Getting off of CPAP

[Guest]

To All,
I've been on CPAP almost a year, then I went for the following:
1. The Pillar Implants
2. A Nasal somnoplasty
3. A Dental device

Since I still had a bad case of snoring I went for a dental device called Silent Nite. Now I don't snore, and I've been of CPAP for almost three months.

A bad day with my dental device is better than my best day with CPAP

Monday I have a sleep study to determine if I've been successful in efforts to treat apnea without invasive surgery. I will share the results because I think there is just too little info out there, and for some reason the medical community isn't terribly interested in hearing about or offering these kinds of combination treatments of apnea.

While I hate going for sleep studies, (this is my third), I do look foward to having objective data to share with everyone.

From a subjective point of view, no matter what they tell me at the clinic, I'm not going back on CPAP, because I feel so much better without it.

It doesn't take me 1-2hours to fall asleep, it takes me 20 minutes or less. Rather than wake up every two hours or less, I can sleep 5 hours. No mask leaks to deal with and my all time favorite rain out, and the best part of all I my energy level is the highest it's been in years. I've been doing things around the house, like painting, and I have enough energy to excerise and lose weight.

I feel like I've got my life back and I hope everyone with apnea finds the treatment for them to accomplish this.
Rick

[Cody ire]

To Rick Red, I am on CPAP for one year without lots of success. I am considering a dental appliance. How did you settle on Silent Night? Do you have to get this from a dentist and does it have to be fitted? Do you know if insurance covers dental appliances? I am looking to find a dentist in my area (N.W. Sub. Chicago) who makes dental appliances. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[Paul]

[tutuuu]

Rick,
I would prepare for the sleep study like making the environment as close as possible and setting as close as possible like you would seep at home. One time sleep study is so screwy. If you happen to sleep on your side 90 percent of time on that day then your whole study results will be changed, so prepare mentally and physically as well.

[dizzy]

I say more power to ya, what ever works. I think the combination therapy is the way to go, I use BreatheRight strips, do the nasal rhino wash, sleep on my side. When I use cpap my reports show the machine stayed on minimum pressure all night long and I had zero apenas, same report did show I had a few hypoapneas and a bunch of snores but that was it.

When I go camping I leave the machine at home, the inflation and deflation of the tent from snoring keeps the bears away

[Guest]

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Cody,
I think Paul did a good job answering your questions. The Silent Night is not the best appliance for apnea treatment in that it only has 4 possible settings. My dentist uses it for his for snoring and finds it very successful. After my Pillar did nothing with regard to snoring I wanted a comfortable device. For what I've read, from others the Silent Nite is easier to adapt to and my dentist made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Both TAP and the Silent Nite sell for around $450.00. If I didn't like it he offered to take it back and only charge me $100. After my experience with masks, spending loads of money then never wearing it again, I was afraid I'd have the same exerience with a dental appliance.
Dental Insurance does not cover this, however I'm still fighting with my medical insurance since this can be considered durable medical equiptment. I still don't know if they will pay for it, but I'd only go for the appliance with the understanding it's probably out of pocket, unless you can get approval before you go

Tutuuu- you are so right about preparing for the sleep study. Since I'm a somach sleeper, I've been training myself to get back on my stomach when I realize I've moved to sleeping on my back. I've tried to train myself how to find the most comfortable position when I wake up that will enable me to fall back to sleep quickly. So I've considered myself in "sleep training" to prepare for the study. Your comment supported my efforts, thank you.

Dizzy,
If only Sleep Dr's would understand what you do about combination therapy.
For example the Dr who did my Pillar, considered my case a failure, because I did not stop snoring. After reading about Paul's experience, I realized it would be a combination of thiings which would help me and I was on my own with regard to finding out what combination to use. After reading what you do for yourself to treat I assume is a chronically stufffed nose, I would suggest you go to an ENT and get an evaluation to see if the problem is with your turbinates or septum. I can't say enough about the nasal somnoplasty, the procedure is simple, short, painless, and for me the most effective procedure I'd ever had in terms of relief. For two months now I can breath though my nose without any medication, and I have a 20 year history of needed multiple meds each night to sleep. I can breath again. Look into it.
Rick

[Cody ire]

You're right, Rick. Paul gave me the information I needed. I made an appointment with Dr. Shapira for next week. I am hopeful the TAP appliance will help me. After a year I don't have good results with CPAP. The most sleep I get is 2 to 3 hours, and not all nights are that good. I had surgery 10 years ago, but I believe now my tongue falls against the back of my throat. I'm happy to find a dentist with whom someone has had good luck.

[Paul]

[Guest]

Cody,
Wish you much success here. Paul is accurate when he says the dental appliance alone will not treat your apena. In addition to your seeing a dentist to get a TAP, I think it would be highly advisible to see an ENT and get scoped. If your pallet has a role in your apnea you will not get the results you need with the dental appliance alone. The Pillar procedure might be needed before a dental devise would work.

When I began the path you're on I was desperate. I HATED CPAP. It was taking me hours to get to sleep. Many nights I'll pull the mask off because I thought sleep with apnea was better than staying awake for hours, angry about having air blowing up my nose, and for the most part I still felt awful.

I began this journey out of desperation, because my Dr. said it was useless to try anything to cure apnea other than CPAP. Yet there was Paul and Stoboy, on CPAP, then off CPAP. I wondered if I could do that too. There were big doubts and trials along the way.

In the months without CPAP, using a dental appliance, I feel better than I have in years. I got my life back. Monday I have a sleep study using the dental appliance. I hope I surprise everyone at the clinic, that I'll go to sleep, wake up and it will be time to go home.
Should that happen, it will be one of the highlights of my life!
Rick


Rick

[SleeplessNTex]

Rick, I too have been unable to tolerate cpap. I would apprececiate any info you can give about the procedures you had, the effectiveness of each, how you went about finding each of the doctors/ dentists, etc. I know this is a lot, so please tell me as much as you can.

Thanks, Gary

[Less Sleepy]

You need to post your question to the dental medicine board here:
www.talkaboutsleep.com/message-boards/viewforum.php?f=10

[Cody ire]

I had a TAP dental appliance made in June. It worked well enough for 4 or 5 nights, but I had a good deal of jaw discomfort and went back to my CPAP. I had been on Lunesta for a little while and have continued to use it. About mid-October my tolerance to CPAP started to increase, and I now average over 6 hours of sleep a night and I am feeling tremendously better. I don't know the exact reason for my success after over a year, but I think persistence was a key. In the mean time, I keep my TAP as a back-up in case of power-outage.

SleeplessNTex,

I use an Ultra-Mirage FF mask. I am a mouth breather and I find this mask fairly tolerable. I wish I could tell you more or make some useful suggestions. All I can say is that it is possible to become compliant with CPAP even after a year of difficulty. Please don't give up.

Cody ire

[Mr Mango]

Thanks for posting on this side of OSA. There is many who struggle with CPAP who need to hear of your experiences. I never measure the success of a treatment by a minority point of view.

The greater majority struggle with CPAP therapy. As we see here on the board many complaints and a hand full of regulars supporting CPAP from their point of view.

And that's great but not realistic.

If the compliance rate gets anywhere near 55% then we are starting to make headway.

Lets not forget most people think 4 hours a night on CPAP is being compliant.

Most take CPAP off for a few hours a night.

[Dickman]

I use 7-8 hours a night and feel fairly ok. Not as good as I would like. When a CPAP user is asked how he feels, the answer ususally is in the boaderline comfort. It will be great if you can keep your pressure the same in 15-20 years of therapy and can go without CPAP every a couple times a year to get a national holiday but that doesn't happen you will suffocate really bad.

[Less Sleepy]

It also took me about a year to get the kinks ironed out of my treatment. I've been 100% compliant from the start, and don't even nap without it. It has dramatically improved my life.

Have you been evaluated by an ENT to figure out why you have so much trouble breathing through your nose? Many people do much better with CPAP when they get their noses "fixed."