mouth breather seeks new options

I breathe through my mouth when I sleep. I've tried using a mask that covers my mouth, but once my mouth opens, it feels like the air is blowing directly into my mouth. It gets completely dried out (tried the mouthwash that coats to prevent that - no use), I wake up 2-3 hours in and can't get to sleep again with the mask on.
So, I switched to a smaller mask that only covers my nose and bought a chin strap. That works okay, except, the strap makes my chin tender. After 3-4 days of using it, I have to take 1-2 days off to let my chin recover.
Sometimes I find myself not wanting to go to bed.
Anybody have any suggestions?

jhpiano1 wrote:I breathe through my mouth when I sleep. I've tried using a mask that covers my mouth, but once my mouth opens, it feels like the air is blowing directly into my mouth. It gets completely dried out (tried the mouthwash that coats to prevent that - no use), I wake up 2-3 hours in and can't get to sleep again with the mask on.
So, I switched to a smaller mask that only covers my nose and bought a chin strap. That works okay, except, the strap makes my chin tender. After 3-4 days of using it, I have to take 1-2 days off to let my chin recover.
Sometimes I find myself not wanting to go to bed.
Anybody have any suggestions?

From what you are saying it sounds like the chin strap works for you (prevents major mouth leaking) but you find it uncomfortable. What chin strap are you using? Add some padding (a folded sock).

The idea of a full face mask is so you can breath through your mouth without losing therapy...Did you give it a chance or quit after the first night?

I have used a full face mask since I first started. I too had problems with a dry mouth when I first started. I have found that a firm foam cervical collar keeps my mouth closed at night and I no longer have a dry mouth when I wake up.

jhpiano1 wrote:I breathe through my mouth when I sleep. I've tried using a mask that covers my mouth, but once my mouth opens, it feels like the air is blowing directly into my mouth. It gets completely dried out (tried the mouthwash that coats to prevent that - no use), I wake up 2-3 hours in and can't get to sleep again with the mask on.
So, I switched to a smaller mask that only covers my nose and bought a chin strap. That works okay, except, the strap makes my chin tender. After 3-4 days of using it, I have to take 1-2 days off to let my chin recover.
Sometimes I find myself not wanting to go to bed.
Anybody have any suggestions?

fellow user, jay aitchsee has come up with a way to help keep the lips closed-

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=112758&st=0&sk=t&sd ... i#p1086296

works a treat for me. i use this and a foam cervical collar. i tweak this a smidge by using two scunci bands. i guess my mouth is too big for a singular band!

hope this works for you.

Thank you all for your suggestions.

TedVPAP: I had a little padding, but I'm trying a sock for more to see if it helps.

LSAT: I tried the FFM for about 2-3 weeks before I gave up on it.

Okie bipap: I'll try the foam cervical collar if the sock doesn't do the trick.

Jay Aitchsee: I'll try the headband if the foam cervical collar doesn't work!

Thanks again.
I love the website. I'm so glad I found it!
jhpiano1

DON'T FIT YOUR FACE TO THE WRONG MASK
One thing I learned the hard way was to find a mask that fit my face - and not try to make my face fit the wrong mask. Let's face it - the majority of CPAP mask designers never tried to sleep with a CPAP mask. If they did we would already have comfortable and efficient masks that really worked.
It is definitely a chore finding a mask that actually fits your unique face and also doesn't leak air. When I started CPAP six years ago I tried five different masks over a two month period to find a mask that fit my face. A CPAP store employee actually blamed me for not using the masks correctly. It was a nasal pillow mask that finally worked.

START WITH A NASAL MASK FIRST (IF IT DOESN'T WORK FOR YOU THEN TRY A HYBRID OR FULL-FACE MASK)
My recommendation is start with a nasal pillow mask first. They are light and non-intrusive (well, almost non-intrusive). I don't care if you think you are a mouth breather, a slow breather, a fast breather, ear breather, or a combination of all of these. Your breathing will naturally adjust to breathing only through your nose with a nasal mask. Good news - It doesn't take long to adjust to nose breathing while you sleep. How do you do it? You will naturally block off the air entering your mouth with the back of your tongue.

BREATHING ONLY THROUGH YOUR NOSE
Make some "gah, gah, ..." sounds. Kind of squeeze out the sounds from the back of your throat. You should feel the back of your throat closing off a bit. Notice that you are naturally blocking off the sound with the back of your tongue when making the "gah" sound. It's just plain old enunciation! This is how harmonica players - with practice - play those rapid fire repetitive notes: ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gah. They stop the sound with the back of their tongue before making another "gaa" sound. Give it a try: while making a"gah" sound raise the back of your tongue and block off the air entering your throat. Now try and take a breath of air through your mouth. You'll find you can no longer breath through you mouth. Open you mouth and look in mirror while doing it - you can see the back of your tongue moving up and blocking your throat. Don't worry, you can still breath through your nose! Give it a try and do it right now. Try this exercise off and on during the day. You will soon become accustomed to the feeling in your throat. Just relax and breath through you nose while blocking your mouth breathing with the back of your tongue.
NOTE: You don't have hold your mouth closed or clench your teeth to stop mouth breathing. You don't need a chin strap. Your tongue is blocking air from entering your windpipe - not your mouth. So if your mouth is open a little bit it doesn't make any difference. Relax your face completely. Also, it doesn't take much effort for the back of your tongue to block your airway. Your tongue is an amazing muscle - let it do it's thing. When I play a note on my harmonica I can get a vibrato effect (instead of staccato) by barely closing and opening my airway with the back of my tongue. The tongue is an amazing muscle. Blocking your airway is a piece-of-cake.

SLEEPING WITH A NASAL MASK
You will automatically breath through your nose while sleeping with a nasal pillow mask. If you are asleep and start breathing through your mouth - you will get a BIG blast of incoming air into your mouth. Don't worry - it doesn't hurt - but you will wake up. Just relax - block off your mouth breathing with the back of your tongue again - and go back to sleep. This may happen off and on throughout the night while you are adjusting to the nasal pillow mask. But believe me - it's worth giving it a try. It really is easy to do. It may take a few nights before you are a veteran nose breather. And it sure beats trying to get a good night's sleep wearing a modified jet pilot's oxygen face mask.

ONE MORE THING
Good luck in finding the correct mask for your unique face. Also the technique for blocking your airway with the back of your tongue also works for full mask users. Breathing through your mouth - even with a full mask on really dries out your mouth and sinuses fast. Block that airway and get some sleep.

AND ONE MORE THING
If you get a head cold and a stuffed up head it's almost impossible to use a nasal mask. I don't even bother if my cold gets so bad I can't breath through my nasal mask.