Aerophagia - How It Was Finally Solved in My Case

For a little over three years I suffered with aerophagia caused by the CPAP pressure leaking into my digestive system. For these three years, I also suffered from sleep deprivation because the aerophagia caused many awakenings and difficulty falling back to sleep.

I tried several solutions with no good results.

In early March of this year I found a solution. Tummy-sleeping using the Falcon position has eliminated nearly 100% of the problem.

Since starting to use the Falcon position in early March, I have experienced a big increase in energy levels, improved memory and concentration, and a desire and confidence to take on more activities. I just this morning did a five-mile trail run with a 1500-foot ascension, on a rugged rocky route, around and over one of our piedmont monadnocks. In February I attempted to walk this route and was unable to finish due to fatigue.

I am very much thankful to Dr. Eric Falcon (pen name) for posting instructions for the Falcon position ( viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36738&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=15 ).

As a bonus, I have found the Falcon position of tummy sleeping is very good for the health of my back.

Thanks again Dr. Falcon.

Additional note (7/23/2009)

And I need to add something to my post about aerophagia and the Falcon position. When I first starting trying to use the Falcon position, I was sleeping directly on a mattress with no pillows. My mask was pressing into the mattress and causing neck pain.

So I imagined if a section of the mattress was cut out just where the mask would rest, things would work fine. Well cutting up the mattress is not too easy, so I did something more practical. I use two standard three-inch soft pillows (synthetic down). One is placed in the normal position. The second pillow is placed about four inches below it. I lie on my tummy with the mask in the gap. The part of my head from my brow up rests on the first pillow. My chest from about the collar bone down to the bottom of the chest rests on the second pillow. You may have to experiment with the pillow position to get it just right for you.

With this arrangement there is no strain on my neck; the exhaust ports of the mask are clear; and there is no pressure on my tummy. And as Dr. Falcon says keeping the leg bent a full 90 degrees helps keep pressure off of the tummy which should help prevent acid reflux.

I suspect that the pillow under my chest helps keep the CPAP pressure from passing through the lower esophogeal sphincter.

If you try the pillows, make sure the second pillow is not under your tummy because this might worsen acid reflux.

Rooster, congrats for the great improvement...from incomplete trail walk to trail run in about 5 months! There's hope for the rest of us if we just have patience and persistence tackling each prob as it arises..y'all inspire me

Thanks for sharing!

rooster,

I'm thrilled to hear of your success with this sleeping position. I'm also grateful for the time you took to write up your experiences. My hope is that others will benefit from what you've shared. Thanks again.

Best regards,

Dr Eric Falcon, MD

Thanks for the post. Im going to try this.

While I am far from being self-diagnosed with Aerophagia, after my first night on CPAP last night I feel really boated and have lots of gas in all directions.

Without this forum it would have taken me months to figure out what was going on. Here I am the morning after and I have a medical term, and a possible solution.

Check out the "Additional Note" about pillows in my original post.

The position that Dr Falcon has recommended is know as the "recovery position" you put a person in that position after you successfully perform CPR on them.
I think the position has been modified slightly over the recent years though

Uncle_Bob wrote:The position that Dr Falcon has recommended is know as the "recovery position" you put a person in that position after you successfully perform CPR on them.
I think the position has been modified slightly over the recent years though

They are not the same. The recovery position is described at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recovery_position .

In the recovery position you are on your side.

In the Falcon position you are on your tummy.

Check it out Bob.

I have read all the posts, including Dr. Falcon's, and still cannot fathom how anyone could
turn the head to the other side. Especially for those of us with degenerative discs in neck. Does not seem possible with a face mask on.

I'm going to give this a try tonight, Thanks so much.

Leonbergergir wrote:I have read all the posts, including Dr. Falcon's, and still cannot fathom how anyone could
turn the head to the other side. Especially for those of us with degenerative discs in neck. Does not seem possible with a face mask on.

What do you mean by "the other side"? You are not thinking about those Exorcist scenes are you?

I don't do that but I do sleep with a full face mask while on my tummy every night. So do many others. But I don't have degenerative discs.

That's really interesting. I get mild aerophagia if I go to sleep on my left side. On my back or the right side, it's fine. When I turn to my left, I immediately begin feeling uncomfortable. Also, this does not seem to be the case later in the night. Weird how everyone's experience is different.

Leonbergergir wrote:I have read all the posts, including Dr. Falcon's, and still cannot fathom how anyone could turn the head to the other side. Especially for those of us with degenerative discs in neck. Does not seem possible with a face mask on.

Leonbergergir,

Hello. Thanks for the good question.

Back when I was using cpap gear, I found two different methods to be able to turn from a left-facing position to a right-facing position while in bed (whether sleeping in the Falcon position, or just using a side-sleeping position).

Both methods I found, of turning from left to right, took time and patience to become accustomed to, and both methods took conscious effort, at first. Later, things became automatic and I could easily turn from a left-facing position to a right-facing position in my sleep, without awakening. I like to have the freedom of facing in either direction when I'm asleep whenever my body feels like it, so it was important to me to condition myself to be able to do this, despite the conscious effort and the awkwardness that it took in the beginning.

a. The first method I which learned, might be preferable for those like yourself with degenerative cervical discs or other conditions of the neck, although it might take more time to condition it and become accustomed to it, compared to the second method which I'll describe later. This first method involves turning the body completely over. I'll describe it here:

When in a left-facing position, in order to turn over to face the other direction with this method, it's necessary to rotate yourself towards the left (so that you go briefly on your back for a second), and then continue turning until you're facing your right, and can go into a right-facing position.

When in a right-facing position, in order to turn over to face the other direction with this method, it's necessary to rotate yourself towards the right (so that you go briefly on your back for a second), and then continue turning until you're facing your left, and can go into a left-facing position.

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b. The second/alternate method which I learned, involved merely turning my head from left-to-right, or right-to-left, while still keeping my torso facing downwards toward the bed (and then adjusting my arms and legs appropriately, to put them into either the right-facing or the left-facing Falcon position, accordingly).

To use this second method, it became necessary to become accustomed to lifting my head and face up off of the bed high enough to allow my CPAP gear to pass under me. (I found that my face mask and hose were flexible enough, to not cause the hose to become kinked in the process of doing this.)

This requires a face mask that has a hose connecter which can swivel and allow rotation (I think that many facemasks have this capability, nowadays). Also, there are times when it may require manual assistance, to help the hose along and get it situated properly. This means adjusting the hose with my hands, to guide it along, during the transition from a left-facing position to a right- facing position.

The length of typical CPAP hoses should allow enough slack and flexibility of the hose for this method of turning to work. Also, it helps to have the CPAP machine on the bedside stand aligned with the head of the bed. [Keeping the CPAP machine aligned lower down than this (i.e., towards the foot of the bed), may not allow this method of turning to work, if the CPAP hose is not sufficiently long enough, since it might not provide sufficient slack and flexibility of the hose for it to work.]

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With practice and conditioning, I found that I was able to become accustomed to being able to switch from a left-facing position to a right-facing position while asleep, using either of the above two methods, without interference to my facemask/ headgear, for a greater degree of variety and comfort during the night.

Also, if I used a pillow underneath my shoulder (see the pictures in the thread posted below), I had to become accustomed to taking the pillow with my hands and moving it into the appropriate position, on the other side.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36738&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=15

At first, I practiced this switching from a left-facing position to a right-facing position several times, consciously, before falling asleep at night for a couple of weeks. Then, my subconscious mind took over and I was able to switch from left-facing to right-facing a few times during the night while asleep, without interruption of my sleep. (It kind of becomes like driving a stick shift car, where after a while you don't have to give conscious attention to all of the movements that are involved, once your mind and body have become conditioned to doing it sufficiently enough.)

I suppose making a video of what I've described above would be a much better way to convey what I'm talking about. I'll try to do this sometime when I have an opportunity!

Best Regards.