My two-month success report

[surf_rower]

Things are going pretty well! My doctor didn't give me any info whatsoever during my followup visit (first one since starting CPAP therapy) so I checked the machine myself. Guess that's what you all do, but it finally sank in. Good news! My AHI is 1.8 for last 30 days and 1.5 for past week. That's good, right? My first mask was uncomfortable so I switched to the nasal pillows in June. That is working out quite well. I had some discomfort at first but now when I apply a bit of lanolin under nose and on edge of nostrils, there's no discomfort or marks. The lanolin also keeps the pillows from slipping around too much. They still slip a bit when I turn on my side, but the Info screen is saying I have zero large leaks. So, the only problem with the slipping is that it wakes me up.

I am glad I did not listen to my stupid doctor about the pillows ("You won't like those") or to my dentist who tried them ("I didn't like those, they made me feel like a pig nose").

At first the hose was bugging me but now I'm fairly used to it just lying there. It's like anything else in the bed, a stray pillow or scrunched up jammies, if you encounter it and it's bugging you, you just adjust it. I figure eventually the hose won't wake me up much, if at all.

I am getting a bit of eye dryness, I'm guessing from the air vent, but it is not causing visible redness so I'm OK with it.

I was pretty depressed about all this the first month but feel better about it now. Now, I just need a tiny travel machine! (Will look up old threads....)

[Sheriff Buford]

Good news!! I glad you found the right mask for you!. You might consider a hose management system. I use the Hose Buddy, but there are several different types and many folks here have made their own. In fact, several months back I bought a Temperpedic bed that elevates like a hospital bed and the Hose Buddy won't work as it was designed. I took the base off and have the rest of the mechanism tie-wrapped (zip ties) to the wrought iron headboard. Works great. The Hose Buddy was the best cpap investment I've made. Don't "fiddle" with the hose when you don't have to.

Sheriff

[surf_rower]

Sheriff, thanks for the great advice! We don't have a headboard but if it stays put under a memory foam BedinaBox, Hose Buddy should work.

[surf_rower]

Uh-oh a competitor
http://www.hosebuddy.com

[Sheriff Buford]

Sheriff, thanks for the great advice! We don't have a headboard but if it stays put under a memory foam BedinaBox, Hose Buddy should work.

If you got the fifty bucks, get the Hose Buddy. But... do a search for "Hose Hangers" here and see what some smart folks here have come up with. Some even took photos.

Sheriff

[Pugsy]

A long list of various ideas for hose management systems.
viewtopic.php?t=10640

[johnthomasmacdonald]

My AHI is 1.8 for last 30 days and 1.5 for past week. That's good, right? )

Grumble, grumble, Grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, SIGH, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble GRUMBLE

[Jeannh]

Sheriff - does the hose buddy increase the rainout? Seems like hanging it, while keeping me from getting snarled up in it, could pour anything in the hose right into my mask?
Thanks!

[Sheriff Buford]

Sheriff - does the hose buddy increase the rainout? Seems like hanging it, while keeping me from getting snarled up in it, could pour anything in the hose right into my mask?
Thanks!

In theory... no. In theory... the hose is routed above your head, so condensed water (rainout) that is condensed prior to the highest point of the hose will condense and travel back to the humidifier tank. Once the condensed water vapor travels past the highest point, and down to the mask, the condensed water will dribble into the mask. I read somewhere that the pressure is the lowest at the mask, so that's where the highest possibility of rainout will occur. Rainout has a tendency of having a mind of its own. That's why hose covers and heated hoses will prevent condensation from occurring.

To me... I got tired of trying to sleep with "hose management". I was re-situating the hose draped across my body all night long. Wearing a mask is bad enough getting used to without messing with a hose. After waking up one morning with a load swoosh coming from my hose, I realized the hose had worked itself under my body, and my head jerked hard enough to rip the hose. I bought a Hose Buddy that day and never looked back. Someone once responded that they loved snuggling up to the hose at night. I prefer my wife.... but that's just me...

Sheriff

[Pugsy]

does the hose buddy increase the rainout? Seems like hanging it, while keeping me from getting snarled up in it, could pour anything in the hose right into my mask?

Water can't run uphill. So if the condensation is at the mask level and you have the hose routed upwards...guess where the water will flow? Yep, back up your nose or out the vent holes and will give you a cold shower.
Condensation can occur at just the mask level due to a combination of the moisture in our own exhaled breath and the bedroom ambient temperature. If the bedroom is cool enough that the air in the mask gets cool enough to release the moisture that the air holds then it is going to flow downhill because it can't flow uphill.
This law of physics was one of the main reasons I didn't jump on the routing the hose overhead band wagon when I first started therapy. It's why I don't like attaching the short hose to the top of the mask or using some other method of bring the hose upwards.
Just look at it...water can't go uphill. I didn't like snorting water or getting cold showers.

There are things that can be done to limit the condensation though and for people who prefer to route the hose overhead and still experience rain out there are ways to address the unwanted moisture.

[Jeannh]

Thanks! Great food for thought- Jean

[RogerSC]

My AHI is 1.8 for last 30 days and 1.5 for past week. That's good, right? )

Grumble, grumble, Grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, SIGH, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble GRUMBLE

Glad to see that you're keeping your sense of humor about it all *smile*.

Take care.

[surf_rower]

My AHI is 1.8 for last 30 days and 1.5 for past week. That's good, right? )

Grumble, grumble, Grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, SIGH, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble GRUMBLE

Hmm, I sense I asked a stupid question. But I'm serious. My doctor doesn't tell me any effing thing.
(Thanks everybody for the hose discussion. I have yet to have condensation since I have only been using it since June. We shall see.)

[DoriC]

My AHI is 1.8 for last 30 days and 1.5 for past week. That's good, right? )

Grumble, grumble, Grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, SIGH, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble, grumble GRUMBLE

Hmm, I sense I asked a stupid question. But I'm serious. My doctor doesn't tell me any effing thing.
(Thanks everybody for the hose discussion. I have yet to have condensation since I have only been using it since June. We shall see.)

Hi Surf, There are no stupid questions here, I join John in showing some AHI envy! You're doing great. Here's the hose management we use. http://www.pur-sleep.com/products/prodD ... ategory=13

[surf_rower]

Thanks DoryC, I was just looking at that. When you raised the hose above your head, did you experience any increased eye dryness? The air vent will be raised up near the eyes. Even though it's blowing out, it still seems to cause dryness.