Newbie, OSA, full beard, mouth breather

[Silver Pelt]

First I want to thank those who provide this place and those who participate. I'm very new and learning fast but the amount of information here is vast. I'll ask for forgiveness in advance if my questions are answered elsewhere; I suspect they are. I did some searching but it takes a lot of time to read 259 more or less relevant hits, and I've not found what I'm looking for. I've read several of the "our wisdom" articles and the newbie guide.

I've probably had OSA for 30+ years. I won't rehash the long story here and now, but I finally went to a sleep lab. It was a difficult night. I usually fall asleep in minutes but was awake for over an hour. I finally turned on my side even though I knew they wanted me on my back. Once asleep, I eventually roused myself enough to turn on my back. The technician came in and told me I was having frequent events on my side, and severe OSA on my back. He said he would have been in an hour earlier if I had started on my back.

The mask fitting at the sleep lab went very poorly. We had tried several before starting the study and selected one that fit tolerably well. I have a truly full beard, not long just complete, and am a mouth breather. The nasal mask we selected did not work, there was a huge air leak from the mask/hose connection that they couldn't resolve, so we ended up with another mask.

As I breath with my mouth during sleep, I found the nasal mask troublesome. As I dropped off to sleep my mouth would fall open and the air flow would wake me. Turning on my side caused leaks. After another 90+ minutes, I finally did manage some sleep and the technician titrated an 8.

I'm waiting for the full report (one of my 10 reasons to hate American medical care: waiting for overpaid specialists to do their job) but clearly have OSA and should get treatment. I'm not going to go along with the prescription and insurance system although I will talk this over with my primary care physician.

So I need to buy a machine and a couple of masks. Here's my present thinking, and I would very much appreciate any comments or suggestions:

1) I'll get an APAP machine and associated software. I intend to self-manage my therapy. It's my body and my life. The initial titration could be wrong, I'm losing weight, and change is constant in this world. Recommended models? Should I get a separate humidifier or stick with integrated ones?

2) I'll buy 2-3 masks and try them. Full face seems appealing but I don't know how to seal them against a beard. Perhaps if 8 is really high enough it won't be a big problem. I know I can and probably should/will learn to breath through the nose but this is a big life change and challenge, I think it may be best to take this one step at a time. If I can get some relief with my present breathing habits, I will be more motivated to learn to keep my mouth shut! Any suggestions for masks?

3) The psychology is tough. I'm not a vain man but wearing that mask makes me look and feel like a borg who escaped from intensive care. My wife is loving and supportive. This is going to take some getting used to, any suggestions?

Thanks in advance. I'm sure I will have many more questions, I'll keep my studying up and my pestering the forum to a minimum.

[klockemy]

Welcome to the forums!

I can't speak as to which machine or HH is better than the next seeing as I have only owned one, but I was wanting to suggest the Mirage Libery or the InnoMed Hybrid mask. They have nasal pillows, so it doesn't go over your nose, yet they have a full face cushion that takes care of the mouth breathing (and from what I have read, are very accomodating to beards). I use the Liberty (but am clean shaven) and absolutely love it. Might want to give one of those a try.

As far as the 'borg' look, you get over it quickly and appreciate the recooperative sleep. It basically becomes part of your nightly routine, like turning out the bedroom light. Since you have a supportive spouse, you already have half the battle beat. Just try and take care of 'stuff' before you mask up for the night.

Good Luck in you Hunt!

Kevin

[Guest]

I have a full beard and have used both the Hybrid and the Liberty. I have found the Liberty to be more comfortable and I have less leaks with it.

[DBoone]

I have a beard too so I've avoided FF masks because of it. But, since I'm a mouth breather too, I needed to do something to keep my mouth closed. Many people tape but with the beard & mustache that doesn't seem a pleasant option for me. So what I've done is move to a nasal pillows device (Optilife by Resperonics) and use a chinstrap along with first aid wrap to keep my mouth closed and my lips from fluttering in the breeze.

The first aid wrap is latex free and can be found at any pharmacy. (Some would recognize this stuff as what they use to wrap your arm after donating blood.) I use the Gentle Wrap from CVS. I wrap it about 3-4 times around my head and covering my mouth. Not too tight but tight enough to be effective. Then I put on my chinstrap and finally my headgear and nasal pillows. Looks pretty funny to be sure but the wife would rather I stay alive so she doesn't complain.

[neverbetter]

I kinda like trhe hybrid more, better nasal support without the upward push against the nose. Do a profile for us

[AllOwnersManual]

APAP is a good choice, there is a wide variety of them on the market.

What i would suggest, is that if you know what data your going to be looking for, see if you can acquire a print out from the different machines to see which data you find the most useful.

Regarding your masks, see if you can get the fitting guides before you buy the masks, this way you can get an idea what will and will not work for your face type.

Ive seen Chinstraps be very successful with helping mouth breathers so that may be an option you want to explore.

Regarding the psychology of the whole CPAP Thing, it takes time. the fact that you have loving support is amazing, there are a lot of people who have to do this on their own. But don't give up on it!!! once you start getting full nights sleep and awake and alert all day you will care less what it looks like.

Good Luck and keep us posted

[pabneypaol]

As you can see from my pic, I also have a full beard. This worried me from the start, as my wife has never seen me without one and I did not want to shave it off.
I use the Quattro FFM. I have been on cpap for about 10 months now, and it is the only mask I use. I have not had to do anything to my beard to get it to seal. However, I think I wear the mask slightly higher on the face than I am supposed to. The bottom seal lays right up to my bottom lip (right where it changes color what ever thats called). If I open my mouth wide the bottom I could bite on the bottom of the mask. but when I close my mouth it reseals just fine. This is the only mask I have tried so I can not comment on any other choices.

[Silver Pelt]

Many thanks for the advice and recommendations. I've found a machine and ordered a selection of masks from CPAP.com, based on what was recommended here plus CPAP.com's very helpful fitting guide. I'll start with a FF mask and see how it works with the face fur, but have hybrid and nasal pillow alternatives to try. It's a bit of money, but I hope to be doing this for a long time - growing old is great when you consider the alternative.

[2flamingos]

SilverPelt -

I have a mustache and goatee, not a full beard, and I use the Swift LT. I tend to mouth breathe sometimes, especailly if i have a cold or am a little congested (which is now reare after sinus surgery). I tried the Hybrid - and that trial only lasted about 2 weeks.... could not get it to fit right and the exhaust ports blew air on my SO to such a degree we had a couple of arguments. And then when I discivered that my numbers sucked, I went back to the LT and have been taping my mouth. I use MicroPore by 3M - it works great and does not cause any problems with the facial hair. Also, as I hate to shave, i wil frequently go several days and even up to a week without shaving. Still no problems.

As for you machine choice, I have an Mseries auto w/a-flex (and the only one i have had). It seems to do the trick. But, as I am sure you have read all over the site, the big thing is not the machine, or even necessarily which mask you choose, but that you get a good fit and control the leaks.

Here's wishing you much luck and success. keep us posted!

[vipertec]

I had some of the same problems as you do ,i am a mouth breather especially during allergy season ,I did learn to breath thru my nose before i got my machine because I have a goatee,and this way i would be able to use a nasal pillow mask.
I didn't like the nasal mask or the FF ,so I went with the Swift LT ,it's ok but I"m going to get a Respironics Opti -life that has a new type of pillow on it that doesn't go up into you nose. Good Luck!

[sleepypp]

Hi,

You sound just like me Silver Pelt, hairy mouth breather. I am waiting for my mask to come so I can try the machine I got on craigslist. My insurance covered none of this so I had to go budget. The Mirage Quattro Full Face is what I used on my study and sealed over my hairy chin very well. I found a cheap one on Amazon.

I actually ended up with two machines because I didn't know what I was doing. I will try to sell the RemStar Plus I bought first. Only 63 hours on it but no C-Flex or A-Flex, which I decided I might need. Live and learn.