I also am using a pressure of 15. To my surprise after about a week I had adjusted to it so well that I thought my CPAP was actually off at times(never was) I have had luck using 2 different F/P masks- the flexifit 431 and currently the Oracle 452 oral mask. Both able to deliver a pressure of 15 with minimal leakage of both masks. The Oracle requires less adjusting throughout the night. I'm in love   lol


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EVERY SILVER LINING HAS A TOUCH OF GREY
-Grateful Dead


CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO~ http://tinyurl.com/69q52a

SnickersPie wrote:

hhopper--You really think I gave up too soon? I did post somewhere on this forum that I was scheduled to give CPAP another try on January 31st after many months of research, but my insurance company dumped me due to what I believe was a data-entry error, and I can't afford another titration study at $2,045, plus the cost of the CPAP machine. Blah, blah, blah. Yadda, yadda, yadda. I'd do anything to feel better, including taking the advice of other posts on this forum to just give CPAP some time to get used to.

Ho-hum ...

Shouldn't Medicare or Medicaid (not sure what the differences in these are) cover the titration? Maybe you could save money by doing it during the day. A recent study showed that you may not need the sleep center for titration if you are sure you have sleep apnea. See below.

And yes, I agree you may have given up too soon. I didn't tolerate the CPAP well during my titration study. I tried every mask the center had that would fit me. I wasn't sure I could make it through but I was having such a hard time waking and staying awake in my daily life that I repeatedly convinced myself to take even one more breath w/the mask. At the end of the night I actually asked the tech to restore the pressure while she took final measurements b/c I felt like I couldn't get enough air (even without the mask) when she turned off the air. And while I didn't get any REM sleep or much sleep at all, CPAP did reduce my arousal frequency.

I haven't gotten my machine yet, but I will try to make it work. I had such a bad night that I assume it can only get better if I can avoid outright facial sores from an ill-fitting mask.

Good luck!


http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/health/06diag.html?ex=1171861200&en=148e47bf979a2310&ei=5070 (NYT article)
http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/146/3/157 (abstract link)

Vital Signs
Diagnosis: An Easier Path to the Treatment of Sleep Apnea
By ERIC NAGOURNEY
Published: February 6, 2007

People who have obstructive sleep apnea know how hard it can be to adjust to the breathing apparatus used to treat it. But just getting a diagnosis poses its own challenges, generally requiring two nights hooked up to wires in a sleep laboratory.

Now researchers say there is an easier way that allows some patients to stay at home. Instead of going to a laboratory, patients who are good candidates for an apnea diagnosis are given treatment right away, with portable equipment being used to assess their response.

Writing in the current Annals of Internal Medicine, the researchers say the method can speed up diagnoses and treatment for those with the disorder, which causes people to wake up repeatedly when they stop breathing. The condition can lead to fatigue, high blood pressure and other health problems.

Patients thought to have sleep apnea are usually sent to specialized centers to be evaluated. Only after that are they given machines that send air into the lungs while they sleep, known as C-PAPs. But the visits are expensive, the waiting lists are long, and many people do not live near a sleep center.

For the study, the researchers screened patients to come up with a group they considered at least 90 percent likely to have the condition. The patients were then given either a standard evaluation at a laboratory or an at-home one, with C-PAP use beginning immediately.When the patients were re-examined, researchers found that those who went to the laboratory did no better than the other patients, said Dr. C. Frank Ryan of the University of British Columbia, the senior author of the study. The lead author was Alan T. Mulgrew of the Vancouver Public Health System in Canada.

Wow is this thread ever off topic.  I don't even recognize it.


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Hoax~Slayer Forums

What happens is new users post questions in existing threads instead of starting a new one thereby totally changing the subject of the thread.


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Acronyms and Often Used Forum Phrases
Respironics? M-Series Auto w/ HH & C-Flex; Flexfit? Hybrid? Mask, Encore Pro 1.8i

hhopper wrote:

What happens is new users post questions in existing threads instead of starting a new one thereby totally changing the subject of the thread.

That and the mods are too busy to split the thread.


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Hoax~Slayer Forums

Is that like splitting hairs?


_________________


Acronyms and Often Used Forum Phrases
Respironics? M-Series Auto w/ HH & C-Flex; Flexfit? Hybrid? Mask, Encore Pro 1.8i

I was taking a very low dose of Provigil daily and it seemed to help some. I would still get sleepy by afternoon, but not painfully sleepy as before and I had energy left after work to do some things done at home in the evenings. My doctor wasn't sold on the idea of my taking it because I have difficulty keeping my blood pressure controlled. He agreed to let me try it but insisted I see him for a 3 week check up. Everything seemed to be fine after 3 weeks but he wanted to do another three week check just to be sure. At the 6 week check my bp was at 170/86. I stopped taking the Provigil for two weeks to see if that was the culprit and when I went back my bp was 150/88 and then 130/70 something.

I'm between a rock and a hard place. During the time I've been off Provigil my bp is down, but I'm back to having trouble staying awake at work and once that I know of I fell asleep briefly while driving (Fortunately, I didn't wreck or injure anyone).

The doctor let me make the choice of continuing the Provigil and risking a stroke if my bp continues to climb, or continuing the Provigil and add more bp meds to see if we can control it, or leave the Provigil alone and stay with my current bp meds and risk falling asleep at the wheel or at work.

For now I'm going to try winging it without the Provigil. I can't really afford to keep adding medications to my daily regimen. I'm already spending a lot per month on them and the doc thinks it's possible we might have to add another couple of bp meds if I continue with the Provigil. If the sleepiness gets really bad, I can always change my mind and opt for that route.

SnoozeHunter

I assume you're on xpap???


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Acronyms and Often Used Forum Phrases
Respironics? M-Series Auto w/ HH & C-Flex; Flexfit? Hybrid? Mask, Encore Pro 1.8i

hhopper wrote:

I assume you're on xpap???

Long story but the short answer is nope.

SnoozeHunter

SnoozeHunter wrote:

I was taking a very low dose of Provigil daily and it seemed to help some. I would still get sleepy by afternoon, but not painfully sleepy as before and I had energy left after work to do some things done at home in the evenings. My doctor wasn't sold on the idea of my taking it because I have difficulty keeping my blood pressure controlled. He agreed to let me try it but insisted I see him for a 3 week check up. Everything seemed to be fine after 3 weeks but he wanted to do another three week check just to be sure. At the 6 week check my bp was at 170/86. I stopped taking the Provigil for two weeks to see if that was the culprit and when I went back my bp was 150/88 and then 130/70 something.

I'm between a rock and a hard place. During the time I've been off Provigil my bp is down, but I'm back to having trouble staying awake at work and once that I know of I fell asleep briefly while driving (Fortunately, I didn't wreck or injure anyone).

The doctor let me make the choice of continuing the Provigil and risking a stroke if my bp continues to climb, or continuing the Provigil and add more bp meds to see if we can control it, or leave the Provigil alone and stay with my current bp meds and risk falling asleep at the wheel or at work.

For now I'm going to try winging it without the Provigil. I can't really afford to keep adding medications to my daily regimen. I'm already spending a lot per month on them and the doc thinks it's possible we might have to add another couple of bp meds if I continue with the Provigil. If the sleepiness gets really bad, I can always change my mind and opt for that route.

SnoozeHunter

Be very careful. Juggling medication, particularly with high BP can be dangerous. There is also the added problem that Provigil does absolutely nothing for your sleep apnoea.....it is merely a stimulant.

I'm not a betting person, but I think the odds are quite short that your high BP is being caused by non treatment of the OSA, or a combination of that and Provigil.

Your doctor is really doing you no favours, as he is merely trying to treat a symptom...........not the problem.

Daniel.


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The untreated Sleep Apnoea sufferer died quietly in his sleep.......
Unlike his three passengers who died screaming !!!!!!

(Anon)

does provagil make anyone else hyper. was on two 200 mg aday had to stop taking it i was bouncing off halls had serious crazy thoughts running in my mind.

What I want to know is.. If sleep apnea caused our sleepiness, why are so many of us who have been using CPAP for a long time, and have been checked and know we're on the right pressure, and are having no apneas STILL SLEEPY? I'm not happy of this solution of taking speed cause the CPAP isn't helping with the tiredness. I want to know why the h*ll I'm still tired.  I dislike medicating things without knowing the cause. Did that for years before I knew I had sleep apnea, and it turns out that a lot of the meds I took make sleep apnea worse.
I'm having no apneac events, and I don't feel any less tired at all.  I've started a mild excercize program and I'm taking vitamins. Still tired. I don't appear to have damage to my heart. Can anyone exlpain this?

hi i have been taken it for 15 months and it does work for me it keeps me alert.but my thinking is this doesnt fix my sleeping problem.yes it works great for my day time activies.but does nothing for my sleep.but i had no choice but to take it until my problem was fixed or my dr said i was going to have to turn in my driving licence.desperate

That's a really good question ("Blaaah") that I'd like to get an answer to as well.  My doctor calls it "Idiopathic Hypersomnolence"..... which means he doesn't know why I'm still tired during the day either.  


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---Sherri---



ResMed VPap Adapt SV with heated humidifer
ResMed Ultra Mirage II Nasal Mask
Hosehead since 1/17/06 - "Adapter" since 1/28/07
Tonsillectomy/Septoplasty/Turbinatectomy 1/16/08 = AHI 6, "ALMOST" Normal!!

I'm thinking my daytime fatigue may be due to lack of oxygen during sleep. I'm taking 400mg of Provigil and I barely feel it. Tomorrow I'm going to try 500-600mg. I won't go beyond that but need to do something to fight this fatigue. I just started a new thread about this.

There was a 20/20 show on a couple of nights ago that really dissed Provigil, with some people saying it was no better than a strong cup of coffee. Given the cost of Provigil I hope it's more effective than caffeine.