How do you sleep with your mask with a head cold?

[Suzannaor]

Today I came down with one doozy of a head cold! My nose won't stop running. How ever am I going to sleep tonight with my mask? Even if my nose quits running, I can't breathe through it! Which means I'll mouth breathe and have a dry mouth and sore throat in the morning. Aargh! Just venting tonight.

[Wulfman...]

That's why even the "hard core" nasal mask users have a full face mask stashed away for these times.

And.....nasal cleansing, decongestants.....whatever it takes to keep the nasal passages open as much as possible.

Good luck.

Den

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[Goofproof]

+1! Just went thru that, really 2 week still suffering, OTC decongestants full load. Jim 3,000 units Vit C daily . .

[Wulfman...]

+1! Just went thru that, really 2 week still suffering, OTC decongestants full load. Jim 3,000 units Vit C daily . .

Just a little tidbit of information on the Vitamin C. Some years ago we were taking some extra doses of Vitamin C (500 mg) and when we had our annual blood draws we ended up with high iron levels. (higher than the normal range)
I did some searching and found that Vitamin C can do that. So, we cut out the C and iron levels went back to normal range.


Den

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[muchojo]

My Nasal Pillows help me precisely with nasal drip. Much easier to sleep with the CPAP than without it when I have a cold. It clears me up so don't have to concentrate on breathing instead of sleeping.

[49er]

Today I came down with one doozy of a head cold! My nose won't stop running. How ever am I going to sleep tonight with my mask? Even if my nose quits running, I can't breathe through it! Which means I'll mouth breathe and have a dry mouth and sore throat in the morning. Aargh! Just venting tonight.

Hi Suzannaor,

A relative's doctor suggests raising the pressure temporarily when this happens. Just a thought.

And to prevent future colds, you might want to try increasing your vitamin D. Once I increased me, my yearly cold disappeared even when I have had a lot of difficulties adjusting to pap therapy.

Because I never tested my level, I never went over 3000 IUs. So if you plan on taking more, I definitely would.

49er

[Pugsy]

That's why even the "hard core" nasal mask users have a full face mask stashed away for these times.

Not this hard core nasal pillow user. Tried FFM...hated, hated, hated it. Did I mention I hated it?
Long story there that I won't bore people with.

How ever am I going to sleep tonight with my mask?

Do the best you can with what you have to use. Yes, some people do use a FFM in these situations but if you don't have one right now you can't get one anytime soon. Tomorrow at best if your DME will do it.
Do whatever you can to lessen your symptoms with oral decongestants or nasal rinses or even a tiny, tiny bit of Afrin.
Does a hot shower help your breathing? If so, turn up that humidifier so it delivers more moisture. Moisture helps the nasal mucosa reaction of swelling...moisture helps reduce the swelling. Get some Simple Saline and use it frequently during the day. Keep the nasal mucosa well hydrated during the day too.
This is what I have done and I have slept about as well as I would with a cold even without needing cpap. It isn't great but I did get through it. Normally the worst part is the first couple of days or so.

[SleepyToo2]

I am a hard core nasal pillow user, and I do have a total face mask. However, I agree with Pugsy that there are many things you can do before resorting to the full face mask. I would just add twice-daily sinus rinses to make sure they are as clean as possible given the situation. Of course, making sure the pillows are clean, and the filters are not dirty, will also help.

[islandboy5150]

I know you've tried a ton of OTC stuff, was this one of them? It's called Advil Congestion Relief. It works even on runny noses. It fixes whatever issue I have when I'm in trouble. It's my only thought on what to do that you haven't already heard or done.

[robysue]

How do you sleep with your mask with a head cold?
Badly, but with my BiPAP mask on my nose. About as badly as I did pre-CPAP actually: There's the exact same tossing and turning with the bottom nostril getting uncomfortably clogged up while the top one remains just barely free enough to breathe through triggering yet another turn over in bed ...... There's the same periodic waking up to cough, cough, cough for 10 minutes at a time and groan wondering if anything can possibly be more uncomfortable. And there's the same blowing my nose two or three times after the coughing ends and the same elaborate ritual of trying to arrange the pillows and covers so that I'm marginally comfortable enough to sleep, but vertical enough to be able to breathe a bit better. The only real difference between a pre-CPAP cold and a CPAP cold is that now there is the added (minor) inconvenience of reaching over and turning Kaa off when a serious coughing fit that wakes me up: I can't stand the feel of all that air rushing through my mouth when I'm cough, cough, coughing for 10 minutes straight. But the Swift FX pillows mask is easy enough to yank off and on---I usually just pull the pillows up on top of my nose until I'm done with the coughing spell and blow my nose two or three times to clear it enough to get back into a bad sleep.

Less tongue-in-cheek: Like Pugsy, I do NOT keep a FFM around to use when I'm congested. I cannot stand anything covering the top of my nose---it triggers an insane itching sensation that is far worse than putting up with the combination of the nasal pillows and the congestion. My leak line gets a bit worse when I have a head cold---there will be some short identifiable mouth breathing episodes, but they rarely come close to the Large Leak territory in Encore. So I've learned to not worry about them---if I'm miserable with the head cold I've got better things to do with my time than to worry about a couple or three 30-minute long mouth breathing episodes that are NOT flagged as Large Leaks in Encore.

As for the OTC stuff to make myself less miserable: Neti pots and saline nasal sprays provide some help. Hot chicken soup and lots of hot tea (with honey in it if my throat feels raw) also help. I don't tend to use decongestant nasal sprays due to the risk of rebound congestion and I don't tend to use oral decongestants because they aggravate the insomnia something fierce.

[Suzannaor]

Thanks for all your responses. I do have some saline nasal spray and nasal rinse stuff, which I will use today. I don't have any OTC decongestants on hand, nor a full face mask. I tried to use the mask last night, but I just couldn't breathe. So I slept without and blew and blew my nose and coughed and coughed all night! Today I will take better care of myself and hope tonight I can manage to keep the mask on all night. Will turn the humidifier up and clean the filter, too.

Thanks again! Great group here!

[Hawthorne]

I use saline spray regularly during the day when I have a cold. I turn the humidity on my cpap up a notch or 2.

I don't have a full face mask. Like Pugsy, I hate, hate, hate them and really have never been able to make one work. They all leaks badly and I cannot tolerate the feel of them on my face. I have tried many!!

With my nasal pillows, my saline spray and the humidity up a little, I sleep very well when I have a cold. I actually feel better at night than in the daytime with my regime for a cold.

[Sir NoddinOff]

Like a lot folks here, I've recently decided to try several FFMs in the hopes of setting myself up for winter and the potential for a stuffy nose, colds and so forth. I like nasal masks a lot but they do have their limitations. I really like the way the Wisp nasal system seals around my nose - nary a leak to be had (with a Pad a Cheek). And my pressures can get up to 17-18cmH20.

Does anyone know if PR is going to model a new FFM on their popular Wisp model? I'd love to see that happen... especially with the tall firm side walls on the cushion and a super soft inner flange, plus they should add the features that are common in the ResMed Quattro series like quick release clips, clear acrylic frame and good visibility over the top of the frame.

[ems]

After you've tried all the above suggestions, and decided NOT to use a FFM because you can't stand it on your face (like me)... not using it for the first two, three nights of having a cold is not going to kill you. Now, don't all yell at the same time - OMO!

[Stormynights]

When you are already miserable adding more stuff and tighter straps isn't very comforting. I am glad the SW Anew works for me now.