I’ve been dealing with mild sleep apnea for nearly four years, and using a CPAP machine has always been difficult for me. I’ve tried nearly a dozen different masks, but none have been comfortable or tolerable. About two years ago, I gave up on using the CPAP entirely because it was doing more harm than good to my sleep. Since then, I’ve occasionally tried to come back to it, hoping I could adjust — but I never can. Over the past year, I’ve noticed I’m hitting snooze more often and waking up feeling more tired and skipping gym days. Some days I still manage to train in the mornings, but it’s inconsistent. Morning workouts are really important to me, as that’s the only time I can consistently fit them into my schedule with family/kids/work. The ongoing fatigue from poor sleep is starting to interfere with that routine, so I’m now looking for other treatment options besides CPAP that are more manageable for me.
Hey Kyle,
Welcome to the forum. This is something we’d recommend discussing with your physician, as they will be better able to work with you at an individual level, whereas we cannot provide medical advice over a forum.
That said, there are still more CPAP masks that may work, strategies that may work to help you acclimate, dental appliances, and so forth.
We would recommend a collaborative approach with your physician on this matter.
-Jordan
Kyle,
As Jordan said, it’s challenging to get into specific recommendations that would be pertinent to you in this setting. I’ll try to outline some general approaches for my patients with OSA and similar complaints. Excuse the typos and I’ll try to keep it brief.
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Many approaches to mild OSA management. You’ve tried CPAP, but other options include mandibular advancement devices (custom fitted and adjusted by a Sleep trained dentist), positioning therapy, lifestyle modification (eg weight loss, avoiding alcohol)
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You mentioned trying several masks, but didn’t mention specially what about CPAP you didn’t like. If you can identify one or a few precise barriers, a savvy Sleep MD or RT might be able to recommend precise recommendations to address the barrier.
An example might be, a bearded patient complains about leak with a variety of full face masks, and doesn’t like the nasal pillow mask that was given to them. Recommendation might be to try shaving, using a nasal cup mask that encapsulates the nose and avoids facial hair, or trialing a stick on nasal mask that covers the nostrils only.
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You noted you are clearly feeling daytime symptoms and it is impacting your ability to train in the morning. I would make sure the sleep schedule is dialed in, ideally maintaining a consistent wake time 7 days a week, with enough wind down time and am earlier enough bed time to facilitate adequate time to sleep. Insufficient sleep is the most common cause of daytime sleepiness. I also at this point check to see sleep apnea aside, if any relevant medical and mental health issues are possibly contributing.
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Last and probably lowest yield - you mentioned it’s been about four years since being diagnosed. When there’s a dramatic change in symptoms, significant weight gain, or otherwise, repeating a sleep study could be considered. More severe levels of OSA may open up other treatment options. Again, low yield especially if you or a bed partner note that symptoms of sleep apnea are present when not using your CPAP (which would suggest the OSA is likely still present).
Hope that helps, but like Jordan said, getting plugged back into your Sleep clinic is probably the best course of action.
Nate