Masks for the petite woman- anyone?

[ciounoi]

Hi-

I'm shopping for my first mask online, without the benefit of insurance. I'm petite (5 feet) and have a small face (sometimes where kids' eyeglasses!), and was wondering if anyone could suggest a good bet for a mask. My measurements as per cpap.com's sizing guide are the following:

Distance from eye line to base of nose- 1 and 3/8 inch
Distance from eye line to the tip of nose- 1 and 5/8 inch
Width from end of nostril to end of nostril- 1 and 1/4 inch
Depth of nose- 1 and 3/8 inch
Length from eye line to the midpoint between lower lip and bottom of chin- 3 and 3/4 inch

*edit* I sleep with my mouth WIDE OPEN. It's annoying. At the sleep center, however, I slept pretty well with a nasal mask and chin straps.


Thanks!

[Babette]

Well, it's going to vary quite a bit from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Atruvirgo here has been through about 27 zillion masks - and she's quite petite - maybe she will weigh in on her experiences.

I can still send you a Nasal Aire II to test drive. The Trial comes in all 6 sizes, so you can really see whether it will work for you or not.

Cheers,
Babs

[jimbassett]

I have a new nasal mask I will give you for the freight. It is very petite and I could not even get it over my big honker. PM me if you want it. jim

[SplashMom]

Although I am overweight, I have a petite frame and a small face and very small nose. I am fairly new to the cpap thing (started last month) and am already on my third mask. I just got a new one yesterday ... the ResMed Mirage Quattro (size small). Previous to that, I had the Respironics ComfortGel Nasal Mask (Petite) and the ResMed Mirage Liberty full face mask with nasal pillows (small). I slept with the Quattro mask on last night for a total of 5 hours which is great considering I had never slept more than three hours with either of the previous two masks. I, too, slept with the nasal mask and chin strap at the sleep center because I am claustrophobic and just didn't think I could do the full face mask. I've come to realize that I really am quite a mouth breather. My nose and nostrils are very small and I just don't feel I get enough air in through my nose only. I wish the Mirage Liberty had worked, but the smallest nasal pillows they had were small and they were still too big for me. Good luck with finding the right mask for you ... I have found it to be a quite a chore, but I'm going to hang in there. You do the same!

[Babette]

Ahem... SplashMom, might you be inclined to sell your unwanted masks? Might be a buyer here.

Don't forget about http://www.cpapauction.com, as well.

Jim - YEE HAW! Gold star!

Huggers,
Babs

[Slinky]

Full Face Mask: Resmed Mirage Quatttro XSmall
Nasal Cushion Mask: Simplicity Petite and Resmed Mirage Micro Small
Nasal Pillows: ComfortLite 2 (comes w/2 sizes nasal pillows & two sizes simple nasal cushions - M & S)

[SplashMom]

Hey there, Babs. I still have the ComfortGel Nasal Mask, but I traded the Mirage Liberty FF Mask in for the Quattro. I am very fortunate in that my insurance has covered everything for me except a $20 co-pay, so I don't know that anything is really mine to sell. How does that work ... any idea? I just don't want to be an insurance cheater.

[Babette]

Um, it's yours to sell. You're not cheating the insurance. You pay premiums, you get benefits. They will not repossess your cpap machine nor mask once they've paid for them.

Your DME on the other hand...

LOL,
Babs