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+--- Thread: new to cpap and oxygen (/Thread-new-to-cpap-and-oxygen)
new to cpap and oxygen - worried - 12-01-2016
Hello,
i am 50yo and have Problems with high blood pressure and heart arrythmas also suffe often from headaches. English is not my native language, so please excuse my bad english.
I was sent to lung doc becasue ossible sleep apnea. i had some exams and had sleep study in Hospital.
finally i was told i Need a bipap breathing machine and additional Oxygen. My PO2 in blood was about 50, with Oxygen about 70.
I also have severe sleep apnea with AHI = 45.
I started with bipap for 2 weeks. becasue PO" didnt get much better i Need the Oxygen Thing.
so within 2 weeks i am on 2 machines. it take time to cope and get used for me and Family. Using it make me feel a lot better. but i got used to it so fast and this make me worried when i realize how bad i feel or breath without the devices.
Do anybody have similar experiences? do anybody use Oxygen and bipap/cpap?
Thank you for understanding and answering.
Pest wishes Peter
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - DeepBreathing - 12-01-2016
G'day Peter, welcome to Apnea Board.
Quite a few of our members use oxygen in conjunction with CPAP - I'm sure some of them will be able to give you a more detailed discussion.
Best wishes
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - worried - 12-01-2016
Deep Breathing thank you very much for your welcome.
i am new to all this. so i started to read in Internet and in this Forum. ist very helpful. docs didnt tell much about my disease and i didnt know what to ask. reading and knowing more and more, i have mor questions. i will ask my docs next visit. so Information is good for me. but sometimes Things are so difficult to understand.
doc didnt know what cause my bad Oxygen but it Need treatet. so i have to accept the Oxygen and i find it very helpful breathing is much easier. maybe i have to use it fulltime in future.
i Need more exams to find out why my breathing got bad. maybe i have also a muscular disease.
Thank you
Peter
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - richb - 12-01-2016
Hi worried. Another welcome to the Apnea Board. I suggest you give us more information. What kind of machine do you have? I hope that your new machine is data capable. That means it should have a removable SD card. If your machine is data capable, I suggest that you download and install the Sleepyhead software. You will learn a lot about your condition and will be able to better communicate with your Doctor. There are lot of people on this forum who can help you as well.
Rich
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - Sleeprider - 12-01-2016
Worried, you may have some complex respiratory issues. The need for supplemental oxygen, and CPAP or "Volume Assured Pressure Support" bilevel points to possible restrictive or obstructive pulmonary conditions. When these conditions occur together it may suggest that your respiratory drive is not normal. Here are a few search terms for you to try to get better information:
Respiratory drive
Hypoxic drive
Hypercapnia
Hypoventilation
For the forum to help you, we need to know some specifics of your diagnoses:
From your sleep study, was your 45 AHI obstructive, mixed or central apnea? More specific results would help.
Do you have any way to read your bipap data or monitor oxygen levels at night?
What brand and model of machine are you using?
Are you significantly over-weight?
Is your heart arrhythmia related to diagnosed atrial fibrillation or congestive heart failure?
Do you take medications that may impact your respiration?
You said your doctor does not know what causes your low oxygen. Have you had pulmonary and cardiology exams by specialists?
I know this gives you more questions than answers, but hopefully guiding your research will help you to help your doctors and yourself.
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - Beej - 12-01-2016
The headaches may be partly due to the apneas and oxygen deprivation.
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - trish6hundred - 12-01-2016
Hi worried,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
I know this is overwhelming, but just feel free to ask as many questions as you need, to help you understand your condition.
Good luck to you with getting adjusted to your CPAP therapy and oxygen, hang in there for more responses to your post.
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - Capt.Redbeard - 12-01-2016
Let me add my welcome Peter. It is true that all of this technical information may seem complicated and it can also be hard to take all at once. I think your english is fine but it may be better for you to have a friend translate some of the questions. For example; the type of machine you are using. This and other questions from your profile will help the advisers a great deal.
You are very smart to use this forum and the great amount of information that is available on the web. Just make sure you pay attention to what your doctors are telling you.
Hope to read more of your experiences
Rev.David
RE: new to cpap and oxygen - kwhenrykerr - 12-02-2016
I use added oxygen to my ACPAP. I started to feel better as soon as I started. Over time this has raised my energy during the day. I feel that some healing has taken place.
When my oxygen equipment broke I was reminded that it was needed. I have spare equipment now and am working on backup power systems. I understand your worry.
Used equipment is an option. There are lots of unused equipment but you will need to seek it out.
Finding what settings work best for you and how much oxygen to add will help set up your backup systems. You can find set up guides and hints at the top of this forum.
Read, Read and Read some more. Their are lots of great information and help on this site.
