For those using a CPAP mask for sleep apnea - Epilepsy Message Board

IMNRVUS · 02-22-2007, 09:06 AM

Anybody out there used a CPAP mask to stop sleep apnea, which triggered Gran Mal seizures? How well did it work? Was it easy to get used to? Did you use just fresh air or oxygen with it? Could you sleep on your back again?
My EN&T doctor said that 50% of his patients that needed a cpap used it and liked it.
It's my last resort before somnoplasty surgery. He finally agreed to leave my tonsils alone, as long as they were healthy, because he has to shrink the tissue more in the upper sections in the back of my throat near my sinuses.
Just hope the cpap works on me... any suggestions before I get it?

lamac · 02-22-2007, 10:06 AM

I have Epilepsy and I use...(not with a lot of enthusiasum) a CPAP mask. I was having headaches and my BP was high. The doctor thought the episodes I was having at night were because my snoring was waking me up and I was gasping for breath. I think I was having simple partial seizures...

Well I had a sleep study done and found that I have mild mixed apnea. I have had only one episode since using the mask...but I have also lost a little weight and menopause reared its ugly head. I also changed seizure meds. How am I to know what is the result of which??!!?!?

But...as much as I hate the CPAP...there is something strangely comforting about it...I can't begin to explain it...

Good luck...

Lamac....

IMNRVUS · 02-22-2007, 10:50 AM

Since my first GM seizure in 2001, I also developed high BP, aches and pains all over, and I haven't slept well all night through. I gained weight with no explaination... I thought it was the phenytoin or the diovan causing it.
Yesterday, the doc said sleep apnea could cause all of my symptoms plus a lot more. So, I thought I'd try the mask. Maybe I will go for the surgery later. I really don't want to rely on the mask for the rest of my life unless I have too. The surgery is called somnoplasty, and recovery is quick.