Sleep Apnea – My Second Sleep Study with CPAP

Friday night was my second night in Pinehurst, having a sleep study done to determine if the Continuous Positive Air Pressure (CPAP) treatment would help me deal with my sleep apnea.

The sleep study itself was much like the one I had last month, with the exception of no sensors being used to monitor the air flow from my nose (that would be monitored with the CPAP machine itself). The technician brought in five different nose masks and three nose and mouth masks to have me try. I found the most comfortable of the nose masks, as well as a backup, and the most comfortable of the nose and mouth masks. The backup nose mask was in case the initial one proved to be too uncomfortable after I went to bed, and the nose and mouth mask was in case my mouth did not stay shut during my study.

During the fittings, I was accustomed to the positive air pressure from the machine, as well as the feel if my mouth were to open while using the machine. Believe me, it was uncomfortable with my mouth open, since all the air that was going into my nose immediately came out my mouth, leaving me with a gagging feeling and no air to the lungs! As the tech said, it was better to find this out while awake, than to be surprised by the feeling after going to sleep!

So, I went to sleep. It took me a little longer to actually fall asleep with the strange feeling of a mask around my nose, and the increased pressure during breathing, but overall the discomfort was minimal. I never had to go to the backup nose mask or the nose and mouth mask. My mouth stayed closed the entire nite (per the tech, as long as a person is breathing well through the nose, the mouth will typically stay shut).

During the night, the tech adjusted the pressure produced by the CPAP, to find the ultimate pressure that would both stop my snoring, and more importantly, my sleep apnea events. I cannot tell you what the results were, other than it obviously worked. I will find out about the actual results on my next visit with my neurologist. The tech did go as far as to say the CPAP was successful, but that was all he could discuss.

I felt I may have woken more, but that is the conscious waking, not the awakening events caused by sleep apnea, which in my case had averaged almost once a minute without the CPAP. I did awaken more refreshed than I can remember previously, so I have high confidence in success.

I will update you on this as soon as I have more information, but until then, sleep well

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