can't stop breathing through mouth - need help

[sd_368]

Okay... I can't use this thing! I've tried both a nose mask and now a full face mask. The mask itself is not uncomfortable. The problem is that I cannot stop breathing through my mouth at night. Which obviously creates the worst cotton-mouth dry mouth I've ever experienced; it's so dry, it's almost painful. Let's not even get into the fact that I have to fully wake up when I need to take off the mask to get a drink of water.

I've seen references to taping your mouth shut.... I've got a goatee, and dont' think the tape will stick. Plus, I've had experiences with taping my eyelids shut after laser surgery and that was most unpleasant.

Does anyone have any other ideas??? I just need a way to keep the mouth shut - but even a with a chin strap, you can still blow out air through the lips.

FYI... My CPAP has the humidifier, but it doesnt' seem to make a difference to the dryness.

Please... any suggestions will have my utmost gratitude.

Scott

[telly]

You can train your mouth to close off with the throat with tongue placement. It takes practice, but you can achieve it, I've done it. My AHI doesn't indicate that I'm doing poorly, nor is my mouth terribly dry. Do a search on the site as this problem comes up a lot.

[Snoredog]

we breathe through our mouth when we cannot breathe through our nose.

1. Control nasal congestion: Try making a rhino saline rinse and rinse out your nares to relieve the congestion. OTC sprays like Afrin only works for 1-2 days then any longer they can actually be the cause of nasal congestion from rebound effect. The rhino rinse flushes out the allergens that cause the congestion and inflamation. Used regularly, you only have to do it 1-2 week to maintain it.

2. Use a BreatheRight strip under your mask, it can help with congestion.

3. Try and keep your tongue planted in your hard palate. Sleeping on your side also helps.

[NightHawkeye]

Hi Scott,

Welcome to cpaptalk. Glad you found your way here.

Does anyone have any other ideas???

Of course. No shortage of ideas at this forum. But, the quality of the advice you get depends a lot on the quality of the info you can provide.

Please tell us what equipment you have - manufacturer, model, settings (as much as you know), kind of humidifier, etc. The more specific and detailed the info you can provide, the better the advice you will get. It might just make a difference. Not knowing much about your equipment can make it difficult sometimes to offer meaningful answers.

FYI... My CPAP has the humidifier, but it doesnt' seem to make a difference to the dryness.

OK, just a few general ideas here to start out with.
- Heated humidifiers offer more help, but often can't be used at full output without condensation within the hose.
- Adding a hose cover will help reduce condensation and allow you to turn the humidifier up.
- The ultimate is a "heated hose". In my experience the heated hose, in combination with a heated humidifier, allows the humidifier to be turned all the way up. That provides maximum relief.

Adding a heated hose might just make this therapy tolerable for you, especially if you continue to use a full-face mask. As others have said, you might want to see if you can unplug your sinuses as well. FWIW, I started out on this therapy with a full-face mask, but quickly found out I couldn't use it. Somehow, I managed to switch over to using a nasal mask. I used to have to irrigate my sinuses every night in order to keep them clear. Nowadays though, I just put on my mask at night and I'm good for the entire night.

Best of luck, Scott. Hope this info helps at least a little.

Regards,
Bill

[laurie2025]

There was a lot of talk around here for awhile of people using denture grip cream like polident; they'd put a line of it on their lip (not the inside of the lip) and then press the lips together. From what I read it worked quite well and washed off very easily.
I cannot guarantee it worked because I haven't tried it; I tape my mouth and it doesn't bother me a bit.
You may want to try a search for denture or polygrip and see what you come up with here.
Good luck.

[TerryB]

I use denture adhesive strips. I tear it in half, moisten it and place the two pieces so as to create three equal size openings across the width of my mouth. I use a chin strtap to keep the strain off and the strips keep my lips "tight". The stickiness is not so strong that you can't open your mouth anytime you need to.

TerryB

[Kelly]

I had the very same problem, I now use an ace bandage to keep things closed. I wrap it from just below my bottom lip around my ears and the back upper part of my head. I wrap it several times and it is pretty snug, but it works. I started with a regular ace and switched to a self adhesive ace and like it much better. once you lay down, relax your tongue and let your cheeks fill with air and then let the air out and that positions your lips right and it really works!!! Good luck!!!

[SleepUnitRoy]

Here's what worked for me (I've been on CPAP now for about a year, and run my auto remstar at 10 to 15 with 90% logging in at 11 inches-water pressure ... my mouth breathing was almost non-stop until I implemented these steps):

I do the following:

1) wear a chin strap
2) wear a NoseBreathe (upper only) purchased from here: http://www.nosebreathe.com/mouthpiece.html
3) run the integrated heated humidifier on 5 (full)
4) use the Aussie heated hose (well worth the $!!! ... no more rainout!) purchased from here: http://www.sleepzone.com.au
5) use a snuggle-hose cover over the Aussie heated hose (mostly to cover the hose short pieces that connect the heated hose to the mask ... the heated hose is a bit heavier, so I found that a 6" extension solves that issue and if that part is covered, still no rainout).

I also monitor my results using EncorePro software every night. I've tried various combinations of above, but the combination of 1 & 2 are key for me. Either alone, and I get massive mouth leakage, but with both (plus the other 3 through 5) I can see from my data that most nights (not all) show completely flat leakage pattern for the entire 8 hours of sleep, indicating directly that I'm not mouth breathing during the night.

In my opinion, the dryness of the mouth after a night of mouthbreathing is only a "minor" side-effect. When I was mouth breathing, I felt horrible the next day, so I knew I wasn't getting proper therapy.

So this (above) is what worked for me after experimenting with other ideas (like taping and such), and the extra expense was well worth it. It's not perfect (for example, the NoseBreathe device, while comfortable, makes me drool for the first 30 minutes or so of each night ... so I now place just the corner of a tissue at one side of my lips to absorb that saliva which works well; also I still awake once in a while (once or twice a week?) from mouth breathing, but I get through most nights now with no mouth puffing).

SleepUnitRoy

[track]

sent you a pm, Roy

[neversleeps]

I haven't tried this because taping works so well for me, but Snoozin' Bluezzz also has great success with the Poli-grip strips:

I taped fearlessly and successfully but now I use Poli-grip strips equally fearlessly and successfully with a great deal more comfort. I can pop my mouth open to cough if I need to, get a sip of water, take an analgesic, eat a Tums or whatever and then it reseals again with a lick of the lips. It works multiple times during the night. I am a huge fan and if they ever quit making them I'll be virtually inconsolable for a brief while as I resume taping.

There are a multitude of threads on the what, the how, the safety concerns, types of tape, sizes of tape, removal tabs, horizontal taping, vertical taping, 1" taping, 2" taping, duct taping (yeah, you heard me!) etc. Happy hunting.

David

[track]

Does he use the poly strips to hold his teeth together or his lips together?

[brackstone]

Does he use the poly strips to hold his teeth together or his lips together?

Yes please explain this to me as I too am having problems with my mouth being open when I sleep. Taping makes me a bit nervous, I know it's silly, but I'd like to know any other options.

[NightHawkeye]

Yes please explain this to me as I too am having problems with my mouth being open when I sleep.

Using poligrip-strips is just as easy as it sounds. When I played with them, I used about 2/3 of a strip on each side of my mouth. You can moisten the strips either with water or your tongue and then just press your lips together for a few seconds. Pretty simple, really.

Biggest problem I had was that I kept blowing through the seal. I never tried tape, but suspect I'd have blown through a tape seal, too. Fortunately, after I went back to APAP from BiPAP, my episodes of mouth-breathing diminished to infrequent.

Anyway, poli-grip strips are really convenient, and easy to use.

Regards,
Bill

[Snoozin' Bluezzz]

Neversleeps thought I should chime in on this so here I am.

Poli-grip strips.

My pressure is moderate at a straight 9.5cm H2O and I don't seem compelled to gape muscularly so I think the strips just function as a reminder to keep my mouth closed.

Initially I began using one strip cut in 1/2 with each half being placed on the left and right side of my lips respectively. This worked great but somehow I got the idea that it might be overkill (actually from napping and having some success keeping my mouth mostly closed). I then tried just 1/2 strip on my lip right in front. It has worked fine for me for more than 6 months now.

I cut it, wet it, place it on my lower lip, close my mouth so it gets transferred to my upper lip, but then leave my mouth open, set the machine up, put the water in the humidifier, put oil in my Pur-Sleep (this is new), put my mask together, put it on, re-moisten my lips, close my mouth to get a seal, connect the hose and "blast-off". Works like a champ for me. I just bought 6 boxes at $4 a box ($1.30 off) and I am set for the next 480 days, give or take and longer if I have to use my hybrid because of congestion. This works out to $.05 a night not counting tax and is well worth it to me.

I recommend them highly - they are a very trivial presence in my life and they work. I did have trouble with mouth leaks and went through every strap made and hated every single one. I then taped for quite some time and that was OK but still a bit of a pain in the patootie. The strips are almost like not there and they permit me to open and re-seal multiple times during the night if necessary.

Good Luck

David

[Snoredog]

ask RG, five wraps of duct tape should do it