Nee Naa Nigh Nah!
It's been a while since I posted as I've really not being doing a lot about my Apnoea.
Last time I posted it was in May. Since then the following things have changed: -
1: SAD light: It being summer there has no need to use the light. Now that the day light hours are getting shorter I will start to use it again.
2: Pressure on my CPAP machine, I think I posted previously that I'd had to increase the pressure of my machine as I was beginning to snore whilst wearing it at night. This has happened because I haven't been signing at all in months, so the muscles have begun to relax again. But it took a good 3-4 months for this to happen.
3: Singing, I stopped signing for a long time. My job sometimes makes it difficult to find the time, so I took a piece of advise from a fellow singer and now, I do 10 mins in the morning and the rest in the evening. 2 x 10min sessions are much easier to fit into any busy schedule. I've been singing again for 2 weeks and should be ready to reduce to pressure again on my CPAP machine, YAY! The good thing about tonning muscles, just like going to the gym, is that it's much easier to re-tone them the next time. I could probably get away with only doing the singing every 2-3 days. But then I tend to forget and end up not doing it at all, so doing at least 10mins every day seems to be the best plan for me.
4: The gym/weight control. My weight has fluctuated a litte but nothing a bit of smart eating for 1-2 weeks hasn't been able to fix. The Gym however is another thing. Again due to changes in my work schedule it's been very hard to find the time to go. I'm seriously thinking about getting up and hour earlier and going to the gym then.
pain/tiredness /level
1/2/12
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Day 218
Back in the "Sing" of things, Har har :-)
Since my lapse in singing, I have notice 2 things:-
1: Suddenly waking up almost every hour. Resulting in very poor sleep.
2: Occationally found myself to be snoring with my mask on, so I have had to increase my pressure to 10.5 !
I'm sure the sudden waking was due, in part, to have apnoea attacks. Also having to increase the pressure to combat the snoring which I was aware of, clearly demonstrates to me that the singing DID improve my sleeping and allowed me to reduce the pressure.
So I'm back to signing every day and will retain the pressure at 10.5 for a period until everything is back on track. It shouldn't take long as once you have trained a muscle it takes only a few days to re-train it.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/10.5
Back in the "Sing" of things, Har har :-)
Since my lapse in singing, I have notice 2 things:-
1: Suddenly waking up almost every hour. Resulting in very poor sleep.
2: Occationally found myself to be snoring with my mask on, so I have had to increase my pressure to 10.5 !
I'm sure the sudden waking was due, in part, to have apnoea attacks. Also having to increase the pressure to combat the snoring which I was aware of, clearly demonstrates to me that the singing DID improve my sleeping and allowed me to reduce the pressure.
So I'm back to signing every day and will retain the pressure at 10.5 for a period until everything is back on track. It shouldn't take long as once you have trained a muscle it takes only a few days to re-train it.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/10.5
Friday, April 27, 2007
Day 199
I've been a bad singer. I've been extremely busy finishing off my dimploma for life coaching that I've not been giving myself time to complete the exercises every day.
I'm not sure if this has caused my currently strange sleeping issue which is to wake up almost ever hour with a strange feeling through out my body, almost like an itching. Once awake I throw off the covers for a while and allow my body tempreture to lower a little. After that I pull over the covers again and drift back to sleep.
I'm hoping that after a couple of days catch up with the singing these strange sleep issues will subside.
One other thing that it could be is that I've also not been going to the gym on a regular basis either. So it may just be that I'm not as physically tired. Add that to the pressure of finishing my training I guess the stress from that would also give me another reason not to sleep well.
pain/tiredness/level
2/4/9
I've been a bad singer. I've been extremely busy finishing off my dimploma for life coaching that I've not been giving myself time to complete the exercises every day.
I'm not sure if this has caused my currently strange sleeping issue which is to wake up almost ever hour with a strange feeling through out my body, almost like an itching. Once awake I throw off the covers for a while and allow my body tempreture to lower a little. After that I pull over the covers again and drift back to sleep.
I'm hoping that after a couple of days catch up with the singing these strange sleep issues will subside.
One other thing that it could be is that I've also not been going to the gym on a regular basis either. So it may just be that I'm not as physically tired. Add that to the pressure of finishing my training I guess the stress from that would also give me another reason not to sleep well.
pain/tiredness/level
2/4/9
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Day 172
I've been doing the singing exercises pretty much every day. I do feel a lot better although I went to a friends birthday party on Saturday, got completely trashed and didn't get to bed until about 4:30 am. So I spent most of Sunday recovering and even though today is Tuesday I can still feel the remains of the sleep disruption. But then so does everyone else that went so it's always nice to know that feeling sleeping isn't always because you have a disorder. Sometimes it's just down to having too much FUN !
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
I've been doing the singing exercises pretty much every day. I do feel a lot better although I went to a friends birthday party on Saturday, got completely trashed and didn't get to bed until about 4:30 am. So I spent most of Sunday recovering and even though today is Tuesday I can still feel the remains of the sleep disruption. But then so does everyone else that went so it's always nice to know that feeling sleeping isn't always because you have a disorder. Sometimes it's just down to having too much FUN !
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
Monday, March 26, 2007
Day 164
*NEWS* Several things to tell you this week. After last weekend when my partner was ill, then I was suffering from stomach pains, sleep quality was really poor and I was also starting to have mood swings again and then I realised something:-
With everything that was going on in my life I had forgotten to do my singing exercises. Something else that really should have triggered the realisation was that I began to gently snore whilst using my CPAP machine. This is pretty much unheard of, so my first reaction was to turn the machine up a little.
After a few nights of better sleep I started up iTunes to play the singing exercises and realise that it was 6 days since I last did them! It was at that point that I also realised that I could actually feel my throat closing up. I had been feeling it for a few days but just didn't realise it.
It was like I had something stuck in the back of my throat and it was making it hard to swallow. Further evidence of this was found when I notice I had to raise my head a little to allow me to swallow at all.
All these things amazed me, it was so clearly due to me missing several days of singing. Since then I've been doing the exercises every day and can already see and feel a significant difference. The good thing about toning muscle wherever it is on the body, once you've toned it, it doesn't take long to get it back into shape after a short rest period.
I know that a university is doing clinical trails at the moment and they are due to be completed this year. But I would love to know what happens to the test subjects that have been doing the exercises, when they stop doing them for 1-2 weeks. I'm sure that they will soon notice a dramatic difference. When you are doing the exercises the change is quite slow so sometimes it's hard to tell, which is why I started this blog in the first place as now I can clearly see an improvement. But I'd love to hear what happens to others that have an extended period of not signing after they have been for several months.
For me, it really did prove, the signing has made a significant difference.
I'll remain on the raised pressure for a few more days before reducing it again.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
*NEWS* Several things to tell you this week. After last weekend when my partner was ill, then I was suffering from stomach pains, sleep quality was really poor and I was also starting to have mood swings again and then I realised something:-
With everything that was going on in my life I had forgotten to do my singing exercises. Something else that really should have triggered the realisation was that I began to gently snore whilst using my CPAP machine. This is pretty much unheard of, so my first reaction was to turn the machine up a little.
After a few nights of better sleep I started up iTunes to play the singing exercises and realise that it was 6 days since I last did them! It was at that point that I also realised that I could actually feel my throat closing up. I had been feeling it for a few days but just didn't realise it.
It was like I had something stuck in the back of my throat and it was making it hard to swallow. Further evidence of this was found when I notice I had to raise my head a little to allow me to swallow at all.
All these things amazed me, it was so clearly due to me missing several days of singing. Since then I've been doing the exercises every day and can already see and feel a significant difference. The good thing about toning muscle wherever it is on the body, once you've toned it, it doesn't take long to get it back into shape after a short rest period.
I know that a university is doing clinical trails at the moment and they are due to be completed this year. But I would love to know what happens to the test subjects that have been doing the exercises, when they stop doing them for 1-2 weeks. I'm sure that they will soon notice a dramatic difference. When you are doing the exercises the change is quite slow so sometimes it's hard to tell, which is why I started this blog in the first place as now I can clearly see an improvement. But I'd love to hear what happens to others that have an extended period of not signing after they have been for several months.
For me, it really did prove, the signing has made a significant difference.
I'll remain on the raised pressure for a few more days before reducing it again.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
Monday, March 19, 2007
Day 147
I'm SO TIRED! I've had a dreadful weekend. Everything was going just great until at about 9pm on Friday night my partner started being sick. Then a few hours later he was having diarrhoea as well. We think it was a case of food poisoning but we aren't really sure. It was a long night which ended with me driving around London at 3:45am looking for "immodium". I eventually got to bed at around 4:30am. The rest of the weekend was spent trying to clear up and catch up on my sleep.
To top it all off, I myself had stomach pains last night that kept me awake most of the time. I was wrapped around a hot water bottle for most of it.
So nothing to do with the Sleep Apnoea, but it really has knocked me for 6 not getting even half a night of decent sleep.
I'm sure this is going to take several days to get over.
pain/tiredness/level
2/5/9
I'm SO TIRED! I've had a dreadful weekend. Everything was going just great until at about 9pm on Friday night my partner started being sick. Then a few hours later he was having diarrhoea as well. We think it was a case of food poisoning but we aren't really sure. It was a long night which ended with me driving around London at 3:45am looking for "immodium". I eventually got to bed at around 4:30am. The rest of the weekend was spent trying to clear up and catch up on my sleep.
To top it all off, I myself had stomach pains last night that kept me awake most of the time. I was wrapped around a hot water bottle for most of it.
So nothing to do with the Sleep Apnoea, but it really has knocked me for 6 not getting even half a night of decent sleep.
I'm sure this is going to take several days to get over.
pain/tiredness/level
2/5/9
Monday, March 12, 2007
Day 140
A very average week, so nothing really to report. I've slipped a little on the singing I only managed to do it three times last week. So I'll have to make more of an effort this week.
Other than that I have been sleeping extremely well. I've had a couple of early nights which did wonders for me. The mask doesn't feel like an interruption to my life but just a simple part of it that no longer causes more problems than it tried to solve!
Pain/tiredness/level
0/1/9
A very average week, so nothing really to report. I've slipped a little on the singing I only managed to do it three times last week. So I'll have to make more of an effort this week.
Other than that I have been sleeping extremely well. I've had a couple of early nights which did wonders for me. The mask doesn't feel like an interruption to my life but just a simple part of it that no longer causes more problems than it tried to solve!
Pain/tiredness/level
0/1/9
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Day 134
I still have good days and bad days. Recently I've been going to bed around 11pm, but at midnight, I suddenly wake up as if I've been drinking way too much coffee, which I haven't. My whole body is tingling or itching and it has taken sometimes hours to get back to sleep. I'm not sure why its happened and its only happened a couple of times in the last two weeks. The rest of the time I've been sleeping extremely well. In fact one night I tried sleeping without my CPAP mask. After a couple of hours I woke my self, whilst dreaming I had chewing gum stuck in the back of my throat...... yep it was my apnoea kicking in.
I was a little disappointed at not being able to sleep with out the mask, but to be fair I do have quite bad apnoea so it could take a while longer before I can be completely free. I did however reduce the pressure on my machine again. I believe this is a great way to assist re-training my throat to stay open as I'm gradually reducing the pressure as I continue to do the singing exercises during the day. I'm now on level 9. Remember I started using the machine on level 8 and went as high as 13 before I started the singing for snorers. So one thing is for sure, I have been able to reduce the pressure thanks to the singing. This makes the mask easier to wear and has also allowed me to sleep in the car/train/plane without having an apnoea attack.
As a side note, my sister stayed with me at the weekend. She commented on how well I look and how young. She also has sleep apnoea, in fact all my close family have now been diagnosed with it. They all found out about it after I started using my machine and got tested themselves. Sure enough, my father, brother and sister all have OSA to some degree. So hopefully if I continue to improve as I have been doing I can buy them a copy of the CDs and help them get back some normality of sleep.
pain/tiredness/level
0/1/9
I still have good days and bad days. Recently I've been going to bed around 11pm, but at midnight, I suddenly wake up as if I've been drinking way too much coffee, which I haven't. My whole body is tingling or itching and it has taken sometimes hours to get back to sleep. I'm not sure why its happened and its only happened a couple of times in the last two weeks. The rest of the time I've been sleeping extremely well. In fact one night I tried sleeping without my CPAP mask. After a couple of hours I woke my self, whilst dreaming I had chewing gum stuck in the back of my throat...... yep it was my apnoea kicking in.
I was a little disappointed at not being able to sleep with out the mask, but to be fair I do have quite bad apnoea so it could take a while longer before I can be completely free. I did however reduce the pressure on my machine again. I believe this is a great way to assist re-training my throat to stay open as I'm gradually reducing the pressure as I continue to do the singing exercises during the day. I'm now on level 9. Remember I started using the machine on level 8 and went as high as 13 before I started the singing for snorers. So one thing is for sure, I have been able to reduce the pressure thanks to the singing. This makes the mask easier to wear and has also allowed me to sleep in the car/train/plane without having an apnoea attack.
As a side note, my sister stayed with me at the weekend. She commented on how well I look and how young. She also has sleep apnoea, in fact all my close family have now been diagnosed with it. They all found out about it after I started using my machine and got tested themselves. Sure enough, my father, brother and sister all have OSA to some degree. So hopefully if I continue to improve as I have been doing I can buy them a copy of the CDs and help them get back some normality of sleep.
pain/tiredness/level
0/1/9
Monday, February 26, 2007
Day 126
I went away for the weekend to Rome. I was a great trip, we walked for miles, ate pasta, pizza and saw the wonderful Roman buildings and generally loved every minute of it.
On the Saturday we went back to the hotel for a sleep in the late after noon as we'd been travelling most of the day before and then walking all day. I started to drift off with out my mask but felt that my throat was closing up so I put the mask on and slept for about 3 hours! After waking I removed the mask and snoozed for another 30 mins or so, with out any apnoeas. It seems that when I'm truly exhausted then I'm still prone to have apnoeas. But I have also been able to sleep with out the mask. For example on the plane and the train I was able to fall asleep and did not have an apnoea, in fact I didn't even snore! 4 months ago when I first started this blog, I was semi proud of the fact that I could even snore sat upright on a plane or train. This is no longer true. I can now sleep on public transport without the embarrassment of loud snoring or jumping awake whilst having and apnoea and gasping for air like some kind of freak.
I recorded myself practising the exercises and sent them to the creator of "Singing for Snorers". She very kindly gave me some tips on how to get the most out of them. So I gave them a go and was amazed at how much more work I could get out of adjusting the way I was doing the exercises. So I'm committed to working on CD3 for at least another month before trying to sleep without the CPAP machine again.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/10
I went away for the weekend to Rome. I was a great trip, we walked for miles, ate pasta, pizza and saw the wonderful Roman buildings and generally loved every minute of it.
On the Saturday we went back to the hotel for a sleep in the late after noon as we'd been travelling most of the day before and then walking all day. I started to drift off with out my mask but felt that my throat was closing up so I put the mask on and slept for about 3 hours! After waking I removed the mask and snoozed for another 30 mins or so, with out any apnoeas. It seems that when I'm truly exhausted then I'm still prone to have apnoeas. But I have also been able to sleep with out the mask. For example on the plane and the train I was able to fall asleep and did not have an apnoea, in fact I didn't even snore! 4 months ago when I first started this blog, I was semi proud of the fact that I could even snore sat upright on a plane or train. This is no longer true. I can now sleep on public transport without the embarrassment of loud snoring or jumping awake whilst having and apnoea and gasping for air like some kind of freak.
I recorded myself practising the exercises and sent them to the creator of "Singing for Snorers". She very kindly gave me some tips on how to get the most out of them. So I gave them a go and was amazed at how much more work I could get out of adjusting the way I was doing the exercises. So I'm committed to working on CD3 for at least another month before trying to sleep without the CPAP machine again.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/10
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Day 120
Every day in every way, I'm getting a little better.
Yesterday my old boss commented on how well I looked. I thanked him and wondered, if there was one thing that has made this now outwardly visible difference. I can honestly say, I think it's a little bit of everything! Here is a list of the things that I'm doing:-
Singing for Snorers : Almost every day I'm working on the exercises and have notice a difference in my ability to sleep has improved significantly. I have now twice fallen asleep with out the aid of a CPAP machine in the last two weeks. I'm not aware of have ANY apnoea attacks during these naps. I do recall some slight snoring. Almost cute as opposed to highly offensive! In addition both times my partner was unaware of any snoring at all.
Keeping fit at the gym: Since Jan 8th I have lost 12lbs (5.4kgs). According to my electronic scales I have lost around 4% of my body fat. This helps me sleep better at night as I'm burning up the excess energy that I may have allowing me to improve the quality of sleep. When I was first diagnosed with sleep apnoea my resting heart rate was 85-90 bpm. This has now been reduced to 68-72bpm. Without a doubt I have extended my life by improving my health and sleeping practises.
SAD light: Whilst working at home, I found that I needed some kind of desk light. I went for the extra brightness of the SAD light so that I could give myself that natural boost rather than relying on that extra cup of coffee.
Reduce Coffee: First thing in the morning I now drink boiled water with a few drops of lemon juice. It's wonderful at rehydrating the body after it looses a lot of water during sleep. The lemon helps with the taste but also seems to reduce any mucus that may have also built up. I've not had a stuffy nose at all.
Diet: To help with the weight loss and to generally improve my eating habits, I've been following a diet called "The South Beach Diet". After doing a bit of research on the internet and checking a few forums it seemed to be the best way for me to go and most importantly doesn't force you to be hungry all the time. In fact if you get hungry you probably are eating enough! A standard day for me would be:- Breakfast, flourless/sugarless chocolate torte, a fruit juice and a protein shake, 11am snack, Clementine and a babybel light cheese, Lunch any salad, 3pm snack some mixed nuts, Dinner pretty much any meat or vegetarian based meal, replacing potatoes with either butternut squash or sweet potatoes, this is always followed later by a protein rich dessert like greek yoghurt and fruit. Since being on the diet I've not had any heart burn for which was previously so bad I was hospitalised at one point in 2005 for suspected heart attack (aged 35).
I'm sure there are lots of other little things that I'm doing that I will try to highlight in future postings. But above are a few of the main significant changes that I have put in place over the last 120 days.
Soon, very soon, I will try sleeping with out my CPAP and video myself to see how well I'm sleeping now. I have previously recorded myself so I will have something to compare. I'll let you know how I get on.
pain/tiredness/level
0/1/10
Every day in every way, I'm getting a little better.
Yesterday my old boss commented on how well I looked. I thanked him and wondered, if there was one thing that has made this now outwardly visible difference. I can honestly say, I think it's a little bit of everything! Here is a list of the things that I'm doing:-
Singing for Snorers : Almost every day I'm working on the exercises and have notice a difference in my ability to sleep has improved significantly. I have now twice fallen asleep with out the aid of a CPAP machine in the last two weeks. I'm not aware of have ANY apnoea attacks during these naps. I do recall some slight snoring. Almost cute as opposed to highly offensive! In addition both times my partner was unaware of any snoring at all.
Keeping fit at the gym: Since Jan 8th I have lost 12lbs (5.4kgs). According to my electronic scales I have lost around 4% of my body fat. This helps me sleep better at night as I'm burning up the excess energy that I may have allowing me to improve the quality of sleep. When I was first diagnosed with sleep apnoea my resting heart rate was 85-90 bpm. This has now been reduced to 68-72bpm. Without a doubt I have extended my life by improving my health and sleeping practises.
SAD light: Whilst working at home, I found that I needed some kind of desk light. I went for the extra brightness of the SAD light so that I could give myself that natural boost rather than relying on that extra cup of coffee.
Reduce Coffee: First thing in the morning I now drink boiled water with a few drops of lemon juice. It's wonderful at rehydrating the body after it looses a lot of water during sleep. The lemon helps with the taste but also seems to reduce any mucus that may have also built up. I've not had a stuffy nose at all.
Diet: To help with the weight loss and to generally improve my eating habits, I've been following a diet called "The South Beach Diet". After doing a bit of research on the internet and checking a few forums it seemed to be the best way for me to go and most importantly doesn't force you to be hungry all the time. In fact if you get hungry you probably are eating enough! A standard day for me would be:- Breakfast, flourless/sugarless chocolate torte, a fruit juice and a protein shake, 11am snack, Clementine and a babybel light cheese, Lunch any salad, 3pm snack some mixed nuts, Dinner pretty much any meat or vegetarian based meal, replacing potatoes with either butternut squash or sweet potatoes, this is always followed later by a protein rich dessert like greek yoghurt and fruit. Since being on the diet I've not had any heart burn for which was previously so bad I was hospitalised at one point in 2005 for suspected heart attack (aged 35).
I'm sure there are lots of other little things that I'm doing that I will try to highlight in future postings. But above are a few of the main significant changes that I have put in place over the last 120 days.
Soon, very soon, I will try sleeping with out my CPAP and video myself to see how well I'm sleeping now. I have previously recorded myself so I will have something to compare. I'll let you know how I get on.
pain/tiredness/level
0/1/10
Monday, February 12, 2007
Day 112
I was just reading my post from last week and I suddenly noticed a pattern. Again this Sunday I was feeling very grumpy. Although I've reduced the number of visits to the gym, I have been doing a class on Saturdays. This class is very hard and generally at the end of it I'm completely worn out. I think this class is just too hard for me and I've decided to stop doing it until my fitness level has improved some more.
I also had a session with one of the trainers last week and he has given me a routine to follow for the next four weeks. So hopefully now that I have a more structured routine to follow I'll not be over doing it so much.
It's very hard sometimes to notice that your sleepiness is being caused by other things than your sleep apnoea. Having the condition blinds you a little into blaming that for pretty much everything!
During Sunday I was up fairly early, but felt very tired and so went back to bed around 11:30. I decided to try sleeping with out the CPAP machine, but using the MAD to help open my airways a little. I do not recall waking up at any time during my nap gasping for air or even snoring. Although I was pretty tired and may have slept through it or forgotten it. Next weekend I will repeat the trial and this time video myself to see if I do experience any apnoea attacks.
I'm continuing to practice the Singing for Snorers, pretty much every day. I've noticed that now I'm able to really focus on the muscles at the back of the throat and feel them opening and closing with much more vigour.
Although I'm not really able to tell myself, I'm sure that my singing voice does actually sound better and cleaner than it has done. Of course as I've now been singing nearly every day for over three months I'd expect some improvement!
pain/tiredness/level
0/3/10
I was just reading my post from last week and I suddenly noticed a pattern. Again this Sunday I was feeling very grumpy. Although I've reduced the number of visits to the gym, I have been doing a class on Saturdays. This class is very hard and generally at the end of it I'm completely worn out. I think this class is just too hard for me and I've decided to stop doing it until my fitness level has improved some more.
I also had a session with one of the trainers last week and he has given me a routine to follow for the next four weeks. So hopefully now that I have a more structured routine to follow I'll not be over doing it so much.
It's very hard sometimes to notice that your sleepiness is being caused by other things than your sleep apnoea. Having the condition blinds you a little into blaming that for pretty much everything!
During Sunday I was up fairly early, but felt very tired and so went back to bed around 11:30. I decided to try sleeping with out the CPAP machine, but using the MAD to help open my airways a little. I do not recall waking up at any time during my nap gasping for air or even snoring. Although I was pretty tired and may have slept through it or forgotten it. Next weekend I will repeat the trial and this time video myself to see if I do experience any apnoea attacks.
I'm continuing to practice the Singing for Snorers, pretty much every day. I've noticed that now I'm able to really focus on the muscles at the back of the throat and feel them opening and closing with much more vigour.
Although I'm not really able to tell myself, I'm sure that my singing voice does actually sound better and cleaner than it has done. Of course as I've now been singing nearly every day for over three months I'd expect some improvement!
pain/tiredness/level
0/3/10
Monday, February 05, 2007
Day 105
I've reduced the number of times that I'm going to the gym and it has helped a lot. I'm no longer needing to sleep during the day and I'm sleeping and dreaming much better at night.
I've also reduced the pressure on my machine another level, I'm now down to 10. I did this because I was beginning to feel that the mask was too tight again and that the pressure was causing more discomfort and problems that it was helping.
I slept with the machine at 10 all weekend and have had no adverse side effects as far as I can tell yet. Although I was a little grumpy on Sunday, but I think this was more due to a late night on Saturday and some drink. So I'll leave it like that for a week and review how I'm feeling.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
I've reduced the number of times that I'm going to the gym and it has helped a lot. I'm no longer needing to sleep during the day and I'm sleeping and dreaming much better at night.
I've also reduced the pressure on my machine another level, I'm now down to 10. I did this because I was beginning to feel that the mask was too tight again and that the pressure was causing more discomfort and problems that it was helping.
I slept with the machine at 10 all weekend and have had no adverse side effects as far as I can tell yet. Although I was a little grumpy on Sunday, but I think this was more due to a late night on Saturday and some drink. So I'll leave it like that for a week and review how I'm feeling.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/10
Monday, January 29, 2007
Day 98
I think I've been over doing it a bit at the gym. I've been going almost 5-6 times a week and as I've been going for a while now, I've been working out pretty hard. I've been getting very tired during the day and have had the occasional lay down during the day. So from this week I'm going to reduce the number of sessions I have per week and also make that I have a rest day every third day. I guess I'm getting fitter but I'm just not THAT fit yet that I can force my body to work out almost every day. Plus I also really want to make sure that I'm not over tired for when I trial sleeping with out the CPAP machine sometime next month.
I've been thinking about it a lot and it's quite a daunting notion. I think I may video myself sleeping and see what it looks like. I may also give the MAD a go as well with out the CPAP mask. This may be a good way to step down from the machine with out going it totally solo.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/11
I think I've been over doing it a bit at the gym. I've been going almost 5-6 times a week and as I've been going for a while now, I've been working out pretty hard. I've been getting very tired during the day and have had the occasional lay down during the day. So from this week I'm going to reduce the number of sessions I have per week and also make that I have a rest day every third day. I guess I'm getting fitter but I'm just not THAT fit yet that I can force my body to work out almost every day. Plus I also really want to make sure that I'm not over tired for when I trial sleeping with out the CPAP machine sometime next month.
I've been thinking about it a lot and it's quite a daunting notion. I think I may video myself sleeping and see what it looks like. I may also give the MAD a go as well with out the CPAP mask. This may be a good way to step down from the machine with out going it totally solo.
pain/tiredness/level
1/4/11
Monday, January 22, 2007
Day 91
Pretty good sleep all week. Although in the last two days I seem to have slightly over tightened the mask so tonight I shall start from scratch and fit it properly.
I've been doing the singing for snorers pretty much every day. I'm now only doing CD3. I can certainly feel that it's really working my muscles quite hard so it will be a while before I feel comfortable that I'm ready to test my sleeping with out the mask.
I did have a sleep in the car during a 2 hour journey over the weekend (the joy of being the passenger), although I did snore, it fell much more gentle and more like a "normal" persons snore. I was woken a couple of times by my own snoring but not by choking during an apnoea attack. This is a great confidence booster that the singing exercises are indeed making some improvements.
pain/tiredness/level
3/3/11
Pretty good sleep all week. Although in the last two days I seem to have slightly over tightened the mask so tonight I shall start from scratch and fit it properly.
I've been doing the singing for snorers pretty much every day. I'm now only doing CD3. I can certainly feel that it's really working my muscles quite hard so it will be a while before I feel comfortable that I'm ready to test my sleeping with out the mask.
I did have a sleep in the car during a 2 hour journey over the weekend (the joy of being the passenger), although I did snore, it fell much more gentle and more like a "normal" persons snore. I was woken a couple of times by my own snoring but not by choking during an apnoea attack. This is a great confidence booster that the singing exercises are indeed making some improvements.
pain/tiredness/level
3/3/11
Monday, January 15, 2007
Day 84
As there is very little change day to day with my sleeping I'm not posting as often as I was when I was having problems. The humidifier has made a huge difference. The reduction in pressure is working well. The mask is not comfortable due to the reduction in pressure it doesn't have to be as tight as it was before. I'm back singing for snorers every day, well pretty much. I'm singing CD2 and having a go at CD3 as well so I'm singing for almost 40mins every day. Even my partner caught himself humming the tunes whilst we were at the gym the other day.
I went back to the gym again on Saturday and got drawn in to one of their classes they were running, even though it nearly killed me, I must admit it felt good to be back and burning of some excess calories. I'm also on my post Xmas diet and have lost 4 lbs in the first week. Only another 10 to go and I should fit back into all my clothes, but for the moment it really is a tight squeeze. Weight has an impact on sleep apnoea and therefore I have to keep it in check. It may be worth pointing out that my BMI is just 25.14, normal is considered 18.5 - 25 so you see that I'm only just overweight by .14
Pain/tiredness/level
1/2/11
As there is very little change day to day with my sleeping I'm not posting as often as I was when I was having problems. The humidifier has made a huge difference. The reduction in pressure is working well. The mask is not comfortable due to the reduction in pressure it doesn't have to be as tight as it was before. I'm back singing for snorers every day, well pretty much. I'm singing CD2 and having a go at CD3 as well so I'm singing for almost 40mins every day. Even my partner caught himself humming the tunes whilst we were at the gym the other day.
I went back to the gym again on Saturday and got drawn in to one of their classes they were running, even though it nearly killed me, I must admit it felt good to be back and burning of some excess calories. I'm also on my post Xmas diet and have lost 4 lbs in the first week. Only another 10 to go and I should fit back into all my clothes, but for the moment it really is a tight squeeze. Weight has an impact on sleep apnoea and therefore I have to keep it in check. It may be worth pointing out that my BMI is just 25.14, normal is considered 18.5 - 25 so you see that I'm only just overweight by .14
Pain/tiredness/level
1/2/11
Monday, January 08, 2007
Day 67
Happy New Year!
Back to work today so this is my first chance to update my blog. I took the auto set machine back to the hospital on Friday over the last week, and mostly due to excessive drinking and eating ( I managed to gain at least 8 lbs!) my level went as high as 11.4)
So for the time being I will leave my machine on 11 and see how it goes. I won't be buying an autoset machine, as I felt it doesn't keep the level high enough to actually stop the apnoeas occurring. You have to have trouble breathing for the thing to kick in and take over. I'd rather keep an eye on the fixed pressure myself and adjust it manually myself.
I've not been very good at doing the singing for snorers over the holiday period, but I'm back into it at full swing and I'm also trailing the CD3 as well so I can hit that running at the end of the month.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/11
(I'll leave the level off from now on unless I change it)
Happy New Year!
Back to work today so this is my first chance to update my blog. I took the auto set machine back to the hospital on Friday over the last week, and mostly due to excessive drinking and eating ( I managed to gain at least 8 lbs!) my level went as high as 11.4)
So for the time being I will leave my machine on 11 and see how it goes. I won't be buying an autoset machine, as I felt it doesn't keep the level high enough to actually stop the apnoeas occurring. You have to have trouble breathing for the thing to kick in and take over. I'd rather keep an eye on the fixed pressure myself and adjust it manually myself.
I've not been very good at doing the singing for snorers over the holiday period, but I'm back into it at full swing and I'm also trailing the CD3 as well so I can hit that running at the end of the month.
Pain/tiredness/level
1/3/11
(I'll leave the level off from now on unless I change it)
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