My wife (oral surgeon) says the only real solution to sleep apnea is surgery. CPAP machines to her and bunk. I believe she moves the jaw forward to help open up the airway. Whatever works I guess.
Also, the barber says you need a haircut.
Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
121–130 of 261 posts
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#122Earlier quoted context omitted.
Does it bother you at all while sleeping?
I'm a picky sleeper and I was dreading the CPAP. Now I love it. Sure, the hose can get in the way, but on the flip side I can breathe while fully under the covers and I never have to smell my farts!
I never even considered this option, a whole new world awaits me
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#123Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Not saying free market and medical are a good mix (who knows?), but what there is in America not is not even a market at all. The free market is simply incompatible with health care. Imagine a world where, any time you have a life-threatening health problem, you can expect to transfer everything you own to the hospital, since they have perfect leverage over you.
I disagree. If doctors had to compete with each other, then none of them could charge so much.
It's hard to shop around when you're having a heart attack.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#124Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's not how free markets work. Otherwise food would also cost everything you own.
Poor analogy. Food is not generally patented, and people can eat many different kinds of food to live. Would you tell the people that needed epipens "well just have some paracetamol instead".
In a free market, there would be cheap generic alternatives. Epinephrine itself isn't expensive at all (around a dollar a dose), and the autoinjector was patented in 1977, making it long-expired (though modifications of the design are covered by newer patents).
There are other examples, such as complex surgeries that would illustrate the point you're trying to make better.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#125Earlier quoted context omitted.
Does it bother you at all while sleeping?
I just started a about a month ago, and let me share my experiences that I don't see others report often in response to this question. (The responses are out there, but they are harder to find) There are many "masks" available - from covering the face to a nose mask to a tube under the nose (like an oxygen, but with a much fatter tube, including running up the sides of the face to the 1-1.5 inch diameter tube that ru…
It will take a while for you to adjust. Fortunately, I think I adjusted pretty quickly. Still, I get what you mean by the tubes proving troublesome for sleeping.
I need to have them properly set up so that I am not disturbed by it during the night. Sometimes they can slip off the mattress and dangle from the side of the bed and pull on the mask - a definite recipe for waking up. Being worried about sleeping on the tube and squishing it is also a worry that can break my sleep, as those things are so damn expensive.
Side note from my own experience - Quality of sleep is dramatically improved, but it is still exhausting to have a few consecutive nights of less than 7 hours of sleep.
7+ hours (for me) with CPAP is perfect for a nice, energetic day.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#126Messing with your own PAP settings can be a bad idea. I have complex apnea - a little bit of obstructive apnea (small pie hole), a little bit of central apnea (brain messages to breathe don't get through). I had an Auto BiPAP machine, which is like an intelligent ventilator that varies settings to determine the best one. A sleep study plus home monitoring indicated that the machine made my apnea worse! After another…
Counter-anecdote:
My particular doctor shoots for an AHI around 10, which is still mild sleep apnea (5 is the threshold) and is still high enough to get you diagnosed and provided a CPAP in the first place.
So for 6 months my AHI hovered around 8 or 9, occasionally spiking to 12 (which made me really feel like crap).
My technician won't adjust without doctor's orders (and incidentally also told me I'd fry the entire machine in days if I used non-distilled water in the humidifier, which is just absurd.) The doctor books appointments months out, and is OK with my current results anyway.
So I tried bumping my pressure up by 1 and lowering the exhale comfort feature on my own. Tada! After a month my AHI averages 4, sometimes spiking to 6, and I feel much, much better.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#127Accessing the clinician menu on most machines is accomplished by a quick Google search. I've adjusted my pressure several times to bring down AHI, or to reduce some side-effects of higher pressures as my weight comes down. Most machines report AHI in the main menu. My point is this... the article's premise is on target, but the situation isn't as dire as characterized.
CPAP pressure is a prescription. Cpap machines will allow you to adjust the ramping of the pressure. What machine do you use?
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#128One way around this is to get a bed that has something like a zero gravity mode. Sleep a bit upright and your airway won't collapse in on itself. I don't need CPAPS yet, but if a CPAP alone isn't working for you, you can try this combined with CPAP or just using the bed itself.
And at the risk of being down voted, weight loss: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/weight-loss-breathing-de...
In my case, my OSA is most likely due to being overweight.
Having effective CPAP treatment alongside active weight loss measures would work wonders. It's no fun trying to diet and exercise while being completely exhausted day in and day out due to poor sleep.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#129Messing with your own PAP settings can be a bad idea. I have complex apnea - a little bit of obstructive apnea (small pie hole), a little bit of central apnea (brain messages to breathe don't get through). I had an Auto BiPAP machine, which is like an intelligent ventilator that varies settings to determine the best one. A sleep study plus home monitoring indicated that the machine made my apnea worse! After another…
Very interesting. Happy you improved your treatment. Very interesting.
Re: Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker
#130I think the risk of death is probably overstated, as these people have often gone decades without a CPAP, and lived just fine.
I'd say 'lived fine' is probably not accurate. OSA is under diagnosed and one unfortunate outcome of OSA is high blood pressure, and that left untreated can cause and early death.
Not to mention the loss of productivity due to not getting healthy sleep.