Introduction and a questions

[Steviemain]

Hello again....

I did the mouth taping thing last night and it wasn't even half as bad as it sounds...and I slept for 7 hours! I'm going to do it again for the next couple of nights and see how it goes and if all goes well I'll be trying the Hybrid or Mirage Liberty FFM because it's apparent I'm mouth leaking.....can you say....paphweee...paphweee...I think that's the sound air makes leaving my mouth.....along with a few expletives that I'll leave off the forum.

Now for the good news...I felt better this morning than I have for the past few and think it's definitely due to taping my mouth shut. I used Micropore tape and it worked great....taking it off this morning wasn't too bad either...minimal residue too!

Since I was one of the people who, when first reading the process, thought that people had to be crazy to tape their mouths shut....I apologize....the longer I adapt to the CPAP world the more I understand. And.....if you're new to the CPAP world and somewhat of a skeptic (me) be open to most ideas you read on this forum because these members have "been there and done that" and they know what they're talking about....

I also received my snuggle hoses today (6 foot one and one for the Swift LT hose) from CPAP.com. Not that I was getting any excessive rainout, but more for comfort...things are getting better all the time!!

Special thanks to RestedGal, Rooster (I used his taping method), and Wulfman...be chatting with you all again somewhere down the line.

Ciao for now,
Steve

[Steviemain]

And a happy Sunday morning to you all....I have questions on two subject matters

Called my DME (so glad I joined this forum and did my homework to find a good one!) and he will bring me a Mirage Liberty FFM on Tuesday...of course, his response to me taping my mouth to determine the need for a FFM was ....no, no, no.....he did laugh though...not harsh in his response.

1. Since this will be my first experience with the Liberty FFM I'd appreciate any advice and/or hints to make the initial experience better, i.e. fit, hints, comfort, etc.

2. I've read enough posts to appreciate the fact that "not" having software to read my results is akin to starting an exercise program without a predetermined goal in mind. My machine has a smart card in it for the DME and Dr. to use, but I don't have the card reader or the Encore software. CPAP.com has a good bundle price for both, but I'm slightly confused about the software version. I've read some posts about people using different versions of the software, but I don't know if v1.5 or 1.8 offer any better data collection than v1.0 sold at CPAP.com. I'd appreciate some clarification on the software versions to help me make the "better" decision before I buy it.

As always...thanks for your help.

p.s. the snugglehoses are great!! HUGE difference with night time comfort and sleep distruption from the bare hoses....

[SharkBait]

Hey Steve,

I PM'ed you some info about a USB smart card reader and Encore Pro. If you have Vista you might do a search as I see some have had troubles with that.

I really like the Liberty, but found it was hard to make it through the night without bumping the mask out of kilter. A pap pillow helped a lot. I bought a foam pillow from Big Lots for $17 and cut a couple of 6" cubes from each side. This worked very well so then I cut into my Tempur-pedic pillow, as much as it hurt me to do so, and that turned out very well as well.

[SharkBait]

If you haven't already done so, you can set your machine to show you 7 day and 30 day AHI and Leak data via the "clinician's menu".

[Steviemain]

Good morning again my fellow CPAP'rs.

First let me start out by saying I can't thank the members of this forum enough for their feedback and knowledge.

My patience with finding a good DME has helped make this experience far more enjoyable (less painful perhaps) than it might otherwise have been with a poor DME. My DME has been more than supportive - he brought me my MIrage Liberty FFM, we discussed a few issues....he just laughed and shook his head to see that I've been tweaking my machine settings...yeah, yeah, shame on me....and I'm now back to all the original settings because I get better results, not because the DME told me to. Anyway, he gave me my new mask and let me keep my Swift LT nasal mask....not sure that I'l ever use it again due to the mouth breathing thing, but who knows.

So.....12 days with the Liberty FFM and it has made a HUGE difference in my sleep....all good differences!! I am definitely a mouth breather and this mask takes the chore out of breathing at night. My leak rates are coming down, but I still get the nasal pillow leakage because after about 3 hours of sleep I turn on my side, and voila....hissssssssss...from my nose. My wife suggested we strap me down in bed so that I don't turn on my side...bad idea because there's no telling what she would do to me if I was strapped down...and I don't mean in a good way so stop your deviant thought processes.... I use a fluffy down pillow and like it a lot, but I may be buying a CPAP pillow soon.

I continued to use the medium pillows with my FFM because those were the right size for the LT's, but two nights ago I switched to the small. I've now had two nights with far less leakage...far less = almost none. The only drawbacks I find with the Liberty FFM is disassembling, cleaning and reassembling it. Somewhat of a hassle, but hey, what price for good sleep....I'll suck it up.

Also, thanks to Sharkbait's expertise and assistance I'm fully wired with Encore Pro and Skinner's Analyzer, which are great tools for seeing my results....all my data is looking better as I adjust and tweak my mask, but I still seem to have more than I'd like snoring issues....any ideas here for getting that under control? I'm still playing with and learning the software, but how I feel is directly proportional to the results I see from the analyzer....good = good; poor - poor.

Here's what I know so far.....
- Listen to the experts on this forum and don't be afraid to PM them with questions...I've always received helpful responses
- I'm actually watching and feeling my world change daily....more productive at work, more ambitious to do the menial, but necessary tasks in life, and my golf game is improving (this was a great and unexpected benefit since I'm an AGN (Addicted to Golf Nut).
- And best of all.....my wife told me yesterday she's noticing a difference in my attitude and overall personality and she loves it!!! As the great philosopher "What's his name" said....A happy wife is a good thing!! I couldn't agree more....
- And.....my newfound exuberance is driving my employees at work crazy as they have never seen this side of me....they'll grow to love it too....I hope

One thing that is facinating the heck out of me is how many people at work are on CPAP (even my President wears one)....I've now become the "go to" guy for questions and stories from them....who'd a thunk it.....6 weeks ago I couldn't spell CPAP and now I are one. I've told all of them what I know and to go to CPAPtalk and CPAP.com and they too would learn much about this process.

So...as you can see I'm slowly healing and am excited to see how I will feel when I master this process....and so much of it is because of the information I've learned on this forum.

I apologize for the long post, but I figure I can get everybody caught up on one post rather than several smaller ones.

Now that I'm "hooked" on feeling better (it's a very strong addiction by the way) I'm soliciting advice on a good travel machine....I don't want to carry the M-Series with me on trips so something small, quiet and very effective would be nice. Thanks in advance for your help.

Ciao for now,
Steve

[SharkBait]

Posts like this are why I spend way, way too much time on this board...

Wow, what a great success story! Way to go, Steve! I agree with the PAP pillow. I like to lay on my side and when I've got the Liberty on it really helps a lot to have that slot there so the mask doesn't press against the pillow and knock those nasal pillows loose.

[DoriC]

Steve, I can feel your excitement as you begin to see the life-changing benefits of the therapy that turns our life upside down at the beginning when we receive the diagnosis and the treatment decision we had to make. We couldn't spell CPAP either until we found these experts here to guide us. My husband is a different person now, he even laughs at my silly jokes, and that's a good thing! Getting the right bed pillow is key to side sleeping. Hubby uses SleePapPillow or the Chiroflow pillow if he wants a change. They're both good.