Tap Pap Nasal Pillow Mask with Improved Stability Mouthpiece

Hi, I'm considering the Tap Pap Nasal Pillow Mask and see a couple of comments on the forum with the latest in 2014. Are there any more recent comments anyone might have? I've tried five masks so far and seven months later, I'm still miserable. I've used nasal pillows and probably prefer them to the nasal mask and definitely to the full mask. I also tried DreamWear. I seem to wake up a lot adjusting the mask, scratching my nose, trying to alleviate air blowing, etc. I'm apparently super sensitive and may not be able to handle a mouthpiece. I get good AHI readings (.2 with nasal pillows), just a lot of discomfort. Any feedback is most welcome.

Thanks!

Sallypost wrote:I get good AHI readings (.2 with nasal pillows), just a lot of discomfort.

My suggestion is to register and fill out your equipment profile - https://www.cpaptalk.com/ucp.php?i=prof ... pment_info

Then start a new thread with subject, "Discomfort with Nasal Pillows".

There are many people here who have gone through this and can give you lots of advice on how to solve the discomfort problem.

Your AHI is so low, I hate to see you chasing non-conventional solutions. Let's first try to solve the problem at hand.

Sallypost wrote: I'm apparently super sensitive

Many of us are and can help you deal with it.

Sallypost wrote:Hi, I'm considering the Tap Pap Nasal Pillow Mask and see a couple of comments on the forum with the latest in 2014. Are there any more recent comments anyone might have? I've tried five masks so far and seven months later, I'm still miserable. I've used nasal pillows and probably prefer them to the nasal mask and definitely to the full mask. I also tried DreamWear. I seem to wake up a lot adjusting the mask, scratching my nose, trying to alleviate air blowing, etc. I'm apparently super sensitive and may not be able to handle a mouthpiece. I get good AHI readings (.2 with nasal pillows), just a lot of discomfort. Any feedback is most welcome.

Thanks!

i tried the tap pap. but because i don't have an even bite, i could never get the danged thing to adjust up snugly. had to end up sending it back.

I used the Tap Pap for well over a year. Had great success with it. Only gave it up when the P10 was released and the lure of the latest and greatest bit me and made the change.
The mouth guard is probably the weirdest thing about it and for someone who had never used any sort of oral appliance for any reason I found the mouth guard not a huge problem but it did take some getting used to. It did cause some initial tooth discomfort which wasn't huge and did fade away after a couple of weeks.

There's no way for anyone to know how you will do with it. Every mask out there is going to have lovers and haters...it's just the life of a mask and you won't/can't know how you will do unless you try it.

Thanks so much for the replies. I see a few of you who replied use the P10. I've used it quite a bit in addition to DreamWear and Swift FX. Dreamwear was okay except for the leaking and sound and the seal isn't as good as with nasal pillows. I like the air that comes with nasal pillows, but I felt like I was smothering with the Swift FX. I like nasal pillows themselves for the seal. Often the pressure of the headgear though pulls my nose toward my face and makes my nose itch so badly (I've always had an itchy nose at the dentist, in the pool, etc.). It is the headgear I find I can't get used to. I hoped I'd get beyond the distaste for the straps on my face. I wake up so many times during the night, then give up and yank it off. All my CPAP supplier can suggest is asking my doctor for sleeping pills. I'm not willing to take prescription medicine for this. I do take Melatonin each night though. I see Medicare won't cover the Tap Pap mask, which is fine if it works. I've tried extremely hard to make the masks I've tried work. I've worn one of them every night since Dec., never skipping a night. I average 4.3 hours a night with one night at 7 hours and the next night only 1 hour with the same mask. Feel like I am treading water and getting sleepier and sleepier. Oddly, I didn't feel sleepy during the day until I started CPAP, but I do now. I've also started reading a lot of the posts here on other headgear issues. After 7 months, I'm getting discouraged. Thanks to everyone for listening and your many posts.

Sallypost wrote: I see Medicare won't cover the Tap Pap mask,

Where did you get that idea? Medicare pays for a nasal pillow mask...doesn't matter the model and pays by HCPCS billing code. Medicare will indeed pay for the Tap Pap mask...now some DMEs elect to not stock it and will blame Medicare but that's simply not the truth.

Are you aware that it comes with free return insurance from cpap.com?
If you do buy it yourself you have 30 days to get it back to cpap.com and they will refund your money...plus they even email a prepaid shipping label you can use for the return.

Sallypost wrote: Often the pressure of the headgear though pulls my nose toward my face

That's what we call "piggy nose" and that means the straps are too tight.
I have tried pretty much all the nasal pillows out there just because I like to try new stuff. The reason I switched from the Tap Pap to the P10 was the minimal headgear of the P10...that and at the time I was trying the newly released P10 I had a bad molar (old crown that had to be redone) and while the mouth guard didn't touch it directly my whole mouth was a bit sore from all the dental work (root canal and all that) so I sort of got used to having nothing in my mouth again.

I woke up this morning and saw the small dents on my cheeks from the straps of the P10...I get dents easy...and the thought of the Tap Pap and no headgear at all did pass through my mind. I may be digging it out soon and giving it another go. I wasn't unhappy with it...just at the time the mouth guard was a bit much though no fault of the guard itself. Just my old teeth.

I've been using a TAP PAP mask for a couple of months now, and can't wait to get back to my Swift FX *smile*. I've been using the Swift FX for years with no problems, but for some reason I had a period of time where I wore it too tight and got an abrasion on the outside side of nose at the bottom. Never happened before, with either the Swift FX or the AirFit P10. I tried a number of different strategies and masks, even the F10 full face mask, that have either not worked for me, or if they worked they aggravated that sore. So I sort of fell into the TAP PAP because it has nasal pillows and no headgear. The sore is getting a lot better, but it can't heal quickly enough for me. I wake up too early with the TAP PAP with the mouthpiece, and have to take it off to get back to sleep. Often I can't get back to sleep...I find it annoying and miserable, you may not. Some people really like it, some people, like me, can't stand it *smile*. Leakage is low, I'll say that for it. But I just haven't been getting enough sleep while using it.

So as soon as I can, I'll go back to the Swift FX. Right now, my Swift FX has a barrel cozy on it with the padding around the nasal pillows as narrow as I can make it. That was one of the adaptations I tried to still be able to use the FX but allow the sore to heal as well. Didn't work, but once it's healed I'll keep the padding on the mask to help transition back to it.

It is great to hear some experiences. I'm still considering it while trying to build time with the P10. I'm not sure I'd say I have "piggy nose" with it as the straps are fairly loose now and not adjustable. My nose does itch quite a bit and wakes me up frequently. Oh, Medicare told me they would not cover Tap Pap since I live in a "competitive" market. They provide lists of other approved companies, but I haven't been able to find one that carries it. I'd prefer it to be covered by Medicare, but I wouldn't let that stop me from purchasing it. Still thinking. What comes to mind though was not being able to tolerate a mouth guard my dentist gave me years ago. It is hard to say which will be worse for me -- the sensation I find hard to bear with a strap on my face or a mouthpiece which may also be hard to sleep through. Again, thanks so much for your input.

Sallypost wrote:It is great to hear some experiences. I'm still considering it while trying to build time with the P10. I'm not sure I'd say I have "piggy nose" with it as the straps are fairly loose now and not adjustable. My nose does itch quite a bit and wakes me up frequently. Oh, Medicare told me they would not cover Tap Pap since I live in a "competitive" market. They provide lists of other approved companies, but I haven't been able to find one that carries it. I'd prefer it to be covered by Medicare, but I wouldn't let that stop me from purchasing it. Still thinking. What comes to mind though was not being able to tolerate a mouth guard my dentist gave me years ago. It is hard to say which will be worse for me -- the sensation I find hard to bear with a strap on my face or a mouthpiece which may also be hard to sleep through. Again, thanks so much for your input.

It's actually more challenging than just a mouthguard. It's a mouthguard with a handle that goes through your lips outside of your mouth and puts leverage on your upper teeth in certain positions, or can make your drool, depending on your personal salivary tendencies *smile*.

Like I said, can't wait to get away from it, love taking it out in the morning. You may like it, but if you had a problem with a mouthguard, that's not a good sign.

Ah...the competitive bidding thing and the DMEs available not stocking that mask.
Medicare would pay for it if they stocked it but they don't stock it and won't special order it because if they special order it they won't make any money on it with what Medicare will pay. It's too much of a specialty item for DMEs to want to stock in on their shelves.

I had a similar situation with my DME. He flat out told me that they would have to pay what I pay (if I bought online) if they special ordered it and that just didn't leave enough room for much profit.
As much as he loved me he couldn't/wouldn't do it.

I will be honest....the mouth piece is going to be the biggest hurdle but if you can get past it...it's a really nice mask. It took me about 2 weeks to get totally comfortable with the mouth guard and by a month I would wake up and not even notice it at all. Took me a while to get to that point though and not everyone can get to that point.
You won't know unless you try...it's a gamble but at least if it doesn't work out you can use the free return insurance available and get your money back.

I have been using the TAP PAP for a couple of years now. Once I got used to it, I loved it. I am allergic to silicone - it causes a red, bumpy, PAINFUL, itchy rash wherever the silicone comes in contact with my skin. All the other masks that I tried caused so much itching that I was constantly waking up to scratch and reposition the mask. After two nights with a traditional nasal mask, I would not only wake up exhausted from lack of sleep, but I would have the bright, bumpy red rash in a triangle shape on my face! With the TAP PAP, the only silicone touching my face are the nasal pillows, and if they cause any itching, I put some Vaseline on my nostrils before I go to bed and that does the trick. With the traditional nasal mask, the weight of the hose would always drag the mask, breaking the seal. I don't have that problem with the TAP PAP, and with the "bite guard" type mouthpiece, NO headgear is needed. I do drool some, but I sleep through it so I really don't care. I would give give the TAP PAP a try. What have you got to lose?