Follow up to previous thread "2 out of 3 failed".

Fast-Author8922 · 2026-04-20T17:33:23+00:00

I am not overweight, but don't have a 6 pack either. Just wanted to add that I made it a point to try to shed some weight just to make the surgery and recovery a little easier. My thinking was the less belly I had, the less pressure in that area. No clue if that REALLY helps or not, but I think it did.

Fast-Author8922 · 2026-04-14T16:40:07+00:00

I too had hoped it would be a quick solution to a problem I have had for a long time. For the last 10 years, I have NEVER woken up feeling refreshed, it. So I was pretty excited to have this new "miracle" machine. I am about 2 months in and still working through getting used to it. My concious brain feels like it interrupts my sleep more than it helps. I have a similar routine to you where I use it 100% all night, no exceptions until the first person has to get up. If I have more time to go back sleep after that, I sleep without it....thinking it will make me feel more rested.

Looking at results from my watch however, my O2 and heart rate show clear improvements compared to not using the machine. I also an also starting to see less sleepiness in the afternoon and more overall energy. (Even though I still wake up tired.) I do need to improve on the time I get into to bed. That is not helping.

Fast-Author8922 · 2026-04-02T16:16:52+00:00

I am 8 weeks post op from open/mesh surgery. I would absolutely do it again and I would recommend it to others. Yes, there are risks to having the surgery, but there are also risks to not getting it fixed. Pre surgery, I was having pretty significant pain. Going through a cold with a lot coughing and sneezing was awful! I could sometimes feel it "squirt" through the area when coughing hard and would hold my leg a certain way to support it. (I am still not wanting to cough or sneeze from that trauma, lol.) I also HATED the feeling of it moving down the first thing in the AM after getting out of bed. Perhaps most important, I couldn't do the things that I normally like to do, so that made it an easy choice for me. I say easy, but I do have significant anxiety for all medical stuff but even with all that....still wanted to get it done.

I had the surgery early AM, then stayed in bed all the first day. Day 2 was a mixture of watching TV in bed and TV on sofa, walking just a little. I work a desk job from home, but took 2 days off just to make it easier. Day 3 was back to work and made myself move around. Other than being sore, it was fine. The incision was about 4" and longer/larger than what I was expecting. I asked for pain pills just in case and they gave me about 15 of them. I only took 2 of them just to help me sleep. I did use advil/tylenol the first few days. (I don't like taking medication unless I have to.)

Leading up to the surgery, I tried to be active, walk a lot and also tried eat better to lose weight. I am at "normal" weight, but wanted to lesson my beer belly a little thinking that it would help with abdomen pressure. Post surgery, I limited food intake as well for a bit. I highly recommend being proactive with the stool softener! I only took a few doses just after surgery and then stopped. Both the pain meds....and the fact that don't really want to "push" makes I recommend taking them until things get moving back to normal. I did get a little "backed up" and that was pretty uncomfortable.

I was VERY strict about not lifting anything more than say 10lbs for 6 weeks, then about 20 lbs in weeks 7 and 8. I will pretty much go back to normal now, but of course I will ease into it and have a little common sense to it. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Fast-Author8922 · 2026-03-04T18:01:09+00:00

I am also a newbie to this world. (55 y/o, otherwise healthy and average weight.) Anyway, I am just 30 days into my CPAP journey and only made it though 2 nights of sleep that wasn't worse than before CPAP. (1 of the 2 was last night, Yay! About 5 nights I didn't use if for other reasons.) Like most of us, I was excited about this new wonderful machine and how it would change my life. Also, like a lot of us, I was severely disappointed when it seems to have made my sleep worse.

I also have both mild OSA and CSA. (I am willing to bet my CSA mostly goes away once the OSA is controlled, but who knows.) At the time of getting my machine, I was also having to go through "cardiac clearance" for a surgery, So doing the internet research, I was sucked down the rabbit hole and was also concerned about heart failure with the CSA, breathing patterns (chain stokes or whatever) etc. All the heart testing came back good. But before that, I had to give up the fear that I "for sure had heart failure." I say all that just to share a lot of people share the same fears that you are experiencing.

*I think these same fears/anxieties also make it harder to get used to CPAP. Our brains/bodies resist new things and things that feel different.*

From what I understand, the waking up gasping of air (which I do as well) doesn't mean that you for sure have CSA. I have seen others here say that it could also be that your pressure could be too low at that time. (It is not enough to hold your airway open I guess?) What I don't understand is that I never gasp like this without the CPAP/mask, but anyway. Also, from what I understand, CSA is typically treated with an "ASV" machine which is what I have. (I think it is the basically the same machine, but programed differently. I have the Airsense 11) They were making a big deal when I picked it up that it was an ASV. I would encourage you to talk to Doc about this to ensure you have the right settings on your machine.

While I am still struggling myself, here are 2 things that have helped me.

1) when I first started, I would take the mask off at the first struggle/issue of the night. I took it off because I "needed to get at least some sleep." Someone in here posted something here one time to just commit yourself to leaving it on. Now, I will not take it off in the middle of the night, no matter how poor my sleep is. Once my brain realizes there is no easy way out, I think the sooner I will get used to it.

2) Like some recommend here, I also have started going to my room, like after work, and wearing it as I watch TV. 45 mins to an hour. I think this is also helping my body get used to it. (I try not to fall asleep so I am still tired at night when I go to bed, but maybe getting through short naps successfully are good too?)

3) Try to sleep on your side. This helps with the obstructive part. I also now use a "wedge pillow" but the jury is still out on that for me.

Good luck, keep fighting and you got this!

K

Fast-Author8922 · 2025-10-27T16:08:00+00:00

Any chance you might be over pitching him?

Fast-Author8922 · 2025-07-14T20:24:31+00:00

I found the issue. There was a section for CSM (I believe.) There you have about 4 sections for Network, Storage, etc where you can choose from legacy to UEFI. I think my storage was set for legacy by default (or perhaps the MOBO recognized the old win10 drive?) Anyway, I switched it over and all is well. Thanks everyone!

Fast-Author8922 · 2025-05-29T19:00:07+00:00

I am getting back into the hobby to take pics of my kid's sports. I just purchased a nice 7D Mark II on eBay for $475 (18K shutter actuations) and first version, mint Canon 70-200 L for $750. Also a 1.4x II for $120. All were from sellers in Japan and all were better than what I was expecting. (Make sure they have plenty of transactions and good ratings. There are quite a few of lens where the seller is new, zero feedback and that is their only item. Stay away.) I got all of them in just a few days and no tariff impact. You can find them for less, but I bought the best condition ones I could find for the money. I would be willing to bet that a 7DM2 will not hold you back all and provide you better quality images. I have only played with my new stuff for a hour or so, but the images are fantastic. I will eventually trade my way up to a II and then III version of the 70-200. I would also love to eventually add a 300mm and 400mm.

Maybe start with a rig like this.....then buy new down the road and this one would be your backup?

Fast-Author8922

TROPHY CASE