Struggling

[frogman9]

I have to admit that I thought I would be doing better than I am after almost two months on CPAP......but I'm struggling. I was given a Simplus by the sleep clinic and I feel claustrophobic wearing it it's like a clamp stuck on my face. I bought a Sleepweaver Anew and that's just too hit and miss it's O.K. when I put it on but during the night it leaks like a sieve I hardly ever get the nice green smiley face on my S9. I have also bought a Sleepweaver Advance but this also leaks I just wish that the company who make the Sleepweaver products would come up with a mask that is usable for 6 - 7 hours a night. The cost of masks is also another factor I just can't afford to keep buying masks to have them end up sitting unused in a drawer. My sleep clinic were not too helpful last time I went I told the nurse about my sinus and other nasal problems but I still ended up coming away with the same Simplus that I went in with I don't want to stop CPAP as I have felt some of the benefits but I'm wondering what to do neext.

[Sleep2Snore]

A Sleep Tech said this:

Try fitting it while you're laying down. Many of us put them on when we're sitting up, then when we lay down our face shape changes. Might be this? It may need to be just a tad tighter if this is only when you move to a lateral position.

Other than that it is a case off finding a mask that suits.
I didn't see the point of coming home from the clinic with the same mask as you had before.

[frogman9]

I have the small size Simplus they tried the medium size on me and said it would leak into my eyes so it wouldn't be any good to me.........but they fitted it at the top of my nose according to what I have read the Simplus should fit further down the nose. I kind of got the impression they were thinking we have given you the equipment now go and get on with it.

[Sleep2Snore]

If the mask they gave you is not working for you phone them up again and tell them, I had quite a few masks before I got something that worked. I also got the impression that I have been given a mask, now go away and use it, but I kept phoning them up. It was a long trip for me to get a mask, I had to travel from north of Aberdeen to Edinburgh which is not round the corner. But they did keep trying other masks. I finally got one that worked for me, but by this time I was almost at the point of giving up.
The machine I could use after I got a humidifier, but I had a lot of problems with masks. When you are at the clinic, try the mask while you lay down. If you can take your machine and if they will allow you, lay down with the machine running at full working pressure. If it is and APAP they should be able to get it to run at high pressure so you and the nurse can work out the problem.
Mostly it was leaking into the eyes and cutting the bridge of the nose that was my problem. Go back and tell them you want this to work but just can't get the mask to work.
Don't give up, I know it is frustrating, but be persistant with them. A lot of clinics are busy and they do give the impression that you are annoying them and that you should be coping, but when I said that to a nurse she said it was jist they were busy and under a bit of pressure. They want to see it work for you as much as you do. Go back and be as pleasent as you can't be but be persistent. If you are nice they find it hard to argue
Seriously, go back and tell them you are still having mask problems and if you could crack that you would be well on your way to a better life.

Good luck!

S2S

Did I write all that

[Tom @ Intus]

Hi Frogman, sorry to hear that you're having difficulty with CPAP - but persevere and you'll get there.

It may be worth asking your clinic for a hybrid mask. That combines a full face mask with nasal pillows.

The idea is you cannot see the mask itself, which greatly helps with claustrophobia. They also have a smaller contact area, so fewer opportunities for leaks to occur.

An example so that you can see the type of mask I'm talking about would be the Innomed Hybrid. If you think that style of mask may be of benefit then it's certainly worth seeing if your clinic could provide one to you.

[symmit]

Hi there.

Stick with it, difficult it can be but it is worth it in the long run.

Have you tried any nasal only masks? I have had about ten masks now trying to find the right one, the sleepweavers where problematic and wore out quickly, but the Simplus and Eson are working well for me, and I am very much a fan of the nasal pillows, if you can make a nasal only mask work for you than maybe a pilairo or a swift fx would be good?

Tell your clinic your problems, hopefully they will help out!

[frogman9]

I tried the Sleepweaver Advance again and the Mrs knocked me up a chin strap and I have cracked it......7.8 Hours the other night and 0.3 AHI. Now if only Circadiance could redesign the Anew so it would actually work I had a slight sniffle yesterday and I thought I would have trouble with the Advance so I thought I'd try the Anew again.....took it off after about an hour it just doesn't work for me it's like sleeping in a wind tunnel . I have a sleep clinic appointment in January so I will try and sort out a full face mask for when I have sinus trouble or a cold.

[Grumpy]

full face for sniffle-time

The new Resmed Air is the best full face mask I have tried; I usually use the Mirage Liberty (hybrid mask) but switch to the Air come sniffle-time.

[komadori]

Tips for sleepweaver advance

I've been using sleepweaver advance (and occasionally sleepweaver Elan), for 18 months,and have gradually improved usage. Some tips to try:-

Train yourself to sleep with mouth closed by pushing tongue to roof of mouth then sucking in: this sort of sucks the tongue across the mouth opening. After a week or so I started to do this without thinking and mouth leakage is now rare. Previously (like most snorers) I was a mouth wide open person.

I find I get a better nose seal if there is some dampness so (a) wash face well just before sleeping and don't over dry, and (b) run humidifier a point or two higher than previously, some nights I even wet the contact parts of the mask before sleeping, and/or preheat the water in my humidifier for quicker response. I find that in this damp atmosphere the seal is much better.

I use a clip (expensive to buy at £10, but you can make your own) to anchor hose to nightwear. (no help for those who sleep in the buff unless you have a stud placed in an appropriate position)

Finally I purchased an adjustable bed (no VAT if a Apnia sufferer !) and have found a position that I sleep comfortably, on my back, minimum pillows, and no longer toss and turn all night, thus mask is not pulled off my face. Some approximation / test for this is to try sleeping with pillows under your legs on standard bed.

Sleepweaver masks do have a finite life, but I find putting into a low temperature standard wash (no softener !) about twice a week, the fit starts to drop off at about 5 months and replacement definitely needed at 7 or 8 months. About £3 per week total cost is acceptable for a good nights sleep

Whichever mask you use try various tweaks before discarding, the darned things are rather costly, but most people finds a setup which works for them.

Good luck

[Sleep2Snore]

Some people have told me these masks feel a bit colder on the face than other masks?
I asume that is why you pre-heat the water and turn up the humidifier? I have also been told they have a tendency to creep up the face. However, once people get used to them, they appear too like them. Nearly all complain about the life of the mask. Some also complain that they have a tendency too smell inside after a couple of days. Do you find this?

[komadori]

I can't understand the "colder" comment, generally I find a cloth mask is different from the various plastic/silicon models but if anything warmer. A bonus is you can scratch an itchy nose through a flexible mask!

A higher humidifier setting warms the water a bit more and damper air is delivered to the mask. Starting from cold, humidification is initially low until the humidifier heater raises the temperature. By putting warm (approx hand washing temperature) into the water chamber I get moist air quicker during that critical "getting to sleep" period.

The "official" advice is to wash the mask daily. I find that to be safe advice, but maybe an overkill, for me about every three days is a good compromise, but more frequently if I have a cold or similar. I don't experience any particular smell problem, occasionally a whiff of soap powder if rinsing has been below par, but that's all. I killed my first mask in three months washing daily using hand wash liquid or shampoo according to how I washed myself on the day. Some oily additive in one of these "soaps" reacted badly with the sleepweaver material and the waterproof layer just peeled off. So please avoid soaps with additives: things designed to be kind to skin are unkind to these fabrics. Now the masks just die from aging following usage and washing, just like any other fabric component, gradually losing shape and flexibility: but many advise replacing traditional masks every six months anyway, so no real differences.

Another cloth mask bonus is that any air leakage tends to cause a quiet hiss, rather than the loud trumpet that a misfit silicon seal can cause.

[Sleep2Snore]

Thanks for that and getting back to me

I have never used one and I just wondered how you were finding it compared to what I have been told elsewhere.