The last "Breeze" mask question I'll ask.

[OldSeaRock]

The Breeze mask is killing me. There is another thread where I described my issues with the mask. The mask works wonders (nose pillow setup) but this last time I got terrible blisters again.

In order for me to get a comfort level adequate for sleep I have to pull the pillows in so tight on my nostrils that my nares rebel.

My question is: Though my nares are small, should I give the extra large pillows a shot before giving this mask back to the DME so they can clean it and give it to the less fortunate?

I've now got the lime green (large) pillows in the mask. Should I fork out the extra dough to try the larger pillows? Does anyone here have experience with this?

In attempts to use this mask I've adjusted and adjusted the mask... it's a nare thing, I'm afraid. Adjusting the headset has not worked - in fact, this last shot was worse than ever.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

The Ultra Mirage is comfortable but very large - too large to read a book while wearing it. If I can't make the breeze work then I'll use the Mirage until I'm able to get another mask via insurance.

[tomjax]

Go back and read my post on adjusting the Breeze.
If you are having to pull the pillows tight, then you are definitely doing something wrong. Virtually no pressure is needed for a seal at the nares.
What is it not donig that you think you need to further tighten it down??

Some just cannot seem to get it down. Please do not give up.

I believe I could talk you thru it-

tomjax

[tomjax]

But if you cannot get it down, I'll buy it at a baragain price.

[rested gal]

I've now got the lime green (large) pillows in the mask. Should I fork out the extra dough to try the larger pillows? Does anyone here have experience with this?

I probably would buy Extra Large (lavender) pillows if I were you. Might be worth a try if you're otherwise happy with the Breeze. I'm a woman with small nares and I use the Large (mint green.)

Worst case scenario, if you shell out more money for Extra Large pillows and they don't relieve the nares problem, there will be plenty of people, I'd think, who'd be happy to buy the "gently used" Extra Large pillows from you at a reduced price...right here on this message board. Many men do seem to use the Extra Large nasal pillows.

One question though, before you spend more money. Do you sleep on your back a good bit of the time? If you're a back sleeper a lot of the time, the Breeze really is not the best interface for that, imho. It's one of my favorite interfaces, but not for back sleeping - headgear tends to tug up at the snout (or conversely push down and leak) when back sleeping...or so I've found to be the case when I've tried that. It's much better for side sleeping exclusively, I think.

[jordiboy]

The Breeze mask is killing me.

Oldsearock,

I had similar problems with the Breeze. I had to adjust the plenum so tightly to avoid leaks that it caused a lot of problems until I subverted some of RG’s ideas.

The alteration was made using Velcro Coins and pantyhose. I placed one coin on the plenum just below the bottom of the exhaust port. Then, place two coins back to back around a narrow strip of pantyhose (I prefer black hose ). Placing the coins back to back will give you a good bond across the hose.

When wearing the Breeze, place the coin from the pantyhose over the coin on the plenum, then tie the pantyhose behind your head. It adds a lot of stability to the Breeze and I do not have to wear the Breeze as tightly as before. This turns the Breeze into a pseudo Adams Circuit, but it is much more comfortable. Tip: place the rough side of the coin on the plenum and the soft side on the pantyhose; this will prevent snagging the rough side on anything with a soft texture. The pantyhose are soft and do not leave any lines on my face.

I am out of town, so I cannot post any pics, but let me know if you are interested and I will post when I get home next weekend.

In case you are not familiar with Velcro Coins.

[capt]

I just got a Breeze last saturday. I knew that most people have to use a larger size pillow than they think they need, so I ordered the Breeze with large and extra large pillows. I immediately started using the extra large pillows and all went fairly good the first night. Then I started having a similar problem that you describe. I discovered that I had two problems. I swithched to the large pillows and made an adjustment and now all is well. I found that I when I would adjust the swivel to set the correct angle, that the pressure exerted by the hose and headgear was not being maintained by the small nut and bolt that is tightened and used to hold it in place through the night. To permanently fix this I used some pipe insulation foam that I cut to length and width with a knife. I then slid it into place at the base of the swivel pivot to hold the angle I needed. I had to use two small pieces the same width as the blue plastic piece. I then stacked one piece of foam on top of the other to get the exact angle I needed. I then taped it into place with electrical tape to secure everything in place.

[ozij]

OldSeaRock,

I agree with all the others - there is no reason to jam the pillows up your nose in a painful way. I did find myself doing that in the very begining - but don't any longer.

Maybe it would help if you started the "anti leak" adjustment with these two thought in mind:

Nothing should push against your nose
Nothing should hurt .

I have recently discovered that for me a sock (cotton, folded it two) between the outrigger (part 8 ) and my head changed the angle of the whole thing in a way that gave relief to my top lip.

By the way, I never thought I had a small nose or nares, yet I (a female) use the medium .
And I find that usually, tieing the straps lower down causes more pressure on my upper lip. I keep them in the clip (part 5) at it's lowest.

Whatever you do - if your nostrils become sore, let them heal before you try again.

And if you're a back sleeper -
O.

[Sleepless on LI]

OSR,

This is exactly why, after trying everything everyone told me to try, I got rid of my Breeze, too. You sound like I did before I got rid of it and went for the Swift. It was the best move I ever made.

Not every mask works for everyone, and the Breeze certainly did not work for me. And it wasn't for lack of trying to make it work. I sent you my link before to my ordeal with all the adjustments, etc. I thought I loved it on day one, too. But after using it and all the difficulties I had, someone wrote that it shouldn't take THIS much tweaking and a mask should basically work out of the box, with a minor amount of fixing.

After bleeding nares, leaks, wobbly headgear and a whole host of other problems which became, in my eyes, insurmountable and not worth all the grief when there were others out there thay may suit me better, I gave it up and am happily a Swift user now. I'm not suggesting you give up, but sometimes it's just not worth all the aggravation and discomfort when you can find something that may actually work better for you.

[rested gal]

heheh, well, just depends on whether the things one likes about an interface are enough to make one pursue tweaks to get the kinks out that we don't like.

Not worth the aggravation to keep working with a mask one likes? Toe bandages to prevent "Swoosh" marks? Rigging to get a hose out front to prevent hose under side of face? Netting inside the cylinder to cut down exhaust noise? (Just thinking of a few things people do to the Swift. )

I do know what you mean, though, Lori. It sure would be nice to find an interface that works straight out of the box. For many, the Breeze does just that. So does the Swift.

But also for "many" of us, any of the nasal pillows interfaces need some tweak fixes, depending on size, shape, usual sleep position, etc., etc.

I do think the Swift works for more people "out of the box" than the Breeze. But, boy, when the Breeze does suit someone "as is" or with minimal tweaks, and that person is primarily a side sleeper, the Breeze is wonderful, imho.

Aura is still my favorite, night after night after night. What's left of it, that is.

[Sleepless on LI]

Aura is still my favorite, night after night after night. What's left of it, that is.

Just had a discussion with Ozij about that when I mentioned it was your favorite, if not one of them, even at the cost of reconstructing it. I was about to try the Aura this morning and order it and then this site said, according to the fitting guide, it wasn't for me, but the Breeze was (so much for the fitting guide)!!! Then the insurance carrier's DME said they don't carry it...just seemed like someone was trying to tell me something. So for now, I gave up on the idea.

I agree with you that any interface that we like is worth the tweaking TO A CERTAIN DEGREE. And I loved the Breeze out of the box, but it got progressively more troublesome, not only as far as comfort but painful, bleeding nare sores, etc., as each night passed. There has to come a time when we say, "Okay. This isn't the right interface for me. I tried, but it really isn't working, it's getting worse, and it's not worth spending the next two months to MAYBE get it to work," especially when there are so many other options out there to try. If it was the last resort, yes, I can see trying forever.

I don't think I made the wrong decision to give it up and get the Swift. For me, it worked. And so far, minus having to fix a broken tube, the only tweaking to the Swift I've had to do is make something for the straps to eliminate the swoosh lines. I don't find it excessively noisy, as do other users. The Breeze, I agree, would have been a beautiful thing in theory for a side sleeper if it didn't cause me as much grief as it did. I just think we need to keep in mind that there are other options out there that can work and spending weeks upon weeks to get one particular one to work may not be worth all the effort we put into it in the end.

[ozij]

Lori,
I know you find this difficult to believe, but I swear: the Breeze wasn't out to get you.

Let go of that vendetta against it... You're going to frighten off people who might benefit from it.



O.

[Sleepless on LI]

Lori,
I know you find this difficult to believe, but I swear: the Breeze wasn't out to get you.

Let go of that vendetta against it... You're going to frighten off people who might benefit from it.

O.

Holy cow, Ozij. I hope I didn't come off like that . That is the last thing I was trying to do. It just didn't work out for the old Breeze and me. I know how many people on this site love it and I would never try to discourage anyone from trying something just because it didn't work out for me, especially with my luck with masks so far. Forgive me if I sounded like a scorned lover...I assure you, it's not a vendetta.
I even posted a photo of my face the other night since I think it could perhaps be a problem with the contours of my facial features. I'll repost it. You tell me...

[rock and roll]

WOW! WHAT A BEAUTY! JUST AS I PICTURED YOU!

[rested gal]

ROTFL!! Lori, you have a great sense of humor!

[tomjax]

I think I better understand your difficulty after posting your picture.

I can imagine other things are a bit problematic.
A relationship is one that comes to mind first.

The next would be problems encountered with your optician.
It may just be that contact lens are a better option than regular glasses.

I will never again criticize your inability to adjust your breeze.
But I also think you are a bit critical when it seems to work for the great majority of users.
thought for the day (2)

What if the hokey pokey really IS what it's all about?