Niv ipap issues
My mum has been on an niv machine for 3 years now, she's got copd and they set her up with this after a hospital admission, her co2 had gone too high so this helps with keeping it down. It started on 18 and they've gradually increased it to 24 over time. She's barely able to breathe when she removes it in the morning after wearing it all night. So it's helping with one problem but creating a new issue. The medical advice seems to be more or less there's nothing they can do to help with this . They prescribed low level morphine to calm her when she's removed the mask but it's not helping.
Any ideas? She's on oxygen 100 % of the time now. Barely moves from her chair due to her oxygen dropping when she does.
Sorry for the long post. X
Hi
- I'm so sorry to hear what both you and your mother are going through. It's difficult to be the one that's sick but it's also hard to watch someone we love suffer like this.
It sounds like your mother has very high requirements for oxygen and her CPAP level (24). It's not difficult to understand why she may have problems after she removes her mask; that's a lot to come down from.
First, it sounds like you've already expressed your concerns to the doctor/healthcare team, is that correct? Have they suggested having her come down slowly in the morning? perhaps over a 20 - 30 minute time period? It's just an idea, but one you may want to run by the team.
The fact that she's on 100% O2 most of the time is more difficult to deal with - there really isn't much that can be done there. If those are her requirements, she's bound to become short of breath when trying to do too much.
How is her mobility? Does she have a wheelchair that can be pushed? That would at least allow her to be outside or in a different room for a time.
I'll be thinking of you both and hoping you'll find a way to make the best of this.
Lyn (COPD site moderator)Thanks lyn,my name is lynne too 😁. She got a wheelchair recently but she barely uses it but we've fitted ramps this week so I'm hoping she can get outside easier. Do you mean turn the machine pressure down when she's coming off it in the morning? That's quite a good idea. I'm not feeling like our health advisors (I'm in England)are suggesting anything to help but I do totally understand there's a limit to what can be done and we've probably reached it. X
