What is CPAP therapy and why is it so challenging? 

Sleep apnea is a serious health condition that people can rarely recognize themselves… It is estimated that over 26 percent of adults between the ages of 30 and 70 years have sleep apnea. But, what is sleep apnea? In simple words, we could say that sleep apnea is a type of snoring in which there is a long pause in the process of breathing, more precisely, inhaling the air. Air inflow is obstructed, partially or fully, by blocking the upper airways. This is known as obstructive sleep apnea and it is the most common type of sleep apnea.

If a person is diagnosed with sleep apnea, treatment is often highly effective. It improves night sleeping and reduces the risks of potential health complications.

Depending on the cause and the type of sleep apnea, treatments come in different forms…from changing lifestyle and habits (for obesity, sedatives, sleep position, and similar causes); to performing mouth and throat exercises; using mechanical devices (such as Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines), using medications; and even surgical treatments.

The most effective therapy for obstructive sleep apnea is CPAP therapy. 

The CPAP therapy was popularized around 50 years ago and since then has been on the rise as the most effective solution. The therapy is medically prescribed and requires the use of a CPAP machine and equipment which pushes the pressurized air into the patient's airways and thus keeps them open all the time.

Why is CPAP therapy so challenging? Getting used to CPAP therapy (breathing pressurized air, wearing a CPAP mask, sleeping with limited movement and/or sleep position, hearing CPAP machine…) can take some time. The most common problem is getting used to wearing a face mask! Wearing a facemask during the day can be annoying, frustrating, and for some simply unbearable. When you add breathing in forced air, limitation of sleeping activities, air dryness, the noise of the machine, and daily cleaning and sanitizing need…it makes CPAP therapy a too-much-to-handle for some people.

Luckily, there are quite a few solutions to most CPAP therapy discomfort issues…CPAP industry is developing new solutions every year to make sure that all CPAP therapy users have their therapy time as comfortable as possible. Nowadays you can select a variety of CPAP Machine Masks (consulting with your CPAP therapist you can find the mask that is the best fit for you), best pillow to use with CPAP machine, and CPAP hose management tools, chin straps, mask gels…

What can you do if you can’t get used to CPAP therapy?

Regular and continuous use is the key to a successful CPAP therapy! Studies have shown (confirmed) that the longer the therapy is used the more positive effects it produces. Every hour counts! CPAP compliance indicates that the minimal time of using CPAP therapy is on average 4 hours per night for at least 70% of the nights, and this time isn't arbitrary as it is confirmed and shown by research, and it is what it takes to have effective sleep apnea therapy.

So, what can you do to achieve this in case you just can't get used to CPAP therapy? Well, the solution can be quite simple, or more complex, it can be fixed within one night, or it might take up to a month… depending on the problem you're having.

Simple solutions usually come with a simple accessory purchase… 

If your problem is sleeping with a CPAP mask because you cannot sleep on the side, buying a CPAP pillow will solve it in most cases. Some of the best pillow for CPAP users come at a fairly cheap price (up to $50); we can recommend PrimeClean CPAP Pillow as one of the best in the industry!

If your problem is the mask itself, if you just can't get used to wearing a CPAP mask, there are two solutions – you can try different mask types (consulting your CPAP therapist) or gradually get used to wearing the mask (usually through daily exercising, wearing the mask during the day, while awake…). This problem is also successfully solved using behavioral and medication interventions.

For dry air, breathing forced air, and similar issues you can try using modern CPAP accessories such as a humidifier, or a heated hose… Get a CPAP machine with ramp-up features that allow the machine to start at low or minimal pressure and as the patient falls asleep pressure increases. Or you can use the different variance of CPAP machines such as BiPAP (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure therapy is the upgraded version of the CPAP machine. Instead of keeping the constant positive air pressure, BiPAP has 2 air pressure phases: low and high air pressure. One pressure level for inhalation (IPAP), and another, a lower pressure, for exhalation (EPAP)) and APAP (Automatic Positive Airway Pressure therapy, similar to CPAP and BiPAP, provides breathing support with positive air pressure. What makes them different, and possibly more advanced, is the solution is air pressure setting. APAP machines have high and low air pressure settings which are automatically adjusted according to the patient's breathing).

If your problem, or additional problem, is daily cleaning and sanitizing that you need to do with your CPAP equipment, in a case by any chance you haven't heard about automatic cleaners, do check PrimeClean CPAP cleaner – PrimeClean is an Ozone cleaner that kills 99.9 percent of germs without introducing moisture, which could become a breeding ground for more germs.

Don’t give up!

Nowadays there are many solutions for CPAP therapy discomforts… There is no reason to give up on the therapy. Every year CPAP industry develops new features for PAP products and CPAP therapy accessories! Even if you think that you’ll never get used to it, try to search about your problem and for sure you will find someone else with the same problem – solved.