Comment by jrockway

Comment by jrockway 10 months ago

I was prescribed a CPAP (well, APAP as you mention) and the first week was miserable. I think I got 3 hours of sleep total that week, and obviously felt like crap. I talked to my primary doctor and she's like "well then go back to the specialist". That's what I'm doing.

My plan is to get a prescription I can use to buy a bunch of different masks (I don't care about the cost), and get a few days of sleep aids. That should sort it out.

The few hours I did sleep with a CPAP were crazy. I forgot that I stopped having dreams. I had so many dreams while I could breathe at night.

Aloha 10 months ago

What bothers me is that you need a prescription to get a mask for a CPAP - I kinda get the prescription needed for the CPAP - but the accessory mask - that just seems absurd to me.

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Bjartr 10 months ago

Looks like there's plenty of masks available on Amazon. I suspect a major part of why the mask gets a prescription is to make insurance covering it simpler.

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- TylerE 10 months ago
  
  There's a funny workaround where mask parts don't require a subscription. The ones I've seen on Amazon are usually selling parts, perhaps a kit of parts, and not a complete mask.
  
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- kube-system 10 months ago
  
  Yeah, doctors can write a prescription for over the counter drugs for this reason.
  
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outworlder 10 months ago

I bought masks at sleeplay and another cpap store and they didn't ask for prescriptions. Sleeplay did ask for a prescription when I wanted to buy a travel CPAP.

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elric 10 months ago

You don't need a prescription for CPAP masks and you don't need a prescription for CPAP devices. You can freely buy both in most parts of the world. If you happen to live somewhere where you can't (and you can't get a prescription for some reason), then I suggest you find an online reseller anyway.

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- david-gpu 10 months ago
  
  From a few minutes on Google, it appears like most developed countries require a prescription to purchase a CPAP device, including the US (varies per state), Canada, UK, Australia, Germany, France and Italy.
  The most notable exceptions I find are Japan and Singapore, where it can be purchased without an Rx.
  
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  elric 10 months ago
  
  I think those places need a prescription in order for insurance to pay for the machine, not to buy the machine.
  
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  MagicMoonlight 10 months ago
  
  That’s not true at all, I purchased mine in the UK without a prescription.
  
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  david-gpu 10 months ago
  
  The websites I found indicate that a prescription is required in the UK to purchase a CPAP machine. If you have any alternative links, please do share.
  Here is an example of what I found:
  > Do I need a prescription to buy a CPAP mask?
  > You do need to provide written confirmation of CPAP suitability when ordering a machine, but this is not required for a CPAP mask.
  Source: https://www.cpap.co.uk/help-and-advice/cpap-mask/
  
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BurningFrog 10 months ago

I buy my masks on Amazon. No prescription needed.

Also, the nasal pillow "masks" are vastly superior.

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bobthepanda 10 months ago

at least for me, it took like two weeks of adjustment to get used to a CPAP.

one big thing is that you really should only breathe through your nose if you're using nasal pillows.

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