Obstructive sleep apnea of 38 AHI and recommended CPAP - what to expect?

[inneedofbettersleep]

I have just had my sleep assessment back and I scored an AHI on average of 38.8 - so that’s an average of 38 times an hour I stop breathing momentarily.
I am exhausted and dread going to bed, it all came on quite quickly over the past 2 months. I’ve been slowly putting on weight for a while and now reached 100kg for my 5ft2 height. I am overweight and will be seriously sorting myself out to try and see if that helps.
Doctor has recommended I try a CPAP machine but the whole thing is terrifying, I have only ever seen them on tv and they always look really clunky. I’m a mouth breather normally so I think I need a full mask, but does anyone use one, have any tips, and how long will it be before I can see any changes?! Help!

It was the best thing I ever did. The difference was almost instantaneous. I stopped feeling so tired and stopped needing to nap mid afternoon every day.

It feels a bit odd at first but you soon get used to it.

I definitely notice the difference (and not in a good way) if I nod off before I've put the mask on.

You can get pillow masks now which cover your mouth and just the nostrils and tip of nose. Much better than the old style full face masks. Takes a little time and effort to adjust to using a CPAP, but you will feel so much better once you are getting restful sleep that soon you won’t want to sleep without it. Good luck!

My DH started one last week, he’s a big fan, instantaneous results, no more sloping off for a sleep after work, he’s very pleased!

Hi there.

Its the best thing ever and it can save your life. Ive been on mine for 5 years. At first it can be scary and using the cpap machine does some getting use to but try and persvere with it. When i had my sleep assessment i stopped breathing 40 times in a night it was scary to know thst. My AHI now .is 0.0 which is amazing. I was a mouth breather too but once my mask is on my mouth is closed. Please dm me if you need to chat