Newbie Introduction

Hi Everyone - My name is Scott and I'm a newbie around here. Yep - I've been diagnosed with OSA and am having difficulties with the adjustment. I've had my basic ResMed S8 CPAP machine with heated humidifier for a little short of two months now and my sleep study titrated pressure is 12cm. I'm also a mouth breather which complicates things. Being a mouth breather it was recommended that I use a full mask. My first week with the ResMed full mask was a week from hell. I had many problems. I went back to my sleep lab and on the recommendation of a friend I tried their nasal pillows which I found much more comfortable, so I switched to the pillows with a chin strap.
While the nasal pillows were more comfortable, I had a problem keeping a seal when I rolled over to my side. While on my back I had no problems. When I went back for my one month follow up I had another choice. The technician I've been working with told me there were some new masks out that I could try. The first one was a combination nasal pillow with a bottom portion to cover my mouth (for us mouth breathers). She got halfway putting it on me when I told her to stop - don't waste any more time with this one. No way. The next one was a set of pillows from Respironics. On that initial 10 minute or so trial I was pleased. They seemed comfortable and also did not leak while on my side. This one also had a chin step built in to it which seemed like a good idea (I would later find the strap to be useless). So - I came home from my one month follow up with my third interface.

I'm still fighting to get used to things - I wish I had the ResMed pillows back. While the Respironics pillows maintain the seal better overall - I do not particularly care for the headgear that goes with it. The headgear does not keep things as securely in place as the ResMed headgear. I find myself constantly messing with/adjusting my mask instead of resting.

Another thing my wife has noticed is that I still snore. With this in mind I've come to suspect that what might be of great benefit to me is an auto titrating machine with the data reader and the software. Using that I hope to be able to get a better picture of what is really going on when I try to sleep. I understand why a full mask is the best option for me, but I can not imagine how anyone can actually sleep with one of those things on their face. For me they were horrible. I was frequently having to take the mask off to scratch an itch either on my nose or somewhere around the sealing area. I also had difficulty with dry mouth even with my humidifier on max.

I intend to go back to my doctor and ask him to prescribe an auto machine for me to try for a while while I evaluate the different delivery mechanisms. I should be able to use the software to help me find the best setup for me 'cause I sure haven't found it yet. I've also come to understand that my pressure of 12cm was determined on one given night under circumstances that are very different than what is a normal night for me. While 12cm might have been right for me at that time - why is it that the insurance company insists that 12cm is now the correct pressure for the rest of my life? That makes no sense to me at all.

I'm not at all ready to give up since I know the ramifications of doing so but I'd kill right now for an uninterrupted nights sleep.

I'm still wading through all the valuable information in the "Our Collective Wisdom" area here. I'll read some more there before I start posting more specific questions, but I wanted to introduce myself here tonight. I think I've found a good place here - I look forward to the potential rewards.

Thanks in advance for what you guys and gals have to offer here.

Best wishes...

Scott

Scott -

Welcome to our gang. Sorry to hear about your difficulties but I think you are on your way to better health. You have a good attitude and there are many great people on this forum willing and able to help you with technical issues and emotional support.

If you are certain you are a chronic mouth breather (are you always congested?) ... there are several options.

Full face masks are very difficult to get used to since they have the most parameters to fit the nearly infinite variety of sizes and shapes of the human face. As much as you seem to be avoiding them ... I would still try and keep an open mind to them and be willing to try them at some point after you have had some relief from your lack of sleep.

Nasal interfaces include pillow and cushion types ... for simialr reasons as FF masks, you may not like the cushion types. That leaves the pillow types which you do seem to tolerate. That means you need to control your mouth leaks and chin straps don't seem to work for most people but you may be one of the lucky ones.

Lots of folks tape their mouth shut or glue their lips together with poligrip ... lots of posts on those methods. You may also be able to train yourself not to mouth leak .. afew posts on that subject as well.

Hang in there.

Best wishes.

Scott,
Welcome. Sounds like you've been doing your homework. I'm guessing you had to turn the other masks back in. If not, you may find a way to rig the headgear you like with the nosepiece you like. No matter which pillows you use, you may need to add some extra stabilization with an extra strap like a stretchy sport headband around the front of it. (Just as long as it doesn't block the vent.)

For instance, I'm using a CL2 headgear with Breeze pillows nosepiece plus headband and I almost never spring a leak when moving around. If you haven't already done so, search under the name of your mask, and you may find modifications others have made that could prove helpful.

Welcome to the gang; hope you're soon getting that sleep you're so desperate for.

Kathy

Hi - Thanks for the fast repplies! As far as my mouth breathing - it's something I've done all my life. As a kid I was frequently teased and called "duck" because I always had my mouth open. At 40 I discovered why. An ENT specialist discovered I had severe nasal polyps as well as problems with the way my sinuses had developed as well as signs of years of chronic sinus infections resulting from said sinus issues. I've since had surgery to correct these issues, but since I breathed through my mouth for 40-some-odd years it has been difficult for me to unlearn that.

I'm willing to try just about anything, but I must admit the thought of tape or glue makes me cringe.

Thanks again...

Scott

Scott, maybe the reason that it makes you cringe is that all your life, up until the surgery, you had to breathe through your mouth, so the idea of it being obstructed would understandably make you more nervous than the average bear. But now it could save your life to let your mouth be obstructed.

Easy for me to say now, since I'm a newbie, too. I hope to get my first mask sometime in the next week or so. My only experience: The man I'm dating got a CPAP and just hated it at first because of having something covering his mouth/nose. He's fine with it now. It does take time.

I'm pretty amazed to have found this board and the level of expertise of the people on it.

Good luck.

Scott -

Forgot to mention ... you may want to consider getting yourself a good heated humidifier (HH) like the F&P HC 150 ... the ResMed H3i is lite on the humidity output ... being as how you are gonna be keepin yur yapper open.

Scott, welcome to the forum. It's a great place to learn and get help.

Please complete the equipment section of your profile so you won't have to keep telling us what machine you have, etc.

I think with your history of being a mouth breather, that you need to stick with a full face mask. The combination nasal pillow and bottom mask is called the Hybrid. Many people here like it.

I think you should go back and ask the DME if you can try several different full face masks because you don't want to tape. You can ultimately get used to them. Just my opinion.