Dry Mouth

[Simbot]

Thanks

What I'm looking for is to not feel tired all the time during the day.

I don't want the CPAP to wake me up at night. I can't decide if I'm better off with or without it. Without it doesn't wake me up, I sleep, but with apneas. With it, my apneas are lower (i think), but it wakes me up. When I want a good night's sleep I don't use the mask. It seems better without it. when the mask wakes me up I get frustrated, making it harder to fall back asleep. With apneas I don't know its happening and I sleep more.

I don't think it's the mask on my face that bothers me, its the air blowing. And I almost always get intense itching in a random spots. This wakes me up and I have to take off the mask to rub it away. Like small allergic particles blasting into my face. It's not constant, but 4 - 5 a night. I do have the HEPA filter installed.

I don't think there is anything special about my face. Most of the time the seal is OK @ < 10. Above 10 I can't get a seal laying down, it's ok sitting in a chair, but I can't sleep like that, I sleep on my sides. Even it if did seal above 10 I can't sleep with all that air blowing down my throat. The sealing/leaks seems to be the least of my problems right now. I have worked through the leaks, it's not as bad as it used to be. The dry mouth wakes me up more than anything now.

I downloaded Sleepyhead, not sure what to look for. AHI I guess. So much data there, that I don't understand yet. It's hard to find info on what it all means.

Thanks!

[HoseCrusher]

All right!!! This is progress...

It looks like you only have modest expectations, and they should be easy to fulfill. Everyone should endeavor to get a good nights restful sleep and not feel tired all day.

By pondering what is going on and what you want, you have been able to narrow things down a little.

Do you want the bad news or the good news first?

The bad news is that you never get use to having air blowing in your face. It is always a minor source of irritation.

The good news is that you can become desensitized to it. An attitude adjustment can put this irritation in its place. It is something that is endured in order to preserve or restore your health.

All we have to do is figure out how to desensitize you to air blowing in your face.

Tonight sit down with a good book, mask up, turn the machine on, and begin your process of understanding what is bothering you, and expand your thinking to contemplate how to work around the problems.

You already know this, but I will remind you. Not all air is the same. Some has a higher temperature than others. Some has higher humidity than others. Sometimes you can adjust your "covers" over the rest of your body to compensate for the particular blowing on your face. When you find the right combination, the air blowing on your face may actually feel good.

I will be so bold as to second guess you... I don't think your issue is with the air blowing in your face as much as it is your dry mouth. But that is just a guess.

Here is another thing you can do. Do some research and find an excellent skin conditioner for the face. The good ones generally cost a little more, but only a little is used so it still doesn't cost too much. About an hour before you go to bed, put the conditioner on your face and let it soak in. The idea here is to hydrate your facial skin. That way the air blowing on it won't dehydrate it and leave you with phantom itches through the night.

Back to the dry mouth problem. Any mouthwash with alcohol in it will dry your mouth. You are better off rinsing your mouth with salt water.

[Simbot]

Thanks. My wife has plenty of ridiculously expensive face cream, I'll give that a try. Last night actually went OK, I'll keep at it.