Dear Rested Gal

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
BrewSwain
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Dear Rested Gal

Post by BrewSwain » Thu Jul 28, 2005 9:46 pm

I made a Boil and Bite like the one you directed us to by frequenseeker. I tried to sleep with it at nite but was uneasy. The next day I took a nap and it went OK. So I tried again at nite. It seems to case a LOT of saliva and I fear that I will choke. Next day, I took a nap with it and was abruptly awakened feeling that I was drowning in saliva. Do you have any suggestions? I have a moustache, so tape is not an option. I wear a chinstrap but have puffcheeks and lipflap. I wear my cpap faithfully all nite every nite. I believe it is the solution but until I stop air escaping from my mouth, I am not getting the benefit of the CPAP. I am considering Dr Sues device but wonder if failure to be able to swallow saliva while asleep may still be the problem. Thank you


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rested gal
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Post by rested gal » Thu Jul 28, 2005 10:23 pm

Hi Brew,

I wish I had some suggestions, but I don't. I've tried some rather risky things that worked for me, including a big patch of Nexcare bandaids INSIDE my mouth between teeth/gums and lips - to act as a dam. Talk about wondering the first night or two if I might choke should something like that get sucked down the windpipe! LOL!

If the DYI was working well in every way except causing excess saliva I guess I'd be tempted (lab rat that I am!) to try letting a strip of cloth or something dangle out of my mouth in hopes of wicking the saliva out onto a towel. . I'd hope that would get me by until I'd finally gotten used to the device after enough nights that maybe the saliva production would abate.

I know what you mean - it usually gives me a few minutes of excess saliva, but not to the extent of feeling like I was choking on it. For me, at least, it doesn't seem to keep doing that as the night progresses.

The doctor in Hawaii's device would probably do the same thing to you, is my guess. Maybe you'd get used to it and salivate less over time. Dunno.

We inveterate mouth air leakers really do have an uphill battle getting that particular piece of the treatment puzzle in place. Good luck!!

BrewSwain
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Post by BrewSwain » Thu Jul 28, 2005 10:43 pm

I am very new to this so I dont know if this may have been pondered and rejected, but what about forcing air down our throats and blocking the nose?

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rested gal
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Post by rested gal » Thu Jul 28, 2005 11:22 pm

Brew, I guess the closest thing to what you have in mind (breathing through the mouth and plugging the nostrils) would be the Oracle oral mask by Fisher and Paykel.

The Oracle causes a massive amount of salivation, however, for most people according to what I've read.

I tried using an Oracle quite a few times. Plugging the nose effectively, yet comfortably enough to sleep, was too difficult for me. Doesn't seem to suit many, but I've read of a few that got along with the Oracle ok. Can make for a very dry mouth, as well as a lot of salivation. Sounds contradictory, but that's the way it goes.

Have you tried a ResMed Ultra Mirage FF (full face) mask yet? It's one of the more comfortable full face masks. Despite the name, it covers just the nose and mouth, not the entire face.

A full face mask allows you to mouth breathe if necessary, and contains mouth air leaks.

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WillSucceed
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Post by WillSucceed » Fri Jul 29, 2005 5:22 am

It seems to case a LOT of saliva and I fear that I will choke
I think that this is an artifact of having something in your mouth that you are not used to. When I first started using a bite-guard to prevent bruxism, I had gallons of saliva. I got used to the bite-guard and the over salivation stopped.

Could you tough it out a while longer and see if you get used to it, hoping that the over-salivation goes away?

Good luck!

Buy a new hat, drink a good wine, treat yourself, and someone you love, to a new bauble, live while you are alive... you never know when the mid-town bus is going to have your name written across its front bumper!

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Post by Sleepless on LI » Fri Jul 29, 2005 7:42 am

Brew,
My advice is NOT to use the Oracle. That was my first mask and I got it since a friend of mine swore it was the best thing she'd ever used. However, she only used it, I found out, for about two weeks during her surgery. I found it impossible to get used to. Not only did it cause TMJ in the left side of my jaw, it made my mouth and lips so irritated that they got sores and every night felt like it was going to just POP out of my mouth. And it also creates pressure in your nose so that you get nose pops. I even tried the plugs that come with it for your nose and they popped out!!! It was not a pleasant experience.
Are you adverse to a full face mask? I would think that would be your solution if you can't keep your mouth from opening during the night. There are supposedly many great ones out there. Do a search on ff masks and see what the opinions are. I am unsure what mask you are using now.
One of the members told me in the beginning, when I switched to the Activa nasal mask, to put my tongue up against the back of my top front teeth and try to get used to keeping it there. Even if you open your mouth with your tongue in that position, you won't lose the pressure. It truly works. After awhile, I got used to not mouth breathing or opening my mouth. Occasionally I do. But like the DME said, so what is the worst thing that happens if you open your mouth? You wake up from the noise it will create and then you close your mouth and go back to sleep. But if you get lucky like I did, you will get used to keeping your mouth shut or your tongue in that position so it won't affect your pressure even if you do open your mouth.
Food for thought, I hope...

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ozij
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Post by ozij » Fri Jul 29, 2005 10:44 am

so what is the worst thing that happens if you open your mouth?
Well, the worst thing that happened to me was that me toungue cleaved to the roof of my mouth (...) And let me tell you - that is one unpleasant experience. Those guys in the bible sure knew what they were speaking about.
Can you imagine feeling that you're pulling off a band-aid from you skin, only its your dry tongue trying to disconnect from the roof of you mouth?

There are worse things in life - but you DME definitely did not experience that.

O.


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Sleepless on LI
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Post by Sleepless on LI » Fri Jul 29, 2005 11:03 am

Ozij, I am not following. Do you mean your tongue got stuck to the roof of your mouth? Please tell me that didn't happen. Sounds like you went through a horror. I think I need to look up the word "cleave." brb

Cleave:
1. To split with or as if with a sharp instrument.
2. To make or accomplish by or as if by cutting: cleave a path through the ice.
3. To pierce or penetrate: The wings cleaved the foggy air.


Are you kidding me? Your tongue split in half??? Why did that happen? Was it ever explained to you? Poor, poor Ozij!!! Details, please!!!
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ozij
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Post by ozij » Fri Jul 29, 2005 11:36 am

Yes, it got stuck to the roof of my mouth.

I think I got the biblical expression in English right: "If I forget thee, oh Jerusalem, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth..."

In my "Readers Digest Great Encyclpedic Dictionary" "cleave (with to)has a second meaning, just undreneath the first "cleave") :
1. To stick fast; adhere
2. To be faithful.

The Hebrew original is "let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth" (I should know, Hebrew is my mother ...err... tongue... no pun inteneded)

So here I am, living in Jerusalem and twice my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth. Not split.

O.

_________________
Mask: AirFit™ P10 Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Machine: Resmed AirSense10 for Her with Climateline heated hose ; alternating masks.
And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Good advice is compromised by missing data
Forum member Dog Slobber Nov. 2023

Sleepless on LI
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Post by Sleepless on LI » Fri Jul 29, 2005 12:29 pm

O:
In either case, OW!!!! How awful. How did they explain that happening? Did your tongue have a muscle spasm or did it dry out from having your mouth open and adhere to the roof of your mouth? How on earth did you get it off, like you said ripping a band aid off? I can't even think about it, let alone imagine going through it.
So, needless to say, you must be doing something now to keep your mouth closed during sleep. Do you use a chin strap or tape or what? I'm sure you don't rely on being able to keep it shut on its own. If I were you, I certainly wouldn't. What a story!!!
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Wulfman
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Post by Wulfman » Fri Jul 29, 2005 1:18 pm

Ozij,

I can relate. In the months preceeding my CPAP therapy there were a few occasions when I would wake up with that situation.....temporarily at least. It's definitely an odd feeling. I must have been mouth-breathing and some heavy duty snoring.

"Cleave", huh?

Is it Hebrew or Yiddish?.......or both?

Have a good one.

Den

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ozij
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Post by ozij » Fri Jul 29, 2005 1:21 pm

It stuck because it was dry, and moving it the way you do when you wake up and feel something strange, unstuck it - but it was not pleasant. The second time I sensed it, I told myself no- don't move it, drink first - and that helped.

Actually, I do rely on myself to keep my mouth closed (no tape or strap) - it's rare for me to drop it open. I did start thinking of the mouth guard, but things sorted themselves out. If I remember correctly, the weather in Jerusalem was very dry that night - which probably contributed to that extreme dryness - and I might have forgotten to turn on the humidifier... I'm much more careful to check for the green light since.

You tongue dry and stuck to the roof of you mouth is not such a rare experience - I mean, I've read of others having it.

O.


_________________
Mask: AirFit™ P10 Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Machine: Resmed AirSense10 for Her with Climateline heated hose ; alternating masks.
And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Good advice is compromised by missing data
Forum member Dog Slobber Nov. 2023

Guest

Post by Guest » Sat Jul 30, 2005 8:55 pm

I kept the DIY in all nite last nite with only one time when air escaped my mouth and I didnt drown. Thanks for the encouragement.
OZIJ, I would like to talk to you about things that are not related to CPAP. Would you like to exchange emails?
Rested Gal, BrewSwain= Bruce Wayne, aint I cute? lol


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ozij
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For Bruce

Post by ozij » Sat Jul 30, 2005 10:55 pm

Hi Bruce
I sent you a PM (private message - the pm box is on the top right of your screen)
O.

_________________
Mask: AirFit™ P10 Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Machine: Resmed AirSense10 for Her with Climateline heated hose ; alternating masks.
And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Good advice is compromised by missing data
Forum member Dog Slobber Nov. 2023