I'm wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation such as this.  My husband has been diagnosed with sleep apnea, but he refuses to use his CPAP machine.  Instead, he sleeps sitting up in a recliner in our den.  This has been going on for over two years.  (Long story short, but my husband and his family doctor believes he may have had a panic attack triggered by his apnea and I think subconsciously is afraid to come back to bed in the fear that he might have another panic attack, which is why he started sleeping in his recliner in the first place).

He recently went to a pulmonary doctor for chest x-ray abnormalities, and this specialist claims 50% of all apnea patients sleep in recliners.  I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this type of sleep behavior, and how they may have encouraged their spouse to either use the CPAP machine and/or have their spouse return to bed.  Thank you.

I am sure they are reasonably expensive and probably require special bed linens, but have you thought about getting one of the adjustable/reclineable beds?

Here your story almost makes me want to find out about those types of beds.

Hi Lynn,

Silentwalker's suggestion is a good one.  If you can't get a new bed anytime soon, you might consider finding some sort of foam wedge that would help elevate him some.

But the most important thing is to get him to use his cpap, and I know that is difficult.  You might suggest to him that he try to use the cpap even while in the recliner, more to get used to it.  Some of us in the beginning try putting on the mask and using the cpap before we go to bed, while watching some tv, getting used to it.  

Also, what about the machine does he reject?  I know many people hate it outright, no matter what.  But is there some specific problem that seems to bother him most?  Is it mostly claustrophobia with it?  Does he have difficulty breathing with it, either inhale and/or exhale?  What kind of mask did he get?  Did it cover his nose?  Some cover nose and mouth.  If he had the typical mask, which covers the nose, he might instead try the nasal pillows.  It's a lot less claustrophobic, less obtrusive to many people, less gear.    Any info you can provide here might be useful for us to suggest something.


Linda


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Many people breathe much easier in a recliner and I've no doubt that sleeping in a recliner may well alleviate or even eliminate apnea events in SOME people.


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Thanks, all for your input - it's very helpful.  I really like Linda's idea of suggesting to my husband he try wearing the mask during the day to get used to it.  The mask he was given covers his nose and mouth.  He has several problems ... (1) he hates the look, feel and noise of the machine; (2) he is afraid if our power goes out (which, by the way, it rarely does) he could suffocate while wearing the mask; (3) my husband is claustrophic; and (4) he's in his 50's so "it's hard to talk an old dog new tricks (so to speak...)".

He is scheduled to attend a seminar at our local hospital in September to meet with sleep apnea specialists to learn more about new equipment and advances in this area.  He is also supposed to be making an appointment with a specialist to talk about other options (possibly a mouth guard instead of the mask?), but hasn't done so yet.

I will let him know that through this website I am learning many new things, including the different types of masks.  He might actually like the nose piece better, although I'm not sure how that works if he breathes through his mouth?  Does he need to keep his mouth shut while wearing the nose piece?  How would he do that?

I've also done some preliminary research on adjustable beds (Craft.....) - but they're very expensive and from what I've read, their reliability and reputation isn't very favorable.  I've suggested the foam wedge for the bed, but my husband won't try it.  Ugh.

Thanks again to all for your feedback.  Sometimes I feel very alone in this ongoing saga, but it's nice to know there are others out there who have experience area in this as well.  

Once I posted about the adjustable beds I looked them up - OUCH!!

I am a new 'Hose-head' myself and I am still struggling to get used to the CPAP, I will try the 'using it while doing other stuff' method.  I still have to resolve the mouth breathing issue I have - taping doesn't work for me (I have a mustache and a goatee which my wife refuses to let me shave off).  The longest I've managed to keep the Swift Nasal Pillows mask on is about 3 hours, but I'll persever to get this nailed.

I hope you get your husband to continue his treatment and for him to return to bed soon.

Lynn, my husband was in his 70s when he started using a CPAP machine so you can teach an old dog new tricks.  When I first mentioned to him several years ago that I thought he had sleep apnea, he told me it was witchcraft.  However, when he saw a respirologist for a lung problem more than a year ago, the doctor asked about snoring and then if he gasped or snorted, and then sent him for a sleep study.  When that was positive, he did the titration study and said he felt so good when the night was over that he was convinced it was the way to go.  And, all in all, he adapted very quickly to the therapy.  

He was very ill this past winter and couldn't use the machine (for complicated reasons) but is back using it now and says that he feels it is helping him heal.

Tell your husband that he won't suffocate if the power goes out.  All masks have a mechanism which allows one to breath ordinary room air and, in any case, he will probably wake up very quickly when it happens and can remove his mask.  It has happened to my husband (who uses a full face mask) and nothing bad happened.

When using this therapy, you must keep your mouth closed or it won't work.  If you can't keep it closed, you need a full face mask.  

There is no need to have a noisy machine.  My husband uses a Fisher and Paykel 233 (I think) and it is very quiet.  Most of the others here say that their machines are also quiet.  What kind of machine and mask does he have?

Is your husband prone to panic attacks?  If so, he should get medication for it.  I am, for instance, and I have a little green pill, lorazepam 0.5 gr, which I can put under my tongue when I need it and it works quite quickly.  I'm not suggesting that one particularly, only using it as an example, but he needs help with this.
 
It takes patience and persistence to get used to the machine and mask and certainly some people are better at it than others.  He will feel and sleep better if he can conquer this.  There is absolutely no reason why he can't approach this very gradually; it is not an all or nothing situation.

Can you get him to read some of the posts here?  Does he have any questions we can answer for him?  Is there anything more I can tell him about my husband's situation?  What bait can we use to reel him in, to use a fishing analogy?

I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few years ago. I now sleep every night and nap with a CPAP machine. I also can only sleep in a recliner. It takes the pressure off my chest. Please tell your husband to use his CPAP machine. My sleep apnea got worse before I finally went to the doctor at the sleep center. Had I went when my doctor first suggested I needed help, my sleep apnea might not have progressed. I also have central sleep apnea which means my brain does not tell me to breath all the time. If I remember this correctly, my doctor said my body got used to not breathing correctly and stopping breathing sometimes, and my brain decided that was normal. That is one way how sleep apnea progresses. If left untreated it can get worse. I wish I had went to the doctor when I was first told to go. You mentioned your husband also had panic attacks. So do I. And I learned through my doctor that it is common to have panic attacks in your sleep and at bedtime. I guess I just thought panic attacks were a daytime thing. Learning all this has helped me with my sleep apnea. I hate sleeping with a mask on my face. But I want to not let my sleep apnea get worse and I have an 8 year old son that needs me and my husband, too.

Please tell your husband to try the CPAP again. I did the same thing until I got to the point I would awaken in my recliner gasping for air. After that the CPAP mask didn't seem so bad.

Good luck.

Lynn Shapiro wrote:

  
I will let him know that through this website I am learning many new things, including the different types of masks.  He might actually like the nose piece better, although I'm not sure how that works if he breathes through his mouth?  Does he need to keep his mouth shut while wearing the nose piece?  How would he do that?

If he's mouth breathing, that's an issue that requires some adjustments.  And it depends on why he mouth breathes.  Some mouth breathe because they have some difficulty with breathing through their nose for some reason or another.  For others it's just a practice they've done a long time for no particular reason.  

So if there's mouth breathing, that has to be dealt with.  Because if he uses a nose-only mask and continues to mouth breathe, he can't get the benefit from the pressure of the cpap.  I compare it to putting air into a tire -- if you don't patch the leaking hole first, then no amount of air pumped in will pressurize the tire.  It's the same concept with cpap -- if there are leaks, the cpap can't deliver proper pressure to keep the airway open.  

Some people will try using a chin strap while using a nose-only mask (nasal mask or nasal pillows).  But if he can't breathe through his nose much or at all, the chinstrap doesn't make sense -- he wouldn't be able to breathe!  But if he can use a chinstrap and that works, then he can use different types of masks, and for many the nasal pillows (rests at the nostrils instead of covering nose) is less claustrophobic.

So then the only suitable option as far as masks are the full face mask, like he uses, which covers the nose and mouth.

But there is a new option, a new kind of full face mask for mouth breathers.  It's the Hybrid (and another manufacturer is coming out soon with a similar type), which covers the mouth but uses the nasal pillows instead of covering the nose.  Some people like that and find it less claustrophobic.

I hope something can be worked out for him.

We have a section where there are shown different masks and equipment.  Here is the link to the section showing the Hybrid and the other newer one, they are full face masks but instead using the nasal pillows.
Click here for link


Linda


_________________
Click here for link to FAQ and topics
Click here for link to section on machines and masks

regarding panic attacks - at the end of an apnea, when the blood oxygen falls, and the body reacts by increassing stress hormones, cortisol, adrenaline, etc. that increase blood pressure in an attempt to get enough oxygen to vital organs.  Another result of the release of these "fight or flight": stress hormones can be a panic attack.  Night time panic attacks can be a symptom of untreated sleep apnea and may stop with effective treatment.

regarding his concern that he may suffocate if wearing a full face mask if there is an electrical failure, all full face masks have a safety valve that opens when their is no flow from the cpap, as when the power is off.  Perhaps examining his mask closer, and experimenting with turning the power off and on will reassure him that in the event of a power failure, he is safe.

hope this helpd