Using new mask

[cpax]

I just switched from a nasal mask to a full-face. Seems to be working well. The only thing I have found with this one and a hybrid I tried is that I cannot sleep on my back at all. Then I get apneas which the mask can't seem to deal with. I don't know if it's because the pressure is spread out one a greater area or what. My setting is 9 which works fairly well with my nasal mask. The reason I'm trying the full face is that my nose and sinuses aren't reliable for nose breathing. I was wondering what other folks who have switched have found.

BTW I passed 6 months on therapy earlier in the month.

[LSAT]

I just switched from a nasal mask to a full-face. Seems to be working well. The only thing I have found with this one and a hybrid I tried is that I cannot sleep on my back at all. Then I get apneas which the mask can't seem to deal with. I don't know if it's because the pressure is spread out one a greater area or what. My setting is 9 which works fairly well with my nasal mask. The reason I'm trying the full face is that my nose and sinuses aren't reliable for nose breathing. I was wondering what other fools who have switched have found.

BTW I passed 6 months on therapy earlier in the month.

Why are people that use FF Masks Fools? Almost half of the people on this board use FF Masks. It's your machine that can't deal with the apneas...not your mask. How do you know that the setting of 9 is right for you...your machine does not give you any data?

[Julie]

Why do you want to sleep on your back - it is the worst position for apneas to occur and we try hard not to 'be' there if we can avoid it. But the mask should be able to help and if it isn't, then it's either the wrong size, adjusted improperly or just not the 'right' one for you to begin with - I do find mine don't fit properly if I do end up on my back though and need readjusting.

[cpax]

Why are people that use FF Masks Fools?

Bloody auto correct! Sorry, I honestly don't know how that happened. I truly meant to say people. I should have proofed more carefully. God no, I'm not calling anyone on here a fool. Sorry all. Finger fart I guess.

I edited the original post, the word I was going for was 'folks' *not* fools.

[cpax]

Why do you want to sleep on your back - it is the worst position for apneas to occur and we try hard not to 'be' there if we can avoid it.

I just find with the mask and hose that's the easiest way to sleep. My old way of sleeping was on my stomach but I haven't been able to make that work with the equipment. Yes I will keep adjusting with this one because I think it will work best.

[b360155]

Why do you want to sleep on your back - it is the worst position for apneas to occur and we try hard not to 'be' there if we can avoid it.

I just find with the mask and hose that's the easiest way to sleep. My old way of sleeping was on my stomach but I haven't been able to make that work with the equipment. Yes I will keep adjusting with this one because I think it will work best.

You'll find it eventually CPAX. Pre-CPAP, I always fell asleep on my side but apparently would end up on my back and my snoring would drive my fiancee to the other bedroom. Post-CPAP, I'm with you in that it just seems easier to sleep on my back with the ffm and hose. My pressure setting has always been at 10 and since starting CPAP therapy 9/30/11, my nightly AHI averages have been consistently below 1.0 and I don't snore at all anymore. If you're using some data reporting software, I'd check to make sure your leak rates are in the acceptable range and if so, then you might try adjusting your pressure setting in small increments at a time until you get the results you desire. Good luck!

[cpax]

Yeah unfortunately my machine give me *no* data about my sleep. Had I known how important that was when I first got it I would have opted for one that does. So I can only judge by how I'm feeling through the day.

[Julie]

Hi - You may think this is cuckoo, but what I did as a stomach sleeper with a relatively inexpensive but good memory foam bed was, using an electric carving knife, to cut a 3" wide (you can play with width and rounded top edges once you have the basic cut) x 3-4" deep trench starting at the top of the mattress and extending towards the foot by 10-12"... When I sleep, the mask sits in the trench diagonally and because I use one of the few masks that vent NOT directly from the right angle point of the mask:hose connection, but higher up in the mask, the vent is not blocked by the foam or bedding...

I realize this is kind of radical, but I've used it now for years and it works great for me.

[b360155]

Hi - You may think this is cuckoo, but what I did as a stomach sleeper with a relatively inexpensive but good memory foam bed was, using an electric carving knife, to cut a 3" wide (you can play with width and rounded top edges once you have the basic cut) x 3-4" deep trench starting at the top of the mattress and extending towards the foot by 10-12"... When I sleep, the mask sits in the trench diagonally and because I use one of the few masks that vent NOT directly from the right angle point of the mask:hose connection, but higher up in the mask, the vent is not blocked by the foam or bedding...

I realize this is kind of radical, but I've used it now for years and it works great for me.

Hey, whatever works!
I've never heard "good memory foam bed" and "relatively inexpensive" used in the same sentence though...

[ameriken]

BTW I passed 6 months on therapy earlier in the month.

Wow, 6 months already? It's good to hear from you and see that you're still plugging along. I remember you had a rocky start and I wasn't sure if you were going to keep going. Keep up the good work!

[Julie]

"Relatively inexpensive" compared to the Tempur-Pedic (by quite a lot).