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[FLIGHTYONE]

do you use your cpap mchine if you have a stuff nose, ?

when do you know not to use it,?

thanks

[6PtStar]

I do. I use Neil Med Sinus Rinse which usually opens it up and the pressure from nasal prongs usually keeps it open. I do have a full face mask as back-up but have not had to use it a good while. If I get stuffed up bad enough I will go to the ff mask and breath through my mouth.

[FLIGHTYONE]

thanks

i will try that,

i have only been on the cpap for 6 nights and i really dont want to stop,

i am having some problems but for the most part it is GREAT



thanks
again

[Hurricane]

Try whatever meds you can tolerate to unclog your nose congestion, usually i find when doing that, my nostrils stay clear from the air pressure, mine is set at 10 and that seems to keep it open, If you can try staying compliant.
Ed

[Goofproof]

All night every night, I use OTC meds. You are using a nasal mask, you have to make sure you are not mouth breathing, taping your mouth air tight or a Full Face Mask cures that. If you mouthbreath, you aren't getting treatment, even if you go through the motions. Jim

[birdshell]

Too much or too little humidity can cause congestion. You may want to play with your humidifier setting.

Here is what I wrote for another thread called "Stuffy Nose?:


From: viewtopic.php?t=22685

As a fellow stuffy nose sufferer, I might have a couple of suggestions that you would like to try.

First, too much or too little humidity can both cause a stuffy nose, and that has been true for me. In fact, I had set the humidity a bit higher to warm the water when filling it before bed. I then forgot to put it back to the correct setting and had a stuffy nose this morning. That also explains the rainout.

I've had the same thing happen if the humidifier chamber runs (almost) dry overnight. In my humidifier, the warming plate will become dry with a bit of water around it in a sort of moat! So, there is still a bit of passover humidity. Even so, I will be stuffy that morning, too.

Another thing that I do is to use a saline nasal wash (supposedly) twice a day. I more often get in one washing. According to my doctor, the nasal wash cleans the nostrils, and clean nostrils allow the cilia (hairs, basically) to move more freely in order to keep the passages as clean as can be. Obviously, if the movement of the cilia is hampered then they cannot move as much and then cannot perform as well.

There are several ways to do this--I use a needle-free syringe, using 3-10 cc in the syringe for each nostril and sometimes I wash each nostril twice. A child's dosing syringe is ideal, which the Target pharmacists will give to you if you say that you are looking for one but cannot find it. Dosing syringes may also be purchased at many drug stores.

Others use a Neti pot, as shown on Oprah by Dr. Mehmet Oz. There are also some other ways, using an irrigator (is it Dr. Grossan's?) which may be purchased, and an irrigating tip is available for a water pik from the same source. And, an ear/nose bulb irrigator is another way that some favor. I asked my doctor if one was better than another, and he immediately said that it made no difference.

A normal saline solution may sometimes be purchased from a pharmacy, although they may have to order it. I used to use the bottled type, but my doctor prescribed that with 3 low-dose antibiotics included. Now, I make my own fresh daily. There are some products that are to be mixed with water such as SinuRinse and others. Many Forum Folk prefer these, finding them convenient.

I find that making my own normal saline solution is so easy and inexpensive that any other method just seems to be WAYYYY too much trouble. So, here is my recipe, garnered from the University of Michigan pediatrics web site: 1/2 cup of warm water, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, a scant pinch of baking soda, and stir until dissolved. This is enough for me; you may wish to double the recipe if a 1/4 teaspoon is easier to find in your drawer or if using the Neti pot or bulb irrigator. They seem to take more saline.

The last thing that I do is use Flonase. 2 sprays in each nostril twice a day keeps much of the swelling that causes stuffiness down to a minimum. It is ideal to use the nasal wash, blow the nose gently to "dry" it out, and then use the Flonase. Of course, there are other prescription nasal sprays for congestion and swelling. I have had the best results with Flonase, but we are all different. Others prefer a different spray, and we all need to do what works best.

Be careful when using over-the-counter sprays for more than recommended on the label, as there can be a rebound effect. Then you will be stuffier than ever!

I hope that this is helpful. It has been discussed before, so if you use the search function, you may find MORE than you ever wanted to read on the subject!

Best of luck,
Karen

[rested gal]

Flightyone, did they even give you a heated humidifier to use with your cpap machine? If not, ask your doctor for a prescription for heated humidification so the DME will provide you either an integrated heated humidifier for your machine, or (better yet, imho) the separate heated humidifier made by Fisher & Paykel...the HC 150 model.

The separate F&P heated humidifier can be attached to ANY cpap/autopap/bipap machine and works very well. Works better (again, imho) than the integrated humidifiers resmed makes.

[birdshell]

Good point! One cannot adjust a humidifier if one does not HAVE a humidifier.

Hmmmmm, Laura--have my F&P humidifier now but haven't tried it. I'll have to give that a comparison with my Humidaire 3i.

[Guest]

Only time not to use your cpap would be with an inner ear infection.

[papdaddy]

When I have astuffed up nose I use a netti pot. That is a small vessel filled with saline solution. You basically rinse out your sinus cavity. I do this right before bedtime and put my machine on and the pressure is good enough to keep nasal passages opened for the night. They can close back up if you take mask off for a short period . In extreme cases I use Afrin sever congestion nasal spray.(but only in extreme cases). I also have a full face mask as a backup. In almost 6 years of Xpaping I only missed 3 nights due to sickness.

Hope that helps, Rich

[gasp]

[quote="FLIGHTYONE"]do you use your cpap mchine if you have a stuff nose, ?

when do you know not to use it,?

thanks

[FLIGHTYONE]

I went to health source today the place i rented the machine the guy there is so good he is a sleep apena person too and he takes time with everything i have to ask
anyway he said that he doesnt think i am getting the correct pressure and he says to up my humdity,
he called my doctor and ask for a machine the reports my air flow for a week and it will see where and what settings i need
so i guess it takes time for it all to work out, for the most part it is great, i love the machine but i have to figure out what I am doing

this might be a silly question but if i have a stuffy nose how do i know when i am getting enough humidity, i tried the highest setting last night and felt like the hairs were burning in my nose,

[Sleepdeprived]

[quote="FLIGHTYONE"]do you use your cpap mchine if you have a stuff nose, ?

when do you know not to use it,?

thanks

[gasp]

I went to health source today the place i rented the machine the guy there is so good he is a sleep apena person too and he takes time with everything i have to ask
anyway he said that he doesnt think i am getting the correct pressure and he says to up my humdity,
he called my doctor and ask for a machine the reports my air flow for a week and it will see where and what settings i need
so i guess it takes time for it all to work out, for the most part it is great, i love the machine but i have to figure out what I am doing

this might be a silly question but if i have a stuffy nose how do i know when i am getting enough humidity, i tried the highest setting last night and felt like the hairs were burning in my nose,

I live in a humid environment and even a humidifier setting of 1 creates too much moisture in my mask. I use a cover on the hose to help prevent rain out which is water in the hose. Settings should vary machine to machine. So when I say I set mine to 1, if you don't live in the same environment or have a Respironics A-Flex, then it is unlikely you would have near results for the same settings.

When you say stuffy, do you mean dry and stuffy, or mucous-like and stuffy? When I need more humidity, my nose is dry and stuffy - a slight burning sensation. When I have too much humidity, my mask spits water on me.

Try various settings on your humidifier to see where you're most comfortable. Like you said, it does take time to get everything where we feel best.

[ozij]

I went to health source today the place i rented the machine the guy there is so good he is a sleep apena person too and he takes time with everything i have to ask
anyway he said that he doesnt think i am getting the correct pressure and he says to up my humdity,
he called my doctor and ask for a machine the reports my air flow for a week and it will see where and what settings i need
so i guess it takes time for it all to work out, for the most part it is great, i love the machine but i have to figure out what I am doing

this might be a silly question but if i have a stuffy nose how do i know when i am getting enough humidity, i tried the highest setting last night and felt like the hairs were burning in my nose,

I live in a humid environment and even a humidifier setting of 1 creates too much moisture in my mask. I use a cover on the hose to help prevent rain out which is water in the hose. Settings should vary machine to machine. So when I say I set mine to 1, if you don't live in the same environment or have a Respironics A-Flex, then it is unlikely you would have near results for the same settings.

When you say stuffy, do you mean dry and stuffy, or mucous-like and stuffy? When I need more humidity, my nose is dry and stuffy - a slight burning sensation. When I have too much humidity, my mask spits water on me.

Try various settings on your humidifier to see where you're most comfortable. Like you said, it does take time to get everything where we feel best.