Does mouth leak get better over time?

[dbebz]

Hello everyone,

I started my CPAP journey this summer. Started with nasal pillows. Couldn't tolerate trying to breathe through my nose all night and had bad mouth leaks as well, so I switched to a full face mask.

It's been several months now. I've gone from not being able to sleep at all with CPAP (3 hours usage a night but mostly repeatedly waking up), to being able to use it for 6 hours a night. It's hard sometimes, I do get interrupted sleep some days but it's not too bad anymore.

Anyways, I found out I have some sort of breathing problem (getting looked after but looks like i've had undiagnosed asthma). Started using an inhaler and I've been able to breathe better, and even started being able to breathe relaxed through my nose. Last night, I jumped back to the nasal pillows to try them out again. My leaks with the full face are between 0-5 LPM, last night with nasal pillows was 27 LPM. Can this get better over time or is it kind of permanent?

Thanks!

[xdestry]

I am pretty new only been using cpap for about 3 weeks but I have gotten something called somnifix on amazon, they are basically pieces of tape that you put over your mouth to prevent leaks.

[klm49]

Hello everyone,

I started my CPAP journey this summer. Started with nasal pillows. Couldn't tolerate trying to breathe through my nose all night and had bad mouth leaks as well, so I switched to a full face mask.

It's been several months now. I've gone from not being able to sleep at all with CPAP (3 hours usage a night but mostly repeatedly waking up), to being able to use it for 6 hours a night. It's hard sometimes, I do get interrupted sleep some days but it's not too bad anymore.

Anyways, I found out I have some sort of breathing problem (getting looked after but looks like i've had undiagnosed asthma). Started using an inhaler and I've been able to breathe better, and even started being able to breathe relaxed through my nose. Last night, I jumped back to the nasal pillows to try them out again. My leaks with the full face are between 0-5 LPM, last night with nasal pillows was 27 LPM. Can this get better over time or is it kind of permanent?

Thanks!

I've been taping for nearly 5 years. I use 2" wide surgical tape (ebay). I still will mouth breathe if I don't tape. I also have COPD (Emphysema).

[Deborah K.]

Some people find that correct tongue placement helps a lot. You hold your tongue slightly behind your teeth then suck in a little and the top of your tongue will adhere a little to the roof of your mouth. This helps to keep the mouth closed, resulting in less air leak. It's worth a try, as it can become pretty natural after doing it for a number of nights.

Good luck.

[chunkyfrog]

After ten years on cpap, I still mouth breathe a little, but it is not enough for extreme measures.
when I taped, I cut my own chin up strips from 2" painters tape.