OMG! IT REALLY WORKS!

 

A romantic look in bed?

I have been on a weird odyssey these past three weeks. I have been trying to adjust to sleeping with a CPAP machine.  Let us just say beauty is no longer in the eyes of the beholder, it is gone forever!!  Instead of “sleeping beauty” I now look like an elephant attached to a machine. 

A sleep study showed that i have sleep apnea.  I stopped breathing 27 times during the night I took the test. No big deal I thought, I wake up every morning. Do yourself a favor and read what sleep apnea can do to you. It will change your mind, especially if you love life!

So with determination, I am working through the issues of sleeping with an attachment on my head and face.  I must say, the moment I put on the contraption, I was surprised at how comfortable and light it was. Falling asleep was no problem for me.  It was what happened during the night.  They first suggested a nose cup.  Sounds simple, but the air was so strong I woke the first morning with my sinus so packed I was dizzy the next morning until I could open them up.  Now the trick is sleeping with the CPAP and a stuffy nose.  Okay, some medication to open the sinus might work. 

It didn’t.  A call into the company to ask for help produced a new face mask.  One that covered both the mouth and nose.  The next morning I woke up to a swollen red eye and red cheek.  I looked like I was in a fight and lost.  So now a few days on this machine I now have a bucket filled head and a face that looks like I’m preparing for Halloween.  

Now what?  A decision to turn the air pressure back a bit to make it more steady.  Next day, found my eye so swollen I had to call my family doctor for help.  Prednisone for the allergic style reaction and antibiotic to help the sinus I go home and hide.  I am not a pretty sight. 

Now the Prednisone and the forced air flow are doing a number on my body.  I feel swollen and puffy and downright miserable.  But I am compliant!  That means I am using the CPAP at least 4 hours a night and Medicare will cover the equipment.  Determination carries on.

Another call to the company and a young man named Mark comes for a visit with some new suggestions.  For the first time I feel I am talking to someone who knows what they are talking about.  Turns out the red eye-red cheek is from the forced air blowing over the skin.  Not an allergy at all.  He set me up with two other mask possibilities and told me to try them.

This time a nose plug style.  No air leaking onto the face, pressure turned down per the doctor, and OMG!  I slept through the night and woke up feeling refreshed.  Not tired, dragging, and slow to start. Not waking during the night is a new experience for me.  It is light weight, QUIET, and yes, I still look like the elephant attached to the machine, but hey life is life and worth the living.  

Ah, the challenges of life and living in this stage called the “golden years”.  Isn’t it beautiful?