What the 'flip' is going on?

[Abbi-Normal]

Hey everyone! I haven't posted in a while but I read the board 'almost' daily and want to thank you all for the input and valuable information you provide.

It will be my one year anniversary next month! WOW, a year! When I started this crazy journey I didn't realize it would be an extended trip ... with stops at hell and heaven! I have lost count on how many masks I've tried but I really wish that I had kept a journal ... so 'newbies' keep a journal!

I was 100% compliant with my therapy until last November ... which is when I became so frustrated with the leaks that I said to hell with it all ... so I then went a few days without therapy. Whoa .... what a difference .... I immediately went back to getting up in the morning and not knowing whether I had ever gone to sleep, yawning during the day and worst of all not having the energy and stamina that I have SO enjoyed since starting therapy.

So ........... I am totally convinced that I NEED this therapy, and totally convinced that it WORKS ... so I decided to 'suck-it-up' and start being 100% compliant and ... once again ... I immediately felt better!

I now have a 'new' problem and before anyone suggests I read the history or do a search ... I have ... and I still don't 'get it'.

I now sneeze, am congested and have a runny nose whenever I use my machine. Remember .... I became 100% compliant again and things were o.k. ... for over a month, but for the last 4 weeks I wake up in the middle of the night sneezing non-stop and in the mornings I sound like Elmer Fudd because I am so plugged up and I blow my nose constantly. Now my nose isn't red or irritated which is what I would expect if I were allergic to the silicone .... but I have resorted to washing the mask and hose every damn day and have always washed the water reservoir daily.

So, I take an allergy pill in the mornings and within an hour the symptoms are gone. What the flip am I allergic to?

One night last week ... and again two nights ago ... I was a very very bad girl and didn't use my machine and .... I had NO 'allergy' symptoms the next day. That is just too weird because I used the machine the following days and BAMMMM, the symptoms are there!

Can anyone offer suggestions, psychiatric referrals, sound advice or flip remarks? I am open to anything

[Outlawswife47]

I don't know what you'd be allergic to except maybe the soap you're washing it with?????? Try a different soap and REALLY use a lot of vinegar to rinse it with. If that fails, or you've used the vinegar already, then OMIT the vinegar. Long story shortened....I had my ears pierced 3 times....I let them grow back because of rashes, etc. even though I was using good quality earrings. Finally on 4th try, I figured it out. I was allergic to the alcohol and products they were having me use to AVOID the rashes!!!!!!!

You also might try taking the allergy pills at night....to see if that stops the problems.

good luck!

[nate fry]

If I had to guess I would say you have bacteria or mold in the mask, tube, machine. Maybe some lysol threw it and let run to dry out. Just an idea.

[cflame1]

When's the last time that you changed/cleaned your filters?

[SnowySaint]

Try a night of each:
Humid on normal setting- minus the water.
No humid, no water.

You could be getting congested because there is too much moisture.

[Raj]

I think it's important to understand something basic about the nature of an allergic response: the major symptoms -- heavily running nose, constant sneezing, etc. -- are rarely due directly to any allergen. What happens is that the allergen causes a slight swelling in the nose and the body releases a tsunami of histamine in an effort to rid itself of the swelling, which it interprets as a foreign body. Anti-allergenic medicine, as apart from antihistamines or decongestants, functions to minimize the initial reaction and thus avoid the consequences.

I suspect that simply using xPAP even if the equipment is perfectly clean can trigger that initial swelling in several ways. For those of us who use nasal pillows or prongs, nasal contact with even something as neutral as silicone might cause that slight swelling; and likewise the action of forcing air through the nasal passages, particularly if exhalation relief is being applied, which will create something of an uneven pulse of pressure. And although you never experienced this problem before, allergic sensitivities can arise at any time and are more likely to appear after being exposed to a potential allergen, then avoiding it for a time, then resuming exposure.

So is it hopeless? I don't think so. Assuming your equipment is clean, I'd suggest two courses of action. First, reduce any shock to your nasal passages by learning what humidifier setting works best for you, which means experimenting. Some people do best with very low levels of xPAP humidity, while others, like me, will have allergy-type problems without fairly high levels -- this may be seasonal. Second, desensitize for a limited period of time by using a cromolyn sodium spray (such as NasalCrom) or a cortisone nasal inhaler. During this time, continue using your anti-allergy pills because it can take four or five days before desensitization occurs.

I hope you can get this problem resolved because I know from experience it's miserable.

[jnk]

I agree with the other posters that getting the humidifier setting right (maybe more, maybe less) can make a big difference, and the right setting can change with the seasons.

Also, using a nasal rinse to clear the allergens out of the nasal passages every night before bed can help.

Similarly, since allergens can build up on hair and skin during the day and then, in turn, build up on pillow cases and night clothes for extra nighttime exposure, it can help to shower at night, to wrap your hair, and perhaps in your case wash the mask straps or any hose covers, etc, to be sure no allergens have built up on them.

[Outlawswife47]

Just an added note....regarding the humidifier. We live in the high desert - no humidity to speak of (DRY DRY DRY!)...so my setting is high. When we go visit family in the vally where humidity is high, I have to lower the setting.....So just because today it's set at 3 doesn't mean that's what you need tomorrow. I have a humidity "thing" like a thermometer, that I keep next to my bed....so it can tell me what's going on and what I need.

[Abbi-Normal]

Thanks for the advice and suggestions.

I took an allergy pill last night and slept great but as soon as I got up I developed nasal congestion, sneezing and watery eyes. I have not changed brands of soap and I rinse the equipment to the point of ridiculousness ... I've also cleaned the equipment in vinegar and have soaked the reservoir in clorox and cleaned the filter regularly.

I wash my face-paste off every night and pile my gorgeous red locks on top of my head, but .... I haven't tried changing my pillow case every night so I could give that a try. I lowered the humidity setting many months ago because of rain-out but will play around with it and see if a different setting will help. We also live in high dry country and even with over a foot of snow on the ground it's still really dry. I have never used the nasal sprays so will also pursue that route.

Thanks again for the help, I really appreciate it.

[Debjax]

but as soon as I got up I developed nasal congestion, sneezing and watery eyes. I

You were fine while sleeping with the machine on, did not congest until you got up? Are you sure it is the machine and not something else in your environment? Seems to me, if it was the machine, you would have congested as soon as that pill wore off.

[jnk]

Two female coworkers of mine used to wake up in the mornings with their eyes very nearly swollen shut during pollen season, but they were then able to fix that by wearing something over their hair on the nights they didn't wash their hair. The thing about hair is that it is a great allergen collector that we then smear on our pillowcase every night to wallow in. So putting something over the hair to keep the allergens from getting on the pillowcase may be as effective as changing the pillowcase.

[Babette]

My 5 cents worth:

1) Change/wash your filters.
2) Adjust your Heated Humidifier - either up or down, depending on where you are now. I require more heat in the winter, or I get all dried out and get sore throats, irritated nose, etc.
3) Wash your mask - with something else other than what you've been using.
4) Try another mask - I'm still running the Nasal Aire II Test Drive, and there are several other mask test drives now - see the link below in my signature block.
5) Look into seeing an Allergist.

Cheers,
Barbara

[Abbi-Normal]

The allergy pill is suppose to work for 24 hours but it only worked for 8 .... why it didn't take care of the symptoms this morning is a mystery. I assumed it was the machine causing this problem .... mainly because the nights I didn't use it, I had NO symptoms. There are no pollens out and I just cannot imagine ANY dust being in MY house

I'll work on the humidity thing ... and perhaps do a little dusting

[livingstone]

Hi
I'm a new cpap user. I have been having the same problems with congestion and sneezing. I end up having to take the mask off after 2-3 hours use. Have you found out why this is happening and any thing that works to avoid this besides steroids.
thanks

[yardbird]

I wake up in the morning and my nose is clear when I first get up. After I'm up and moving around a bit, my nose gets runny and I have to blow it. Sometimes I sneeze. Once I clear my nose I'm fine. Happens every morning. I assumed this was kinda normal for someone having air blown up their nose all night and then it stops. Maybe it's not an allergic reaction as much as it is a mechanical one.

Think about it.... your nose has air blowing through it all night. You are maintaining a certain PRESSURE inside your nasal cavities..... all night .... the cilia (fine hairs) inside your nose are subject to that pressure .... all night .... suddenly... the pressure stops. Is there some kind of mechanical "backlash" effect that we're experiencing?

I'd say, do as everyone has suggested and make sure you have clean filters. Keep your mask and hoses clean, but gee.... I haven't washed mine every single day in years (been CPAPing for around 18 years). I wash thoroughly a few times a week and just use wipes the other days.