CPAP diary

[kerravonsen]

Tried a stocking; it was purely psychological.

Only one memorable wake-up this time, and that was at 5:30am. I'd been sleeping on my back, and tried sleeping on my side after this. I'm not sure whether I fell asleep or not but when I decided to check my watch again it was 7am and so I figured I could stop trying. Being on my side, I had some condensation dripping onto my face, which was not nice; just a few drops though.

Notable pains: backache from sleeping on my back all night; soreness and red marks on face all around nose from the pressure of the mask. Double problem with the latter -- it looks as if I'm developing a pimple right under the "pressure area" -- ouch! I think the odd-around-the-top-front-teeth feeling is also from the pressure of the mask.

Sleepwise, I feel, not bursting with energy, but as if my energy reserves are being filled up more. More alert, as if more of my brain is on-line.

Looks as if I have a single-nostril stuffy nose. That is, one nostril is free, the other is completely blocked.

Comments

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Sleepwise, I feel, not bursting with energy, but as if my energy reserves are being filled up more. More alert, as if more of my brain is on-line.

That should continue to get better. I remember it well. Imagine what it was like for me in my thirties, never to have had a full night's sleep since childhood. I didn't know what it felt like to be fully awake, and didn't know that I didn't know. 8-)

It does sound as if the mask is a little too tight, if you're waking up with strap markings and feeling pressure on your teeth. You need contact for a good seal, but not a lot of pressure. Perhaps as you get used to it you can ease back, or perhaps you need a different style.

[kerravonsen]

Imagine what it was like for me in my thirties, never to have had a full night's sleep since childhood. I didn't know what it felt like to be fully awake, and didn't know that I didn't know.
!!!!
That's incredible. It's possible to have sleap apnoea that early?
Still, that could be part of an explanation as to why your family (esp your sister) tended to dismiss your opinions: you're a lot smarter now than you were as a child... People who one grew up with tend to always see one in the same way.

It does sound as if the mask is a little too tight, if you're waking up with strap markings and feeling pressure on your teeth. You need contact for a good seal, but not a lot of pressure. Perhaps as you get used to it you can ease back, or perhaps you need a different style.

Well, I talked to the CPAP man (he said to call him on Day 2, and then once a week thereafter) and he said most people experience red marks on the face initially, so I think I should wait and see before declaring the mask to be too tight. Especially as I suspect that last night, restless head movements disturbed the seal somewhat. It's really rather amazing that they can make anything that can stand up to random sleeper's movements.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

That's incredible. It's possible to have sleap apnoea that early?

Some people are born with it. At one time the theory was (and may still be, for all I know) that crib death (aka Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) may be caused by severe cases of apnea. Apnea monitors on infants are quite common.

Still, that could be part of an explanation as to why your family (esp your sister) tended to dismiss your opinions: you're a lot smarter now than you were as a child...

No, I was quite intelligent as a child (actually to the point that I was ostracized for it, by adults as well as other children, which of course has contributed to my sense of not belonging anywhere). The apnea wasn't bad enough to have noticeable daytime effects until, say, about age twelve. I'm fairly certain the difficulties with my family are largely type-based and aggravated by the ultra-conservative religious background. My mother simply didn't know how to deal with a little girl who refused to play with dolls and would rather read The Blue Fairy Book and R is for Rocket than The Happy Hollisters and Little House on the Prarie (which I hated).

It's really rather amazing that they can make anything that can stand up to random sleeper's movements.

I never thought about it, but when you're right, you're right. Let's just hope things improve steadily until it all works perfectly.

[kerravonsen]

No, I was quite intelligent as a child (actually to the point that I was ostracized for it, by adults as well as other children, which of course has contributed to my sense of not belonging anywhere).
Oh yeah, I hear you, man. Me too. Except that I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by intelligent adults who didn't mind a bright child. My peers, on the other hand... it wasn't until Grade 11 that I found peers who didn't hate me for being brainy (with a notable exception in the first half of Grade 9, when we were in the US for six months, and my parents sent me to a small school for brainy kids -- the headmaster's office was full of debating trophies rather than sports trophies.)
My big not-belonging problem was the way we moved around so much when I was a kid -- nine different primary and secondary schools altogether.

My mother simply didn't know how to deal with a little girl who refused to play with dolls and would rather read The Blue Fairy Book and R is for Rocket than The Happy Hollisters and Little House on the Prarie (which I hated).
Oh, really? I liked the Little House books, and playing dolls with my sister -- but then my parents were reading us the Fairy Books (and Lewis and Tolkien). And I had older brothers I could borrow Asimov and Heinlein and Burroughs from and nobody seemed to mind. On the other hand, I refused to do anything so feminine as learning to sew or embroider or knit. It wasn't until I discovered fan costuming that I got into sewing. And I still can't knit.