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Thanks for this great site / forum - already has been a wealth of information and I've only been aware of it for 48 hours.
I've had probably 3 or 4 sleep studies over the past 12+ years, all coming back with "mild to moderate apnea" and a CPAP machine at my doorstep. No real follow through or follow-up by the doctor's office(s). I would imagine that is a common occurrence here. With my last study (July 2022), I again received my newest CPAP machine (Airsense 11) and have trying, again, to commit to this fully. I have found, lately, that my emotional state (mood, anxiety, depression) has been trending downwards...and I am also exhausted on the daily. That latter part has been a complaint of mine for as long as I can remember.
On nights where I can manage w/the CPAP through the night, I feel extra exhausted, and extra not motivated. I am hoping beyond hope to get over that "hump" and start seeing some benefit - but not yet. That is how I found this site. With the lack of professional follow-up, I am hoping the fine folks here might be able to point me in a more positive direction with this therapy.
I have followed the directions regarding OSCAR and record last night's CPAP session. This is my first attempt at posting results via OSCAR, so if I did something incorrectly, or am missing information - please let me know! Thanks in advance, so excited to possibly get some benefit from this process!!
I also wanted to add a few tidbits...I am usually able to "sleep through the night" with the mask, but it usually feels like a miserable sleeping experience, constantly aware of the mask on my face. I am a forever mouth breather (sinus issues), so I also have very dry mouth after a few hours, as well as some drooling issues, which starts to bother my face at the mask's juncture. It would be a dream to be able to use the nasal pillows, but unfortunately I can't breath too well w/o my mouth!
04-15-2023, 03:10 PM (This post was last modified: 04-15-2023, 03:17 PM by cmpman1974.)
RE: New User - 1st OSCAR Post
I imagine some are going to say increase pressure some to try to cut down on apneas, hypopneas, RERAs. Also it looks like you have major clustering of apneas on this one report which may indicate positional apnea issues.
You have significant flow limitations which probably disrupt sleep. AHI of 9+ isn't ideal for sure. When did you last have a titration study? Does your machine have an Auto-Pap mode to self-adjust if needed?
I definitely understand the mouth breathing issue. I'm right there with you on that. I struggle as well.
Your median Minute Ventilation rate is kind of low at 5. Usually it's 6-8 L/min. Do you know your O2 stats?
Lastly, your inspiratory / expiratory ratio is almost 1:1. I believe 1:2 is more common. I'm sure more experienced people can comment on that more.
I did notice the clusters of apneas - I prefer to be a side sleeper for sure - possibly even with a chin tuck. I'm not totally sure, however. I an certainly not a back sleeper.
My last titration study was August of last year - I believe that is how I ended up at 7cm H2O. From what I can tell, there is an APAP mode on this machine, that would need a range of pressure to be set. I have not touched that.
Regarding O2 stats - I'm not sure what you mean. If this type of information comes off of the machine and/or sleep study, I can find it and report back. Otherwise, none of my recent doctor appointments have ever had low O2 readings on the finger reader. I do, however, have a bit of a wheezy cough, and also have asthma...
The clusters are indicating a chin tuck kind of positional apnea. Tell us about your pillow. You want to keep your neck straight. That fails then you need to l{k at a soft cervical collar
Setting wise id like you to try auto mode so we can quickly see what happens and how you respond. First get that positional issue resolved.
I suspect 7 is too low of a pressure for you so try these settings as a test. Also you flow limitations are very high and you have many RERAS,
Mode: Auto
Min=7
Max=15, you may need more than this.
Keep EPR=3, Fulltime.
Gideon - Project Manager and Lead Tester for OSCAR - Open Source CPAP Analysis Reporter
My pillow is rather soft, clumpy. A more comfortable position for me would be on my left side, with my left arm tucked under the pillow (and balling it up), with my head on the clumped edge of pillow. A chin tuck is probable (will ask my wife to stay up later than me and confirm)! I might have a cervical collar - will take a look. Is there a recommended pillow type / brand for CPAP / apnea users? I'd be happy to look into it.
Is it preferable to assess the positional issues first, before changing the settings as you recommended?
Machine: Resmed Air Sense 10 Autoset Mask Type: Nasal pillows Mask Make & Model: Resmed AirFit P30i Humidifier: Built in CPAP Pressure: 5-8.6 Auto CPAP Software: OSCAR
On the nasal pillows. Not sure if anyone's mentioned, but I found that my decades old sinus problems go away with the humidity from my APAP machine. In fact just about the only time I don't have congestion issues (outside of infections) is about 10 minutes into my APAP session. You may want to see if the right humidity levels allow you to use pillows. My setting is 5. I found my mouth dried out with a lower setting. Too high and I believe you get condensation - you may want to try increasing the level incrementally.
I now use nasal pillows all the time, which leak more I guess, and I also wear a chin strap that has helped to prevent me sleeping with an open mouth, but the strap stretches in case I need to mouth breathe - usually if I wake in a panic!
I'm sure more experienced posters would have additional suggestions (taping?) to deal with an open mouth/dryness.
Settings were changed as per suggested above. Attached is last night's info...
Don't necessarily feel like I slept better, but #'s are much different. If I could achieve this with a much more comfortable mask, I might be on to something..
Wow! What a completely different chart! I won't comment, I'm not experienced enough to give you any coaching, but those numbers are like they are from a different person entirely!
Watching this with interest. Good luck! You are definitely in the right place to get help here.
