Sleep Apnoea and CPAP

Thanks, even though the doc doesn't think it will make a difference and with me for life, this is definitely the intention. The slow start in the mornings and tiredness in the evenings just makes it so difficult to get motivated, never mind to do actually anything physical. I'll put a call in to see where it's at, I don't want to be wasting more time than is necessary in this foggy state

When I decided to buy my Airsense 10 I did a lot of looking for reviews cos there is an Airsense 11 now.. I found an australian guy on youtube that did really in-depth reviews.. and he reviewed the 11 and he reviewed the Travel.
He took em apart and from looking at the innards reckoned that they were not as well spec'ed as the good ole reliable Airsense 10. The pump was smaller and didn't look like it would last as long. In fact the 11 had the same pump as the travel and he said they weren't as good.
Other reviews I saw of the Travel were that it was really noisy and not half as good as the Airsense 10.

I took my airsense 10 to france last year no bother.. on the ferrry in the car. Haven't taken it on a plane.. think there are posts on this forum here from people who have.

So, if you are thinkin of buying.. my googling led me to stick to what I knew.. the Airsense 10 autoset.

Yea I don't see any value in the resmed app at all, don't know what the consultant can figure out with it either. I really want to figure out what's causing it. I know from not using the oxygen the odd night it can sometimes be perfect without it, still a disaster at other times though.

This is the type of watch I have http://www.adverts.ie/34697348 for €100 this one is a bit of a bargain (as long as the battery is ok) if you don't fancy dropping 600 odd on a new one, the new one is fda approved for monitoring sleep apnea, this will do the same job though. The free app it comes with it is excellent, you've all the stats you need. Body composition, heart rate etc.

@drunkmonkey I think we must have the same consultant. It was recommended that I lose weight today on a return visit to see how the CPAP machine was working for me. I was told that even though I can only keep it on an hour or two at night that the benefits are still showing. I believe I may be retested after I hopefully lose weight.

Just to add to this, I've had my machine from Resmed PEI for about 6 months. Have no other DPS payments, so got a quote to buy my machine outright. Quote was €1725 (with a sentence in large text at the bottom of the letter saying that the price cannot be negotiated).

So it doesn't seem to matter how long you've had your machine, that just seems to be their price for 'used' machines.

Off to cpapstore I go.

The money's made in the subscription, hurts their business model to have them out in the wild. They've over 7.8 milion monthly subscribers and growing, I wouldn't be expecting a cure anytime soon.

It definitely is. The letter with the quote also included a large table which outlined what you don't get if you buy the machine outright. Some of it is dubious (no 'data downloads' despite the fact that the machine saves all its data to an SD card which you already have; no 'patient space' app which is technically true but you can access the Resmed app, etc.)

They seem to be adopting an Americanised system of overcharging on the basis that most peoples' insurance and/or DPS will cover it.

Still, I would have thought that some money was better than none, combined with the hassle of taking back the machine and cleaning it.

Hmmmm. All this makes me think we are being had by the subscription companies. Is it all a con? How long are these machines around and is there absolute proof they work? I feel no better after 3 months. In fact my throat hurts since I got it and going to bed has become hassle. I travel for work to add to the hassle. Any other sceptics out there? I also have no medical card so the cost hurts.

I don't think it's a con as I can see the benefits, daytime sleepiness is gone that was the killer for me, I'll put up with the discomfort for that alone, I'm a different person when using it.

@Hontou I'd agree with looksee you definitely need to reach out and get help to make it work for you, you're paying for a team of nurses with your subscription, make use of them.

I'd be a bit sceptical that cpap is going to be the only solution ever but there's little research on anything else. There's drugs out there they're researching but you're into side effect of them then. There's also surgery options and implants. One of the implants looks good but it's not in Europe yet only the USA. I'd take it over cpap if it works though

https://www.inspiresleep.com/en-us/

UCD were involved in trial of KairosPAP™ while you'll still need the machine it looks like it might make it more comfortable by reducing the constant pressure and only giving the air pressure when needed. It's not approved yet either though.

https://sleeplay.com/blogs/news/what-is-kairospap-a-new-sleep-apnea-treatment?srsltid=AfmBOorAzlRIZt2drIykJFs7B4mJ3X-hDA527tRvi9OV6DXXcvsbp3Cu

What have people with the resmed 10 the humidity and tube temperatures set at, I had it 28° tube and 6°, changed it to 27° and 5° last night, would like to get the air cooler without the water building up in the tube.

The 6 is humidity, just had a look there and I think I need to go the other way and take it to 7 should make the air more moist. Hopefully don't get the noises.

I made a make shift hook with a clothes hanger the other night, what do you use?

I've enjoyed reading the posts. after a number of operations including a full thryoidectomy, I was diagnosed with SA. I got a machine and took panic attacks using it, full of anxiety. After a number of months and a consultant visit in Beaumont, he told me he would discharge me as I was not compliant. I asked for another shot. I was afraid I would be suffocated. Work was a nightmare, stress off the charts. I've always, always had issues with sleeping and was always, always tired.

So he said to try it that night what was the worst that could happen as my readings were so bad and my stress levels so high that it could do no harm. I did what he said and kept it on that night. My next visit after three months showed instead of 25 wake episodes with heart rate etc. and no breathing, i was down to about 9. I'm not technically but he said it was excellent.

In true form and like other posters, I did get used to it, and I use it to make sure my heart is ok. Before I used it I used to wake up all the time with a massive pain in the heart but not anymore.

I rent my machine from air liquide, and the expensive is tough but doable; I claim my expenses from HSE anything after 80 euro I get back. I got a letter and even went to USA with it in the bag and it worked fine.

I'm not going to lie and say i wake up refreshed and ready to go. Never been nor likely ever will be but I am sleeping 8-9 hours a night, sometimes without even waking up to go to the bathroom. I have more energy, I'm told I look healthier. I've had over five operations in as many years, and I can honestly say I missed my machine when I could not use it (for a brief time because of the operations).

I guess I just wanted to say that the doctor in Beaumont probably added years to my life, and in end saved my eye pressure from causing me blindness it was that high! I use a full face mask, it works best for me. I lowered the temperature down to 3 and it stopped the condensation.

thanks for reading…. or scrolling through……..

I think that's meant to happen at the elbow, I'm assuming it's some kind of pressure relief maybe for when you're breathing out, if you look there's tiny little vents on it.

It shouldn't be leaking at the nose though, the packet it came with has 3 size pillows in it, I'm using the middle size one, you might be just using the wrong size one, there shouldn't be any air blowing on your face. The filters are the same size on all 3, don't forget to take it out before washing.

When I started using it 1st, it was sore on the nose so a tiny bit of vaseline will help there until your nose toughens up a bit.

I called them yesterday as noticed my oxygen levels were down a bit and I was feeling sleepy during the day again so they turned off the comfort settings to give me more constant pressure and it made a difference last night, it was nailed up around 95% and didn't dip into apnea territory. Was hovering around 91% the night before and slipping below 90%. Feel a lot fresher this morning.

the rep came to service the machine and I told him about the condensation (and loud noise) especially during cold weather. and he said the temp. was to high (1-5) and set it to 3. Such a simple fix.

the other thing is I do have to shake the tube etc. on some nights; sometimes I put it under the duvet to keep it warm.!

I don't know anything about my readings, as the consultant only saw me twice and said no follow up appointment, so have no clue on my readings. I think I must follow up on this.

All I know is I sleep deeply, hardly any sleep paralysis, can sleep on my back to relieve my back pain (I know not ideal but sometimes the pain is too much) and it is doing me good.

There's a lot of variables, interesting to note..

"While more studies would examine the long-term benefits, any side-effects and whether there are specific types of patients that would benefit more from treatment, it was “vitally important we don’t forget that sleep apnoea is, in the majority of cases, linked to obesity and addressing this should be the priority”, she said"

I'm not convinced it's just BMI related but I'll persevere in getting to a healthy one regardless then I'll worry about plan B if it's not that.