Maria...
I think I know somewhat as to how you feel. It took me almost (3) years to get to where I could actually comply on a regular basis. There are still times when I just get so frustrated with the whole getup I end up just ripping it off and not using it.

I don't know how thing will work for you and I cannot assume you are the same as I am...but here are things that have helped me to finally get "used" to the whole deal enough to use it regularly:

- finding a mask that really works with me...I made the false assumption that my first mask was more or less representative of the way all masks feel in use. For me, I found out over a year into the process that I was wrong. Getting a different mask immediately made the whole deal more bearable.
- I don't know if you have a nasal-only mask or a full-face mask...but you could try the other if one isn't feeling right. Full-face masks let mouth breathers and partial mouth breathers feel more "natural" about it...Full-face masks also help when one has nasal congestion
- When I started to use my iPod at night, it really helped me to become less preoccupied with the discomfort of the mask. Having music on is very soothing to me.
- I experimented with humdifiers (ones specifically for cpap/bipap machines) and after going back and forth, I generally don't use one. Others have found it much more bearable to use one. I think the bottom line is a humdifier (or lack of) is also a comfort factor so I suggest investigating that.
- Another major milestone for me was to combine my bipap therapy (Cpap's and BiPaps are almost the same thing) with the use of non-depressant sleep therapy meds or natural remedies to help with my sleep. For me, personally, I chose an alternative route over drugs like Lunesta/Ambien (which was also suggested for me). You can read about it on another thread ( livingwithsleepapnea.tribe.net/th...b1c ) - I try not to talk about too much here because I know it can be quite contreversial. But I think whatever works with each individual could help. There are numerous sleep meds that do not depress breathing (csa) or contributes to throat closure (osa).
- And last but not least, this might sound silly but I tried to inject some humor into the situation by "role playing" as Darth Vader when I put my mask on - Seriously, a little bit of "Luke, I am your father" and "together we can rule the universe" helped me feel like less of a freak and helped make the strange breathing feel a bit better.

I have no idea if any of these suggestions will help you. Just thought I would share in case one actually might. In the end, I can only tell you that if you stick with it, it will get better and become more routine. You are definitely NOT the only one who just can't stand the whole getup as you start therapy. I suspect compliance is a major issue in osa/csa therapy.

Check a new post today (08-13-06) where I posted a link to another great sleep forum I found - there is lots of traffic there but it seems there is a huge group of people sharing experiences about numerous sleep and sleep disorder issues:

www.talkaboutsleep.com/messag...dex.php

Peace, Maria.
MC