how do you know your mouth breathing other then a dry mouth?

[dcarreiro]

Hi All,

So I have been trying the full face masks. During the night of my last sleep study, when adjusting to find out what pressure I should be at with the CPAP, I started to mouth breath with the high pressure. So the sleep center put a chin strap on that freaked me out. So when I talked to the DME I asked for FULL FACE masks only. However, I do want to try a nasal only mask. Hopefully the Mirage Activa LT. I should be getting it sometime today or tomorrow. So the question is while testing, how can I find out that I am mouth breathing other then dry mouth. Even with a full face mask I wake up with dry mouth as well so I don't think that is a good judgment. Will the leaks be recorded via the S9? Any other tricks that I can take to verify that I am mouth breathing? Maybe tape my mouth to verify I am mouth breathing. But that is going to freak me out as well. LOL.

[6PtStar]

The leak rate does sort of. You can usually tell by a large increase in the leak rate. The software does a much better job because you can see the increase and what time of the night it occured.

Jerry

[DreamDiver]

...Will the leaks be recorded via the S9? Any other tricks that I can take to verify that I am mouth breathing?

The S9 records lots of good things. However, you may not even need to go there yet. The S9 has a 'Mask Fit' capability. First make sure you have the right type of mask selected on your machine. Navigate there using the 'settings' button. Hopefully, it's set to 'Full face' if you're using a FF mask. Incidentally, if you're having leak problems, IMO it's best to stick with whichever full face fits best until you've figured out those problems.

When you're ready to go to bed, secure your mask to your face as normal. At this point it would be good to have a sleeping partner or family member help you with this. From the settings menu, go to the mask fit section. The blower will start blowing, but it won't start recording for a little while as you figure out the fit. Lie down, turn over, get into various sleep positions. Allow your helper to look at the LED screen. If the smilie face stays green and happy, the mask fit should be pretty good for sleeping. If it turns red, your mask is either too tight, too loose or there is some other reason for large leaks. Cinch the straps or loosen them until the smilie face stays green in various favorite sleeping positions. Then you should be ready for a good night's sleep.

When you wake in the morning, look for the green smilie face when you select the info button. If it's not green and smiling, you've probably had significant large leakage. At that point, it might help for you to look at the large leak line using the ResScan 3.10 software to determine what part of the night the leaks were large and perhaps find other contributing factors.

Good luck.

[dcarreiro]

Dreamdiver thanks for this tip. My S9 is set to FFM and I do use the mask fit to test out my masks. However, what I am asking is if I mouth breath, will the leakage go up so that I know I am mouth breathing? As of right now I sleep with a full face mask with very little to 0 leaks. I am going to try a Nasal mask and verify if that can me a solution for me. I need a cleaver way to know if I am mouth breathing without the dry mouth indicator as I get dry mouth with a FFM anyways.

[steelheadid]

My thought is that if your data is showing your leak rate that small you are breathing through your mouth. Try adjusting your humidifier. If that doesn't work than try a chin strap, or as some others do, tape your mouth.

[DreamOn]

However, what I am asking is if I mouth breath, will the leakage go up so that I know I am mouth breathing?

Yes, if you're mouth-breathing with nasal pillows or nasal masks, that will be reflected in the machine-reported leak rate. The leak rate will go up. But if the machine-reported leak rate is high it could be for several reasons: (1) mouth breathing/mouth leaks when using a nasal or nasal pillows mask, (2) leaks from the nasal pillows or mask cushion itself, or (3) a hole somewhere (in the tubing or a connection perhaps).

So, the leak rate won't specifically identify the cause of the loss of therapy air. If you're seeing a higher leak rate, then you can narrow down the source by trying a chin strap and/or mouth taping when using the nasal/pillows masks, to see if that brings the leak rate down. If it does, then you were mouth-breathing. Most people have dry mouth too.

I hope that helps to answer your question.

[dcarreiro]

So I think people are missing my question. I want to go from a full face mask and want to go to a nasal mask. Other then dry mouth, how do I know I am mouth breathing when trying a nasal mask?

[echo]

So I think people are missing my question. I want to go from a full face mask and want to go to a nasal mask. Other then dry mouth, how do I know I am mouth breathing when trying a nasal mask?

Put a tape/video recorder next to you while you sleep and then you will know for sure if you're mouth breathing.
For me, my partner noticed it in the early morning hours. He said the sound was VERY LOUD. Basically you've got all this air rushing out of your mouth at pretty much the same pressure as it's going in your nose.

I don't know if your machine will record mouth breathing as leaks...

[RLAUREN]

dcarreiro, I hear your question! It is the answer that is not easy. You can see mouth breathing if you eliminate all other leaks. If you can ensure that your leaks are not caused by the mask, you can assume there might be mouth breathing involved. Some people here were suggesting that by taping your mouth for a couple of nights you can determine that you have no mask leaks. Now remove the tape. If the leaks go up you can be pretty sure you have mouth leaks. In other words, it is a process of elimination.

Good luck and keep the great questions coming.

[rosacer]

dcarreiro

I was not sure if I wasn't breathing by my mouth, I had caught me a couple of times doing small noises. I have been waking up the last mornings with a sore throat too.

So I decided to tape my mouth last night and surprise just before falling asleep I wake myself up with a sudden air blow against the tape, I was starting to breath by my mouth. I repeated that attempt several times in the night. My conclusion: I sleep by my mouth in some extend through the night.

What I did? I cleansed my face from any excess of oil, I put a bit of chapstick or something similar on my lips, toke 4 inches of surgical paper (2inches wide) type tape and ply over a small part of an end (to facilitate the removal), closed my lits a bit to the interior (to avoid tape to touch it and ensure a better seal) and finally I put the tape on. All this as per forum mouth taping directions.

You can try that and see if you notice yourself blowing against the tape, that wakes up!

Good luck

[dcarreiro]

All this is great thanks for the help. I will give this a shot tonight. This is the kinda of stuff that I was looking for. Thanks again. THIS WEBSITE IS GREAT!!