03-18-2025, 07:46 PM
New User - Initial Findings and Struggles
Hi all,
Some background:
I am an average weight 23 year old male. I have struggled to feel rested for the last 10+ years despite adhering to generally good sleep hygiene. I was hospitalized with myocarditis this past Thanksgiving, and due to that plus many other non-specific symptoms including daytime fatigue, low appetite, anxiety (especially health), and high heart rate, I opted to get a sleep study. In the study, I only managed 2.5hrs of scattered N1 and N2 sleep, no REM. I was still diagnosed with mild OSA. I had the following AHIs (not total events): 13 total including 8 hypopnea, 0.4 mixed, 3.8 central, and 0.8 obstructive. I was given a CPAP machine last week (detailed listed in my side profile).
Note that I am also experiencing costochondritis since my hostpitalization, so side sleeping can be painful. Therefore I have recently switched to back sleeping (~2 weeks ago).
Sleeping before CPAP:
I slept a pretty consistent 8-8.5 hours. On weekends, I did bump up to 9-9.5 hours. I would very rarely wake up during the night. Without fail, I would wake up unrefreshed, often with a pounding heart beat. I tried sleeping more hours consistently (up to 11 during college), and less (down to 7 last year), neither helped.
Experience so far:
I am struggling to sleep through the nights. I can fall asleep easily enough, but on my way into sleep, I can feel myself forgetting to breathe (this may only happen on my back, as I only experienced it during my sleep study and now with CPAP, all of which I have been on my back for). Once I fall asleep, I can get 4-5 hours of uninterrupted sleep on my back, then I wake up and only experience scattered sleep until I wake up. Sometimes I turn onto either side because I am more comfortable that way.
I am using a small P30i mask which irritates my nostrils and seals poorly -- I can feel the air escaping unless it sits perfectly. I have a medium P30i pillow and an N30i pillow on the way to try. Settings wise, I have started by turning my ramp time down and slightly increasing min pressure from 5 to 5.6. I feel more tired over this week of CPAP than I did before, but I did have one night of uninterrupted sleep for no apparent reason. I didn't feel better the next day.
My Questions:
Is this mask leakage bad enough to continue unrefreshing sleep?
Does anyone have advice for helping the mask seal better, especially for when I move in my sleep?
Does the data below clue into why I am waking up 4-5 hours in? I don't feel rested at that point.
What would you recommend I do going forward to improve my sleep? I can't change everything at once but I am exhausted and want to avoid ditching this mask out of frustration.
Attached data is as follows: March 12th first night, March 15th best night, March 17th more typical night.
Thank you so much!
Some background:
I am an average weight 23 year old male. I have struggled to feel rested for the last 10+ years despite adhering to generally good sleep hygiene. I was hospitalized with myocarditis this past Thanksgiving, and due to that plus many other non-specific symptoms including daytime fatigue, low appetite, anxiety (especially health), and high heart rate, I opted to get a sleep study. In the study, I only managed 2.5hrs of scattered N1 and N2 sleep, no REM. I was still diagnosed with mild OSA. I had the following AHIs (not total events): 13 total including 8 hypopnea, 0.4 mixed, 3.8 central, and 0.8 obstructive. I was given a CPAP machine last week (detailed listed in my side profile).
Note that I am also experiencing costochondritis since my hostpitalization, so side sleeping can be painful. Therefore I have recently switched to back sleeping (~2 weeks ago).
Sleeping before CPAP:
I slept a pretty consistent 8-8.5 hours. On weekends, I did bump up to 9-9.5 hours. I would very rarely wake up during the night. Without fail, I would wake up unrefreshed, often with a pounding heart beat. I tried sleeping more hours consistently (up to 11 during college), and less (down to 7 last year), neither helped.
Experience so far:
I am struggling to sleep through the nights. I can fall asleep easily enough, but on my way into sleep, I can feel myself forgetting to breathe (this may only happen on my back, as I only experienced it during my sleep study and now with CPAP, all of which I have been on my back for). Once I fall asleep, I can get 4-5 hours of uninterrupted sleep on my back, then I wake up and only experience scattered sleep until I wake up. Sometimes I turn onto either side because I am more comfortable that way.
I am using a small P30i mask which irritates my nostrils and seals poorly -- I can feel the air escaping unless it sits perfectly. I have a medium P30i pillow and an N30i pillow on the way to try. Settings wise, I have started by turning my ramp time down and slightly increasing min pressure from 5 to 5.6. I feel more tired over this week of CPAP than I did before, but I did have one night of uninterrupted sleep for no apparent reason. I didn't feel better the next day.
My Questions:
Is this mask leakage bad enough to continue unrefreshing sleep?
Does anyone have advice for helping the mask seal better, especially for when I move in my sleep?
Does the data below clue into why I am waking up 4-5 hours in? I don't feel rested at that point.
What would you recommend I do going forward to improve my sleep? I can't change everything at once but I am exhausted and want to avoid ditching this mask out of frustration.
Attached data is as follows: March 12th first night, March 15th best night, March 17th more typical night.
Thank you so much!
