Health care tips  Sleep disorders Cpap What To Expect While Using CPAP
|
|
|
What To Expect While Using CPAP |
|
|
|
What To Expect While Using CPAP
CPAP is a long-term treatment. Many people have question when they first start by CPAP.
Talk to your sleep expert about how to handle followup questions. He or she can answer some questions, but your home tools provider may need to address others. Ask your sleep professional to recommend a home equipment provider that has a lot of experience with CPAP.
To attain the full benefits of CPAP, use it every time you sleep, during naps and at night. Most people should use CPAP for at least 7.5 hours each night for the best results.
The CPAP Machine
It can take time to regulate to using CPAP. It may feel strange wearing a mask on your face at night or feeling the flow of air. Some people feel confined by the mask. If you feel this way, it may help to alter to the mask slowly.
First, hold only the mask up to your face for short periods through the day. Next, try wearing it with the straps for short periods. Then, add the tube.
Breathing with a device doesn't feel natural. If your machine has a "ramp" feature, you can use it to gradually "ramp up" from a lower air pressure to the pressure that's needed to keep your airways open through sleep. Once you're comfortable using CPAP during the day, try using it at night while you sleep.
Relaxation exercises, such as progressive muscle rest, help some people adjust to using CPAP. Talk to your physician about whether relaxation exercises may help you.
If you're having problem adjusting to the mask or the CPAP machine, contact your home equipment donor. Your provider may have staff who can help you alter. You may want to try a different mask that has fewer straps or less contact with your skin.
Followup Care
Your sleep expert may ask you to schedule a followup visit about a month after you begin using CPAP. He or she will want to see how well you're adjusting to treatment. After that, you may have followup care each 6 or 12 months.
Your sleep specialist may need to adjust the air pressure setting of your CPAP machine if:
- You gain or lose a lot of weight
- Your indications, such as daytime sleepiness, persist or recur
- You have another treatment for sleep apnea, such as upper airway operation or a mouthpiece
Benefits of CPAP
CPAP has many benefits. It can:
- Keep your airways open while you sleep
- Correct snoring so others in your household can sleep
- Improve the value of your sleep
- Relieve symptoms of sleep apnea, such as excessive daytime sleepiness
- Decrease or prevent high blood pressure
With CPAP, you may fall asleep faster and wake fewer times through the night. The pauses in breathing that are typical with sleep apnea won't cut off your sleep.
Studies also show that treatment with CPAP is connected to a decrease in reported car accidents and near accidents. Some studies have shown that CPAP get better reaction times, concentration, and memory in people who use the treatment.
Many people who use CPAP report feeling improved once they begin treatment. They feel more attentive and improved able to work during the day. They also report fewer complaints from bed partners about snoring and sleep disturbance.
You may feel better after the first night you use CPAP. You may wake feeling refreshed, alert, and in a better frame of mind. You also may feel less tired during the day.
However, it may take a week to a month to adjust to CPAP. Some people have problem falling asleep when they first start using CPAP. This problem usually is short term and goes away as you adjust to the treatment.
Even if you don't aware of a change right away, stick with the treatment. The benefits are worth it. Once you adjust to using CPAP, you'll sleep better.
|
