bed pillow question

[mlg123]

Seeking your collective wisdom again,

I've been testing different masks, trying to find "the one!" (singular sensation, every little step she takes...I digress. ) The problem I am having with all of them really lies with my pillow and not with the masks. I have the buckwheat hull pillow that comes highly recommended by several on this forum. In general, I do like the pillow. The problem is once I fall asleep my face rolls into the pillow, and no matter how deep I make the divot for the mask, even if I sleep on the edge of the pillow, the mask eventually makes contact with the pillow as my head drops and rolls and then I get a leak into my eye that wakes me up. SUPER frustrating! I have done lots of research on the forum, but I have not seen this issue come up. Anyone ever had this problem and have a solution to it?

Many thanks

[Julie]

Look up Pap pillow(? .com) or do a forum search - it's designed for masks.

[mlg123]

Hi Julie,

Thanks for your reply. I should add that I've tried the CPAP Contour Pillow too with the same problem. Do you think the PAPillow will be really a different experience from these? I feel like my head will still just roll into the pillow. I guess I'm thinking that I've already invested about $100 in pillows and gotten poor results so I'm a bit reluctant to invest another $50-$60. I'm sorry, I don't like to sound resistant to suggestions. I will definitely invest in the PAPillow if you think it will be better.

-a reluctantly willing CPAP'er

[Julie]

It's got cutouts for the mask... take a look anyhow.

[Sheriff Buford]

I used the Contour pillow for a couple of years. I liked it, except the pillow is wide. To lay on your side, you have to move your head sideways across the pillow to get to the cut-out part. Make sense? I could not do that in my sleep. You also need to be able to get used to the foam-like material. It can be hard. I now use a buckwheat pillow. I also was very hard for me to get used to. I have wanted to use the Contour on occasions, but my daughter took it to Kansas City when she moved there.

Sheriff

[M'ohms]

I had shoulder surgery last year and couldn't tolerate rolling into my pillow like you describe. My shoulder couldn't take the pressure. I bought several travel pillows and neck rolls in various materials to experiment with. What worked for me was to use a flat bed pillow (the one I used was a really old feather pillow) topped with a microbead neck roll. It's short enough for your mask to hang off the end when rolling over without being too small, and it still supports your neck. In my case, I also stuffed a very small microbead neck roll under my chin. This kept me from tucking my chin and dislodging my mask into my eyes while I slept.

Most importantly, I take my larger full size pillow and put it up to my chest and keep it there all night. As you roll over, the pillow prevents you from rolling into the pillow. It also supports your top-side arm. Experiment with your pillow collection until you find the right combination that works and feels comfortable.

Hope this helps!

[glarnold]

I used the contour pillow for years. But always looking for something better. Then I found the buckwheat pillow. Better. Used for several months. You make your hole and sleep in it. Then somebody on this forum recommended a pillow from my pillow.com - Expensive, around a hundred. But you can almost always buy for half price, have to look for a sale or a coupon. At this point, it's the best I've found. It's foam. But it holds its shape, and conforms to your head and mask. If I turn, the hole re shapes, again to my face and mask. If a leak, a slight movement of my head rebuilds the hole and no more leak.

Just my opinion.

[mlg123]

@glarnold - thank you for the tip on the mypillow. I'm reluctant try a different pillow at this time. I like the buckwheat hull pillow a lot except for not yet being able to overcome the mask leaks.

@M'ohms - I did not think at all of using something to keep myself from rolling towards or onto my stomach. Thanks for this suggestion. I will try a regular pillow tonight for this purpose, but I also am considering purchasing a full body pillow that's designed for this purpose.

@Sheriff - I appreciate the encouragement. I removed some hulls last night which seemed to help a bit. I think I had it overstuffed. Still had a fair amount of leaks during the latter half of the night, but the first half of the night was virtually leak free, so...progress!

Love this forum, super helpful.