Sorry it’s been a while. Blogs seem to be hard to keep up with!
Well, my weight loss is going smoothly. I’m down 100 lbs from 390 lbs to 290 lbs thanks to my Lap Band surgery 8 months ago. I guess this is helping my apnea, although I haven’t noticed a change in my CPAP use, except that I often want to fall asleep without it or I tear it off at night time.
One other problem with the Resmed (or is it Respironics?) Swift II nasal mask:
I’m opening my mouth!
The area goes right into my nose via the nasal mask, and then straight out my mouth. I wake up with the most terrible cotton mouth imaginable. This is becoming a problem for me as of late; I’m not sure if it is related to my weight loss or not.
Suffice it to say, I may need to switch to a full face cpap mask to prevent the cotton mouth, and going apnic during sleep.
I wonder how my hematocrit is doing? I just had some labs done, and will update you guys as soon as I get them this week.
Anyway, that’s all for now. Sleep well! BTW, I thought the new Star Trek sucked!
I was 380 pounds when I first started to use my CPAP machine. obviously I needed it. However as I have lost weight a day of noticed that I no longer need nor respond well to high pressured CPAP for my sleep apnea. Right now I weigh 310 pounds and continue to lose weight with that said the sleep quality that I get when using a CPAP is superior to regular sleep. I feel far more arrested and dream deeply on the other hand sleep without a CPAP simply seems “thin” for lack of a better word. I woke up last night to me sitting up on the side of my bed carried off my CPAP machine mask. This is occurring more and more frequent maybe it is time for another sleep study? I read doing it begin but I guess this is the road I am on as a CPAP citizen. More later. I hope you are all doing well and sleeping well. Oh yeah I almost forgot. I will be testing my H&H add the and of January. Wish me good luck and I hope my levels are lower than before above all this is my greatest concern due to the risk of stroke. Until next time, the CPAP citizen
Ugh, here we go again. So I get new nasal pillows from my Respironics rep–for free (yay!)–and now the tube that connects to the Resmed Mirage Swift II mask is loose. Does it ever end with the Swift II?
But, I digress.
I haven’t found a CPAP face mask that is anywhere as effective for me as the Resmed Mirage Swift II, so I guess I can’t complain. Ironically, when it new condition, the Swift Ii doesn’t seem to leak so bad. Maybe I’m lucky. The Respironics/Resmed rep said the Swift II has a terrible reputation, and R&D is currently having to revamp the design for more effeciency. She recommends this snorkel-like nasal mask, but it too leaked really bad on me.
How are you Swift II fans doing with your nasal pillows? I think i need a new head harness (whatever that’s called 
)
Alright, I finally got my new CPAP! The M Series Auto CPAP (A Flex) by Respironics. I’m totally digging this machine. The features and quality are way, way better than my old Resmed.
The Respironics M is an auto CPAP, meaning it adjusts the pressure automatically based on how apnic you are during sleep. It also records all data (e.g. leak levels, apnea, sleep time, pressure, etc) on a smart card, which we’re allowed to look at.
Pretty neat, eh?
My sleep apnea can be tracked every single day so my sleep doctor can make adjustments accordingly.
For the first few nights, I hated this auto CPAP stuff! I couldn’t sleep well, and went through about half a dozen masks (no joke) before going back to my old standby, the nasal sleep apnea CPAP pillow mask by Mirage–I use the often hated Swift II. It works for me, what can I say.
Anyway, after those first few days, wow, talk about some great sleep! I had like five huge dreams in one nights sleep. No sleep apnea to speak of, and no problems sleeping. Pressure is averaging 15.X whatever the medical term is for that thing.
Auto is the only way to go. It has the benefits of a BIPAP (Bi-Level CPAP).
Check one out
Sleep Apnea Causes High Hematocrit & Strokes?
I forgot to mention something important during my previous post about Sleep Apnea Sit-ups:
Skyrocketing Hematocrit & Stroke Risk!
Seriously though, I found the reason did the sleep apnea sit-ups were because I wasn’t breathing.
Scary, huh?
Yeah, it really is. It’s still hard to believe what poor sleep can do to one’s health. If you’re reading this, we all know first hand or care for someone who does, right?
Medically speaking, the lack of oxygen during REM sleep caused my hematocrit to skyrocket. How high did it get? Only 4 measurement points away from a stroke. Yep! I forget the measurement name, but it doesn’t really matter. My hematocrit (HCT) was 48; 52 or so means if you haven’t had a stroke yet, then you must be immediately admitted to an emergency room.
Life is full of ups and downs, and blood chemistry is no different. I’m no doctor, but I believe the reason I haven’t had a stroke was due in part to my blood platlet count being normal. Blood platletts determine blood viscosity. Think “stickiness” or molasses.
High hematocrit + high platlets = death.
All this from sleep problems. Amazing. It’s not like over weight men–the majority of CPAP machine users & sleep apnea diagnosed people–already have enough traditional health problems, you know?
Talk about a true nightmare…
Apnea Bound: In The Beginning
I am so disorganized. Damn. It’s probably a good idea to talk about the sleep apnea symptoms I’ve encountered before I used a CPAP machine or even was diagnosed with sleep apnea.
Fat Man Sit-ups
Here’s a weird one: I’d sit-up on the edge of my bed and stay asleep! keep in mind, I did this while I was asleep on my fat back. Wow this is almost alien-stuff right?
My Mom and girlfriend have found me asleep sitting there on my bed edge, swaying too and fro, keeping my balance while I snored in a deep sleep completely unaware of what was going on. My ex-girlfriend, would just walk over and push me down onto the bed. LOL! I have to laugh at this. My whole sitting on the bed while snoring asleep thing totally freaked them out the first time they saw it.
My neck was sore as a mofo when I woke up. I was told my neck just hangs straight off my shoulders (I don’t have much of a neck anyway) where it’s about to fall off. And I’ve got one big ass head. It weighs over 50 lbs. How do I know? I weighed it on a fruit scale at the grocery store when I was a kid.
CPAP use among over weight people with excessive snoring, waking up early, high or elevated hematocrit, restless leg syndrome (RLS) and other symptoms may be a sign of sleep apnea. As mentioned, a CPAP machines are used to increase positive airflow, and induce positive REM sleep.
Expect more soon — go back to sleep.
