One Mask, Two Masks, Three Masks

Hi, I'm a new CPAP user and this question has probably been asked a thousand times but I'm going to ask it again.

I have the Nasal Mask and have been using it for 4 nights. One night it is ok, the next night it is not.
It gives me the feeling that it is closing off one or the other nostril so I have to remove it, blow my nose and put it back on several times.

I want to try the Nasal Pillows hoping that with them being right up to the nostril it will feel better.

Should I stick with the Nasal Mask and I will get used to it?

I'm also worried about if I get a cold and will not be able to use either of these masks and will need the full face one.

I guess my main question is do some people have more than one mask?

Thanks so much!

Yes, I have a full face mask (Resmed Airfit F10) and a Total Face mask (Respironics Total Face Mask). I prefer the Total Face mask, but it is very noisy (the venting) for the wife. The full face is less noisy. One thing I've learned... if the wife is not happy... nobody's happy...

Sheriff

The Baby Crow,

A definite yes to your question.

Since you experiencing the closing off of a nostril, I wonder if you should give the F10 that Sheriff mentioned since you would be able to mouth breath to compensate for that and because you would need a full face mask in case of a cold? Just a thought.

49er

The Baby Crow wrote:Hi, I'm a new CPAP user and this question has probably been asked a thousand times but I'm going to ask it again.

I have the Nasal Mask and have been using it for 4 nights. One night it is ok, the next night it is not.
It gives me the feeling that it is closing off one or the other nostril so I have to remove it, blow my nose and put it back on several times.

I want to try the Nasal Pillows hoping that with them being right up to the nostril it will feel better.

Should I stick with the Nasal Mask and I will get used to it?

I'm also worried about if I get a cold and will not be able to use either of these masks and will need the full face one.

I guess my main question is do some people have more than one mask?

Thanks so much!

Please add your equipment to your profile. See how I did mine as an example.
wiki/index.php/Registering_Equipment_in_User_Profile

I also had some trouble with a nasal cushion mask seeming to cause my nostrils to close off. They would open up pretty much right after I would remove it which point to the cushion pressure on the nose more than an inside the nose issue. So the nasal congestion was a direct result of the pressure of the mask on the nose. If yours clears up pretty quickly when you remove the mask and blow your nose...good chance yours is related to mask pressure.

By all means try a nasal pillow mask if you want to try one. If it's the pressure of the cushion itself causing the congestion the nasal pillows will eliminate that potential issue. If someone wants to try something then they should be able to try it....whatever it is. "Want" is a good reason....if we don't try something we want to try we always wonder "what if"...like what if it would work better? I don't like "what ifs" myself.

While a lot of forum members do have a full face mask handy for the times when they may have cold symptoms including really bad nasal congestion...I would worry about that a little later. For now worry about getting a mask that you can use most of the time.
In over 5 years of cpap therapy and using only nasal pillow masks....I have had a handful of nights with a cold going on and not once have I not been able to get the nasal passages opened up enough to allow me to use my nasal pillows. I don't own a full face mask.
If you want to have a full face mask handy just in case...you can do that but for now work on finding what works for you 99% of the time.

Humidity settings can also affect nasal congestion (assuming it isn't the weight of the mask causing the congestion). Some people need more humidity and some people need less humidity. There is no right or wrong setting that works for everyone. There's just what works for the individual. I do best with lots of added moisture and others do best with minimal to none added moisture. So this is something you have to figure out on your own. I usually tell people if they have nasal congestion issues (not from the weight of the mask) that if they are using a low setting then try higher and if using a higher setting then try lower and if using a middle of the road setting then toss a coin.

Have you tried any form of nasal irrigation?

But I bet the nasal mask is compressing your nose and causing the blockage and that pillows do the opposite, especially at pressures of 10 o more. Love my P10 even when I'm quite congested.

I have an FFM for when I get a real cold but have yet to use it in 3 months.

I tried the humidity setting starting at 4.5 and ending a 0.5 and it made it much worse so I have taken the humidity part right off.

I use a Saline spray on my nose before I use the machine and it does help but still get the feeling of it closing off one nostril depending on which side I'm sleeping on. Not a back sleeper.

I'm going to go tomorrow and get the nasal pillows and see how that works.

Problem being that masks are so expensive here in Canada $330.00 for the full face and $230.00 for the nasal pillows.....I've already paid $275.00 plus our 13% sales tax for the Nasal Mask.

I'm hoping when I get to Florida in October I will be able to buy the full face mask for less (bringing my prescription with me just in case they need it to sell them to me).

I have added my equipment to my profile........couldn't figure out how to do that until your help.

I love this forum!!!

Oh yes, and my pressure right now is 7.0 but I'm going back for my CPAP Sleep Study on September 30th so that may change.

I'm getting AHI's of 5.0 to 8.9 which is much better than the 37 I had before the CPAP!

You might think about trying nasal irrigation in the am and not at bedtime, and maybe corticosteroids. I suspect you may need less humidity (not zero) like me - but as it gets colder and the heating kicks in that may need to go up.

Keep testing - you will get there.

If you want I have an almost unused Breeze you can have for $50 plus shipping, may need different sized pillows (it has small longer ones).

PM me if interested or for nasal rinse info.

Our furnace has been running for over a week now......darn cold up here! ha! ha!

Hence the reason I did put on the humidity feature but it made it worse as I said.

I use the Saline Spray in the am and the pm.

I also have a Neti Pot that I can use.

Going to my doc on Tuesday so I'll ask her about corticosteriods.

So appreciate every's help.

You may have the nasal cycle thing where one side gets congested when laying on our side and usually the side that is "down" gets congested.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasal_cycle
I have noticed it myself but mainly associated with cold symptoms in my case.

If you think you can wait a bit I have a new unused Respironics Nuance Nasal pillow mask you could have for cost of postage and depending on when are are going to Florida...probably about $6 US vs about $15 to Canada.
Would save you a lot of money if you can wait either for me to post it to Canada or your Florida address.
Send me a private message if interested.
I might have a full face mask of some sort also...not sure what has been donated in FFM department.

Once in Florida you can use your RX (yes, be sure to bring it with you) and buy from cpap.com and make use of any mask return insurance for mask purchases. Mask return insurance is either for free (for some masks) or purchased extra and with it you have 30 days to get the mask returned for a full refund if you hate it. Cpap.com will even send you a prepaid shipping label.
It works better for US purchases because of the time it takes to ship to and from Canada really hinders the 30 day thing as the mask has to be back in cpap.com hands by the 30 day from purchase. Also cpap.com can't ship ResMed or Respironics products to Canada but they can ship to Florida with a copy of that Canadian RX.

It is the side that is up that gets congested. That's why I thought it was the mask and not my actual nostril problem.

I won't be in Florida until October and I need this now so I'll just put out the $$ and see how much I can get from our insurance.

I'll get the full mask from Cpap.com for sure! Thanks.

I could see a nasal mask pulling down on the part that goes over your nose on the opposite side when you're sleeping on your side. So that would tend to close off the upper nostril. My mask does that to a degree as well, but the nasal pillow stays in place in my nose, so it isn't a problem. I could make some suggestions:

1. Look at cpap pillows for one that doesn't affect your mask as much, where your mask has less or no pressure on it. Lots of threads about these in this forum, but pillows, like cpap masks are personal. What works for one person might not for the next.

2. Try a larger nose piece on your mask, and see if that works better (if it fits normally without leaking and feels okay).

3. Try re-fitting your mask when you're in bed laying on the pillow the way that you sleep. See if you can see what's happening now that's causing your nostril to get closed off, and if you can make an improvement by readjusting.

I do agree that the best solution is to try a nasal pillow mask, since they tend to open up your nostrils, not close them off when they're properly adjusted. You mentioned cost as a concern, so I thought I might mention some other possibilities. I'm also a side sleeper, and have only used nasal pillow masks, other than to unsuccessfully try nasal masks. I would be looking at the Swift FX and AirFit P10, those both work for me. There are others, though, like the Aloha, Nuance, Pap Tap, and so on. There's a really good chance that this would solve your problem, assuming that nasal pillow masks work for you.

I don't know if cpap.com works for you in Canada, or how payment is rendered for CPAP equipment there, but cpap.com has return insurance. So you can try a mask, and return it in 30 days if it doesn't work for you. It may be that once you've had your sleep study, you can get masks via insurance in Canada? I hope so.

All the above are the best suggestions. I would add to them Aromatherapy. There is one product, sold on cpap.com, Pur-Sleep Sinus Blaster. I swear by this stuff. In the meantime, IN ADDITION to the other suggestions, you can put some scent on a cotton ball & put it near (but not blocking) the air intake area of your machine. I would suggest menthol or eucalyptus scent to try to open that blocked nostril.

I've also used, very occasionally, a very old product, Vicks Inhaler, a small tube you sniff. Now if you use this at all, you need to be very careful with it. DON'T use it on a regular basis, it can become addictive & have a 'backlash' effect which can cause MORE congestion. I've used this for years, very occasionally, to open a stubborn nostril like when I have a cold, or allergy attack. I'm only giving out this tip as a starting point to help while some of the other methods start to work. I do like to keep this on hand, it can be real helpful on the occasions at 2am when a clogged nostril wakes you & you want a 'quick fix'.

I hope this helps.
Jen

When furnaces first turn on, they can spew several months worth of dust and other things out of the ductwork,
which can result in some extra crud coming up our noses. Changing the filter is a good idea--
the furnace filter and the one on your machine.

I also use the Wisp nasal mask. I occasionally feel the mask is blocking one side of my nose. I simply adjust the mask and all is well.
My straps are usually pretty loose, so I can just pull the mask away from my face, reposition it closer to my upper lip and let it settle in.