Posted by tiredchris on April 21, 2005 at 10:00:54:

I am a 26 year old male who has been told since I was an underweight 3 year old that I snore terribly. I am about 60 lbs overweight now, most of which I've put on in the last 3 years.

I requested a sleep study from my doctor a year and a half ago and he refused. He told me that I just needed to lose weight. But the daytime fatigue grew worse and worse and killed any chance of me hitting the gym again. I am motivated as heck to workout, but everytime I'd go to do it, I'd want to pass out from exhaustion. It's been awful.

The new girlfriend couldn't take the snoring, so while looking into remedies, I once again requested a sleep study (this time with a new doctor). She let me. So in I went for the first night. I had an impossible time falling asleep (which is not usual for me - I think it was just the unfamiliar surroundings, anxiety, and discomfort from the wires). Fortunately, I was able to get a couple hours in and they determined that I had 27 apneas per hour.

Went back for the second sleep study to get titrated and alas, this time, I couldn't fall asleep at all. They sent me home at 4a.m.

Fortunately, they set me up with a CPAP machine anyways. They started me out at 7. I wore a full face mask, due to my tendency to mouth breathe and nasal problems.

First night: no difference

I wrote my sleep lab contact and she told me to come in. She upped the pressure to 8.5 and told me to report back after 3 nights.

3 nights later: no difference

Went back in to the sleep lab and she gave me an autopap machine. I also requested a nasal mask and chin-strap, as I figured I'd give that a shot. We both assumed that since I couldn't fall asleep for the titration study, the pressure wasn't adequate.

First night on autopap w/ full face mask - pressure at 16.4

Second night on autopap w/ nasal maks - 11.8

I am delighted that I was successfully able to use the nasal mask and I think overall, it worked better for me (although it took some major getting used to keeping my mouth shut). But otherwise, I have been fully compliant.

What is happening to me now is that I am waking up more during the night (approx. 2-3 times) and although I am waking up before the alarm clock, I'm definitely not filled with any more energy. It just means I can't go back to sleep (as I did before CPAP).

I have one more night to go on autopap (using the nasal mask again), but I am concerned that the autopap is not reading accurately.

Why would there be such a differential between the two masks? I've read a lot on this site that it takes time on CPAP to start feeling better, but my sleep lab tells me I should feel better pretty much instantly. I'm definitely a little more alert today than I usually am, but getting out of bed was still just as much of a nightmare. I was not refreshed. I still had zero energy.

So, I am posting here to see what people think. A) regarding the different pressures - are autopap machines to be trusted? Is the differential due to the mask? Shouldn't the pressure be the same for the two?, B) regarding why I am not feeling better.

Any advice, insight will be appreciated.

Follow Ups:

• Re: Here's My Story - What do you think Vix 18:35 4/22/05 (0)
• Re: Here's My Story - What do you think sleepy_tech_waco 04:57 4/22/05 (0)
• Re: Here's My Story - What do you think Bird Watcher 21:09 4/21/05 (0)
• Re: Here's My Story - What do you think phils95cobra 10:49 4/21/05 (0)
• Re: Here's My Story - What do you think SleepyTimeGal 10:25 4/21/05 (0)

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