Post
by aprildawn97 » Fri May 13, 2011 12:44 pm
Vern of Vancouver,
Thank you so much for your post! I spent my first night with a full face mask last night. The night began wonderfully, and ended in horror. Somewhere in the middle of the night the mask began to itch slightly, so I "adjusted" its placement. Then it began to warm. The heat up. Everywhere under that stupid plastic/latex/rubber or whatever that "gel" is made of, that the mask touched my skin began to burn terribly. I pulled the mask off for a little while for relief, then put it back on when the mask began to spit water from the humidifyer.
After a full night of trying to relieve the burn, I finally gave up, turned on my light, turned the machine off and removed the mask completely. Off came the skin where the mask sat all night. Apparently, I am highly allergic to the material of the gel, and my face looks like I fell asleep under a tanning bed light, only with the light able to burn the triangular area of the full mask.
I was so hoping that this CPAP was the answer to my prayers, after falling asleep at work and nearly losing my job, I finally thought this was the answer. I have been so depressed and feeling hopeless. I also have type II diabetes, as well as other health problems that may be affected by finally getting sleep. During my sleeptest I stopped breathing on an average of 48 times an hour, which I guess is considered "severe". This machine was my hope for an almost normal life again.
I contacted my technician and they told me that all of the masks are made of the same stuff, and that there is no such thing as a "hypo-allergenic" mask. I actually cried upon hearing this. Then I found your post. I'm not sure how well I can tolerate a "napkin" on my face, but I'm pretty good with a sewing machine, so maybe I can create a barrier between this mask and my poor skin.
I saw folks post that this type of allergy is rare, but let me tell you, you are NOT alone! Thank you again, so much for all the info on your trial and errors. At least now I have direction and can move forward...in other words .... you have restored my HOPE.
Thank you for sharing!!!
AprilDawn