Quote:ok.... I need advice from people that are not so die hard cpap believers. you can't convince me. wasting your time by trying to convince me to go back to the cpap. I will not use a cpap no matter how wonderful of a machine it is.
Hi Dorlow,
I sympathise with you and to some extent agree. It is true to say that these machines are not the be all & end all of treatment for SDB. This is because SDB (sleep disordered breathing) can present in many different forms each with a different array of symptoms. And yes, many so called sleep specialists are not aware even of this. However, having said that, let me say that it's worth examining the long term effects of ignoring your condition. The first & most serious effect is ischemia, which means insufficient blood supply to vital organs. The two most serious are,
(1) Cranial Ischemia
(2) Cardial ischemia
In the case of (1) the first thing you will notice is loss of memory. Then as degeneration progresses your smarts will gradually decrease so that instead of being quick & alert, you will no longer be so.
In (2) Because of Cardial Ischemia, your heart will increase its size as repeated requests from your brain for more blood are denied. This process will continue until your heart, contained as it is in the the myocardial cavity, no longer able to increase its size, ceases to beat.
Also, you will not know it, but you'll become more & more grumpy & hard to live with. A partnership break up may occur.
I'm telling you these things from my personal experience. I lost my mother to cardial ischemia, her father died of it too.
My wife & both kids left me. An attempted suicide failed & because of SDB have suffered all my life from anxiety & depression.
I suffer from cranial ischemia but still sleep with my machine
every night. I take it with me wherever I go although, like you, I'm tired, fatigued & listless all day but I know without my CPAP I would be much worse. My Sleepyhead data shows I don't have OSA but rather suffer from hypopnea & flow restriction. My ENT explained that a robotic cobolation of the base of the tongue would possibly be a remedy, but costing between $8,000 & $10,000 is too expensive.
My advice? Ask those closest to you if you are "grumpy"? Do you make mistakes in your work? Do you kip during the day, say after lunch or whilst watching TV? Do you find fault with those around you? Are you picky?
Stick with your machine, at least for now, until more doctors & specialist examine your case. Adjust your machine settings from its manual. Listen to and follow the excellent advice of all the good people on this board. PM me if you wish to talk about issues. My thoughts are with you.