Another Newbie

[Tanna]

I am using the respronics PR system one heated humidifer and SD card with a Flexifit 407 mask. Last night was my first night with this, and I'm not sure if everything went OK or not.

I woke up all, stuffed up with a slight head ache, I had the humidifer on 1.

How do you know if you have air leaks? I'm kinda confused and don't really know if I'm doing this all correctly. I felt somewhat tired when I woke up, didn't have that refreshed feeling everyone speaks of. I don't really know if another mask would be better or not, the mask really didn't bother me. I do have a tendency to sleep with my mouth open but the tech said my pressure level of 9 should keep my mouth shut. How do you know if your mouth is opening? I live alone so it's diffcult to know what is really happening. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Julie]

You don't know (if your mouth is opening), and telling you that on 9 you won't open yours is ridiculous. Can you try taping for a night or two to see if it helps?

[Janknitz]

Hi Tanna, welcome.

If you have "big leaks" from your mask, you will definitely know it because air will blow out like crazy--you'll feel and hear it. Some masks make a "farting" noise from leaks, and you may wake up with swollen or irritated eye if it's leaking into your eyes. The leaked air is usually cold, so you can feel it on your face. So it sounds like you didn't have any leaks or discomfort from the mask--that's great!

As far as mouth leaks, they may be more difficult to detect, though the suction effect when my mouth opens is so uncomfortable I don't believe it would be possible for me to sleep through. Some people do though, apparently. If you do open your mouth, you will probably notice a very dry mouth despite humidification, higher pressures trying to compensate for it (assuming your machine is set to auto), and you may be more tired than usual. It's hard to tell that part until you get to feel what optimal therapy feels like though. I'm not sure you should rush to mouth taping, unless you really think you were having mouth leaks.

Try bumping your humidifier up a notch at a time and see if that helps with the headache and congestion. Some people get those symptoms with too much humidification (that's me!) and some people get those symtpoms with too little, so you'll have to experiment. So that you know what's working and what's not, try tweaking only one thing each time.

All in all, it sounds like you had a really good first night. It can take a long time to feel that refreshed feeling, and with all the new stuff you probably didn't sleep all that deeply last night. You're going to have to give it some time. Make sure you have a follow-up appointment with your sleep doctor or DME, so they can check your card and make sure you are getting optimal pressures and leaks are not a problem.

[Big Daddy RRT,RPSGT]

If you woke up stuffy you may need more humidification, increase your humidifier by one each night until you feel less stuffy or it feels too warm/moist or you get water in your tubing. If you need more humidity but you get water in your tubing you'll need an insulated tubing cover to prevent the rain-out.

One clue about mouth breathing, if you awaken with a very dry mouth ,feeling poorly, you may be mouth breathing. If you use an entire chamber of water you may be mouth breathing. A certain pressure setting does not guarantee you won't mouth breath. Your downloaded reports from your system one would show excessive leak which is one indicator of mouth breathing (you'll need the software) or cooperation from your home care provider. If you think you are mouth breathing get a chin strap or switch to a full face mask.

It may take more than a few nights to feel good. You may have to work at it. If you are still feeling poorly after a couple of weeks of nightly use make a follow up appointment with your sleep doctor. Good luck.