PaulaO2 Wrote: I'm with Zonk. ...
I'm with both of you. At one time in my life I taught adult education classes. We had to make a rule prohibiting perfumes and colognes.
I ascribe two reasons for the overuse of perfumes and colognes:
1) Most human noses don't work worth a damn. People don't realize how offensive they make themselves to people whose noses do work.
2) Advertising people use "hidden persuaders" (term made popular by Vance Packard back in the '40s or '50s). Here is an example of a hidden persuader: Imagine an ad for, say, Folgers coffee. The ad depicts a couple of people sitting across a small table with steaming coffee in front of them, with everything smiley and happy, a flower on the table. (This is so not what my eating table looks like!) The caption for the ad says "Folgers coffee, rich and strong like good friendship." When you see the ad you think it is merely trying to get you to buy Folgers coffee. It is trying to get you to buy Folgers coffee, but it is also trying to get you to make your coffee stronger so you will buy more.
Apply this to the perfume industry and you will see why people use too much perfume.As a fun exercise, from now on check every ad for hidden persuaders. You'll be surprised how many you find.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - PaulaO2 - 06-10-2012
So....I tried to resist. Really I did.
So....then....the manufacturers of C***** also manufactures claw foot bath tubs and likes to sell them in pairs.
RE: First full nights sleep thanks to Aromatherapy!!! - TorontoCPAPguy - 06-10-2012
The vast majority of the population will find that any 'out of the ordinary' odour disrupts sleep; the sunconscious is working to identify the smell and arousal (in terms of awakening to some degree as opposed to sexual arousal) will take place. Aromatherapy is a 'gimmick' brought over from the 3rd. world countries and countries that used to be third world, believe it or not, and is akin to liking hot, spicy foods.... their purposes were to conceal foul smells and foul foods. I have been in homes where I could not possibly sleep for the odour of animals being kept (try a damp golden retriever not meticulously cared for, etc.). The owners had no knowledge of the odour as their brains had adjusted to them and the odour was not relevant. Case in point for humans.... a biggie..... take a few nights in the country. The first night "the fresh air" causes you to sleep like a log. It is a very mild form of aromatherapy, perhaps in reverse. The aromas of the big city are not present. You sleep.
Those that find aromatherapy is of great help in sleeping are an exception to the rule. The human body and autonomic nervous system is set to recognize "regular" smells. Any deviation causes arousal and fires some adrenaline into the system to prepare the fight or flight response. Is it a fire? Is it an intruder or a predator? Etc.
Another thing to consider is, of course, what does your XPAP system smell like on a regular basis? Mine is kept so clean and odorless (all washing materials are odor free) that when I mask up at night I can smell the ozone being generated by my oxygen concentrator... or perhaps the oxygen itself, dunno. In any event, with a few moments my nose adjusts to "zero" it out and I sleep. Last night 8 hours and if it were not for a breakthrough of Atrial Fibrillation at 6 a.m. that woke me up I would have slept another 3 hours I am sure. BUT, aFib (associated closely with apnea) did its number on me with SpO2 down to below 70% and pulse rate above 120 BPM and I was awake. I am on TIKOSYN medication and all returned to normal with a couple of minutes (Normal Sinus Rhythm) but no way was I going to have a lie-in. Too late. I will try again tonight but am up at 9 a.m. anyway, especially if someone is in the kitchen burning toast or making eggs, etc.
Read up on smells/odours and sleep. It is a fascinating topic, especially for those that fight for quality sleep. Sleep alone, BTW, as most know, is not sufficient for health. You MUST get down into L4 and REM sleep for the body to replenish itself. And your body MUST MUST MUST provide well oxygenated blood supply to the extremities and the vital organs during sleep or you will NOT be maintaining health nor getting a restful night (restless legs, muscles twitches, etc., all serving to arouse one). So yet again, I will suggest whatever works for you is a good thing. Be cautious of what you are putting into your lungs and I would sure not be putting lavender oil into my water supply. Not on a bet. I would, however, invest in odorless soap, disinfectant Control III and above all, a data gathering XPAP and a recording pulse oximeter.
I would never have known that I had an aFib breakthrough this AM without all of this data.... I was able to eliminate an obstruction incident or central and see very clearly that my SpO2 plummeted and pulse rate skyrocketed. It would not take much to conclude that my BP skyrocketed at the same time. Bye, bye, REM sleep.
And again, I would be remiss if I did not caution folks to be very, very concerned about anything being breathed in unless in such small quantities as to be insignificant to health.
I spent a week in Surgical Intensive Care in November last beside a fellow who was being tested for lung problems. They could not figure it out despite every test they could muster. Turns out he had a hunting camp and it was full of rotting wood. Smelled great... like the great outdoors. The only issue was that the rotten wood had generated spores which he had managed to breath in - in a healthy human they would have been killed off - in this poor fellow (an ardent ex smoker) they did not die off but rather set up shop in his lungs. He had what could be removed removed and was on the transplant list when I left to go home.
Be educated. Be an advocate for yourself. And for goodness sake be careful..... research before forging ahead.