Dry mouth

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MoodyMolly
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Dry mouth

Post by MoodyMolly » Fri Jan 12, 2018 12:04 pm

I keep waking up in the middle of the night with a super, bone dry mouth, it's almost painful. Probably at least 3 times a night. I have to turn my apap off and drink water. I am using nasal pillows, with a chin strap and mouth cover. My mouth doesn't open. So is this air getting blown onto my mouth from my nose? How can I fix that? I already hold my tongue in the roof of my mouth with the tip at the back of my front teeth.

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Pugsy
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Pugsy » Fri Jan 12, 2018 12:12 pm

Some people just get dry mouth easier than others for some unlucky reason.

Any meds being taken that could maybe make it worse?

How long have you been on cpap therapy?

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MoodyMolly
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by MoodyMolly » Fri Jan 12, 2018 1:00 pm

Pugsy wrote:Some people just get dry mouth easier than others for some unlucky reason.

Any meds being taken that could maybe make it worse?

How long have you been on cpap therapy?
I don't think there's anything I'm talking that would cause dry mouth. It's mostly just vitamins. I've been on c pap therapy for over 2 months.

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zonker
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by zonker » Fri Jan 12, 2018 5:52 pm

hi, molly. may i suggest Xylimelts? it's a lozenge that fits between tooth and cheek. put one in as you mask up at night. it supplies sort of an artificial saliva throughout the night and saves me from dry mouth.

should be available at drugstores near you.
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DeadlySleep
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by DeadlySleep » Fri Jan 12, 2018 6:32 pm

You may think your mouth is staying closed, but it is opening. You just don't know it because you are asleep.

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Wulfman...
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Wulfman... » Fri Jan 12, 2018 7:18 pm

DeadlySleep wrote:You may think your mouth is staying closed, but it is opening. You just don't know it because you are asleep.
+1


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Pugsy
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Pugsy » Fri Jan 12, 2018 7:21 pm

MoodyMolly wrote: chin strap and mouth cover. My mouth doesn't open
What type/kind of mouth cover and is it totally in place when you wake up?
If it is tape and the tape is still in place then that's one thing but if it is something that is porous or moves around or would let air sneak out the mouth then that's another thing.

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49er
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by 49er » Sat Jan 13, 2018 6:43 am

A dry mouth is not necessarily an indication of mouth breathing. Folks experiencing one should check sleepyhead reports to see what is going on with mask leaks before they determine switching to a full face mask is necessary.

DeepFriedDuck
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by DeepFriedDuck » Sun Jan 14, 2018 5:17 pm

49er wrote:A dry mouth
This is hardly characterized as a mere dry mouth:
MoodyMolly wrote:a super, bone dry mouth, it's almost painful
If this were caused by medications, Molly would be experiencing it during the day in addition to at night.

zinnia
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by zinnia » Tue Jan 16, 2018 12:50 pm

I had an extremely dry mouth and air in my cheeks with pillow mask and nasal mask. I now use a full face mask. Still getting used to it but my reports show that leakage has stopped and I no longer have dry mouth.

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Gryphon
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Gryphon » Tue Jan 16, 2018 1:33 pm

You mentioned mouth cover... can you be more specific or describe how your covering your mouth? If your cheeks are puffing out and air is still leaking out that could explain the dryness.

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Goofproof
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Goofproof » Tue Jan 16, 2018 2:13 pm

zinnia wrote:I had an extremely dry mouth and air in my cheeks with pillow mask and nasal mask. I now use a full face mask. Still getting used to it but my reports show that leakage has stopped and I no longer have dry mouth.
Congrats for getting it, many don't that's what's FF masks are for, you are making the best of your effort, however "SOME" say they still have dry mouth, maybe they do.... I also get relief by letting a couple of Hersey Kisses melt in my mouth, seen to work for hours, if not I repeat. I have to force myself to use them. Jim
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Gryphon
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by Gryphon » Tue Jan 16, 2018 5:22 pm

Love the chocolate suggestion.

One thing to also look at if you have dry mouth with FFM. Is going to be humidifier settings and overall environment.

If I let my water tank run dry my mouth can get so dry if I forget to wet my mouth with water or at least get the saliva glands working again my skin will actually crack and bleed. This is me with full face mask. So I know things like this vary from person to person.

I've always used a full face mask so I can't speak with experience on the issues with nose only masks. But I will say any sort of mouth leaking is going to move air through or around the mouth area providing higher degree of evaporation of the moisture in your mouth.

If you know for sure the there no leaks and the data supports that, I'd look at turning the heat up on your heated humidifier. If the air coming from your XPAP has a higher concentration of humidity in it all ready then you won't lose as much moisture from your mouth.

Jeep in mind though there other things to watch for as toy push up the humidity like rainout or sinus issues depending on if your nose likes more or less moisture.

Good luck and let us know how it works out.

Rest well. Gryphon

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MoodyMolly
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by MoodyMolly » Sat Jan 20, 2018 12:32 pm

So the mouth strap I'm using is just a cloth headband, I suppose air could be getting through the fabric, but when I wake up suddenly because my mouth is dry, my lips are closed and sometimes even feel like they're are fused together. Idk how to explain that, but it happens to me in the night/morning. Sleepyhead doesn't say I have any significant leaks, and I'm not noticing any air puffed cheeks. I'm not taking any medication at all, let alone one that causes dry mouth. Also, when I open my mouth while my apap is running, I feel pressure at the back of my throat/nose and then feel the air escape. So I know the feeling of my mouth opening because of that jolting feeling of the pressure releasing, and I'm not feeling that when my mouth is dry. Maybe the xylitol lozenges would help... I just don't know what to do because I'm waking up so much at night from dry mouth that I'm not getting optimal sleep. I doubt a full face mask would be any better, that sounds like it would cause a worse dry mouth.

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CarCulmer
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Re: Dry mouth

Post by CarCulmer » Sat Jan 20, 2018 1:04 pm

I have been having the same problem and it's miserable!! I've been a CPAP user for over 6 years and never had this problem until I got a new machine last September. I now have the AirSense10 - don't know if the dry mouth problem is related to the new machine or not. I wake up numerous times a night and have to use Biotene spray in order to get my mouth functioning and to be able to swallow. Not on any medication that would make my mouth dry unless Xarelto (blood thinner) or Stall (heart rhythm med) would do that - not listed as a side effect tho. When I first started on therapy years ago I taped my mouth for about the first year and then felt it wasn't needed any more. Maybe have to go back to that? I do find my cheeks puffing out at times when I wake up.

Had the machine back to the supplier and they said the settings were OK. My air leak reading on the machine indicates anywhere from 25 up to 40-50 and I often get the "red face" icon. Checked that out too with the sleep dr. office and they assured me the readings were OK - nothing to worry about (??). Maybe it's always been this way with the old machine and I just didn't know it? I thought the leak indicator was kind of high.

I've always used Swift FX pillows and the Mirage FX. Recently added the Brevida pillows. Like to alternate so my nose doesn't get sore. Yesterday I decided maybe I needed a full face mask and went and got the Airfit F20 - tried it he first time last night and it was AWFUL! Woke up after about 4 hours with the sides of the thing flapping against my skin like a flag blowing in the wind. The only way I could get it to stop was to pull the straps up so tight it hurt my face. So.....I don't think this is going to work. Hope they will take it back. Is there something I don't know about adjusting this mask? I couldn't stand the pressure on the bridge of my nose as well as the "flapping." Had to take it off.

Needless to say I have not been getting restfull sleep with the dry mouth problem. No one seems to have an answer for me....

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