Do I need more pressure to sleep better?

[Insomaniac]

My prescribed air pressure is 11. Even though I used a nasal pillow mask during my sleep study, I use the full face mask to sleep because I leak way too much air through my mouth, and it ends up waking me up every time; I also tend to breathe through my mouth. The thing is, I think that that air pressure might be too low for me. I read a study that said that full face masks are not as effective as nasal pillows, so I'm starting to think that the air pressure of 11 I got when using the nasal pillows might be too low for the full face mask. I've been using my full face mask for 5 weeks now, but I haven't had a good night's sleep, and my AHI is less than 2, so I don't think that is a problem.

[LSAT]

If your AHI is <2 I don't think the pressure is whats causing your sleep problems. Higher pressures may cause you more disruptions. .Have you downloaded Sleepyhead? If not...do it and post some charts.

[Tdub210]

That brings up a question I was wondering this morning. What is considered good for your AHI? As in, does >2 mean you're doing fine and dont make adjustments? I stay under 2, but for awhile I was under 1. The last week or so it's been between 1 & 2. Last night 1.9 (though per my wife I was on my back a lot and I know this affects it). I was kind of going by that 2 number myself, but just wondering.

[chunkyfrog]

The pressure is the same for whatever mask you use.
An AHI of under 5 is the "official" line in the sand; but most of us prefer under 2.
Zero is rare, and not necessarily ideal.

[Julie]

The less the better (under 5), but that said, very few of us hit zero at any time, and I doubt if anyone stays there at all, so while no individual number (2.6, 3.1 etc) is significant in itself, if you generally hover at the lowest #'s you're considered to be doing great. However, everyone's different, and if you actually feel better and your numbers otherwise are good at e.g. 3, then getting anxious because you're not at 1.5 etc. is probably a waste of energy. And if you use EPR routinely, your AHI might be a bit higher than it would otherwise. It's about the overall picture, not a specific number. You could have an AHI of 1, but if you don't feel well otherwise, and software says something else is off, you haven't achieved (necessarily) nirvana.

[Wulfman...]

My prescribed air pressure is 11. Even though I used a nasal pillow mask during my sleep study, I use the full face mask to sleep because I leak way too much air through my mouth, and it ends up waking me up every time; I also tend to breathe through my mouth. The thing is, I think that that air pressure might be too low for me. I read a study that said that full face masks are not as effective as nasal pillows, so I'm starting to think that the air pressure of 11 I got when using the nasal pillows might be too low for the full face mask. I've been using my full face mask for 5 weeks now, but I haven't had a good night's sleep, and my AHI is less than 2, so I don't think that is a problem.

The answers to your questions should be evident in your nightly data, interpreted by "Sleepyhead" software.

You also shouldn't believe everything you read in "studies". Everyone is different and far too many times, the studies are skewed toward the outcome the writers intended them to show.

What sleeping position? Sides? Back? Stomach?
Those can make a huge difference, too.

On the other hand, many times the "prescribed" pressure is not necessarily what the real "needed" pressure may be. Sometimes it may be too high and sometimes it may be too low........and sometimes it's pretty close.


Den

.

[englandsf]

FFM masks always make me feel more starved of air, it's a kind of claustrophobia. I has the issue with nasal pillows but used nasal rinses to open up my sinuses and trained myself to position my tongue high and forward to block my mouth breathing and after a couple of weeks it worked. I cannot stand a FFM now but have an Amara View for when I am very congested. It's less overwhelming than my old F10. I prefer my P10 though.