Can't seem to stop the leaks!

During my first month of APAP my large leaks weren't bad, so I used nasal and pillow masks. However, over the past few weeks they've become such a problem that I have to address them. On a couple of nights I've had leaks that have added up to two hours' worth of large leaks !!! I don't mouth breathe and never have nasal congestion and have woken up a few times with my jaw hanging open, so I believe that jaw dropping is the problem.

I bought a Simplus FFM. I'm not claustrophobic, so no problem there, but I can't seem to get the mask on my face in such a way that it doesn't either leak into my eyes or leak out of the bottom. I'm using a small cushion, so it's not a case where I need a smaller cushion. I did order a mask liner from Pad-A-Cheek and hope that will help.

Last night I got into bed and fought with the FFM for an hour or so. I switched to the P10. I was determined to not have the pressure escape through my mouth, so I used a 1'' piece of tape horizontally from just under my nose to under my chin. It was very secure and did not allow my jaw to drop. When I woke up hours later it was still completely secure.

My data this morning showed a ton of large leaks while my jaw was taped shut. What the....????

What am I doing wrong? Also, how is it that the FFM shows NO large leaks despite the fact that I can't get it to stop leaking?

Thanks for your help and sorry for the rant. I'm in a rancid mood because there's already 60 inches of snow in my yard, Boston's getting another two feet today and my town is in a band that's going to get 30 inches. I'm going to be throwing snow over my head later today. And tonight. And tomorrow morning before I leave for work.

Thanks for all of your help!

Minky wrote:My data this morning showed a ton of large leaks while my jaw was taped shut. What the....????

Nasal pillow movement perhaps?
It does happen. Have you by chance tried a different size nasal pillow to see if one size seems to be more secure than another size?
Just how much leak is a "ton"?

I find that my nasal pillows need to be replaced at least once a month. If I loose track of when I replaced them my leaks let me know. Replace the pillows and leaks disappear. Could that be part of your problem?

Just thought of another possible reason for the leaks. I find the P10 moves around with my movement. The hose tends to tug on the mask. To fix that I place the hose under the covers so it moves with me and not tug against my movement.

Plus there are lots of different FFMs around - look on Cpap.com for options... just because one doesn't fit doesn't mean others won't.