Getting acquainted with your CPAP machine may take some time. You may not notice the benefits right away, especially since you’re asleep while using it. Nevertheless, knowing how to tell if your CPAP therapy is helping you can prove how helpful it is in your life.
Improved Cardiovascular Health
Sleep apnea puts extra stress on your heart. The disruption leads to your body not getting enough oxygen, causing your blood pressure to rise to counteract it. Higher blood pressure opens the door to more severe complications such as strokes and heart failure.
Consistent CPAP treatment minimizes these problems and stabilizes your blood pressure. Thus, if you notice a positive change in your blood pressure, it’s a strong sign that your CPAP machine is doing its job.
Better Focus
Prior to using a CPAP machine, you might have noticed how challenging it was to focus on a task. Getting through a jam-packed day while running on fumes from a lousy night’s sleep is difficult. CPAP therapy ensures a higher quality of sleep, letting you focus on what’s in front of you during the day.
Reversal of White Matter Disease
White matter disease affects the deepest part of your brain by destroying its tissue. This brain section has numerous nerve fibers that help your body function properly. Myelin, the material that protects these fibers, can break down and affect your way of life. Luckily, studies show that CPAP therapy improves the chances of reversing white matter disease. A year of CPAP treatment might reverse the damage altogether, improving the quality of your life.
Lower Glucose Readings
Researchers agree that CPAP therapy may regulate blood sugar. The lack of solid sleep can throw your insulin levels out of whack, but CPAP therapy will keep the blood sugar in check. If you notice a significant drop in your daily glucose readings, it’s a promising sign that your CPAP therapy is working well.
No More Snoring
Excessive snoring is usually a harbinger of sleep apnea. You may not notice the sounds you emit on a nightly basis, but your partner can certainly relay the information to you. A decrease in your snoring habits is a strong indicator that everything is going according to plan, which is good news for the person you lie next to every night. However, if the snoring worsens, you can try changing the CPAP filter and see if that helps.
Using a CPAP machine can be intimidating at first, but feeling more comfortable with it won’t take long. Learning how to tell if your CPAP therapy is helping you will give you hope for what can be a vulnerable time, and your brain and body will reap the benefits.
