Still searching for masks Nasal pillow suggestions???

[atruvirgo]

I am still searching for masks. Due to Rosacea I think Nasal pillows may be the the way to go. Even the petite nasal masks applies enough pressure to break my facial capillaries. By the time the mask is secure enough to prevent shifting and leaks it does a number on my skin. Any suggestions for nasal pillows or other nasal mask??? Must fit a small face/head. The DME is thinking Simplicity or OPUS. Input from all the pros here would be very much appreciated! I keep reading about the twilight NP but it only comes in med and lg. Would that work? I'm a bit timid about the de-capping but I know i couldn;t wear that head gear YUCK!

82 hours into CPAP and hating it!!!!!!!

Debbie/Atruvirgo

[motherall]

Take a look at the Bravo or Optilife, I am so very happy with the Bravo since it is the first one that the headgear doesn't come over my face by my eyes. It is so comfortable that I don't even use my pad-a-cheeks with it and other than the straps that are very plush, the only thing that touches my skin is the nasal pillows. Can't say enough good things about this one for small faces/heads.

[zzzzzz!!]

Motherall, can you describe how you have your Bravo set up as far as hose routing and what position(s) you sleep in?

I'm a side sleeper and I'm not quite sure how that works with the Bravo. I really don't want to run the hoses up the middle of my face (don't like things between my eyes), but if the hoses are on the sides of my head they'd get squished between my head and the pillow, wouldn't they? Or at the very least not be very comfortable...

More details, please! Thanks.

[sharon1965]

[/quote]I keep reading about the twilight NP but it only comes in med and lg.

debbie
are you saying that your nares are small, too? because the med. and lg. refers to the pillows that fit against your nostrils

so far for me the best one has been the comfortlite 2; normally i use the direct seal nasal pillow, but since i had septoplasty 2 months ago, the pillows seem to make my nose a little achy...i've switched to the simple cushion, which also comes with the comfortlite 2, and is essentially a very small nasal mask, to give my nose a break...you might find it comfy for your small face, and so far it hasn't cause my rosacea to flare up

the breeze looks comfy, too, and it's the one i want to try when i'm next due for a new interface...there are so many options, lots of opinions and everyone has their own experience with these things

good luck!

sharon1965

[sharon1965]

that's weird, it reversed the quote and my response

[mecocosm]

Motherall, can you describe how you have your Bravo set up as far as hose routing and what position(s) you sleep in?

I'm a side sleeper and I'm not quite sure how that works with the Bravo. I really don't want to run the hoses up the middle of my face (don't like things between my eyes), but if the hoses are on the sides of my head they'd get squished between my head and the pillow, wouldn't they? Or at the very least not be very comfortable...

More details, please! Thanks.

Take a look at the bottom left one of the 4 pictures on the Bravo web-site http://www.respcare.com/bravo/info.htm

To side sleep with the Bravo with the hose routed up, I would be doing that.

[motherall]

So far I've just slept with the hose hanging straight down the front and clipped to my night shirt. The hose and barrel are very soft and flexible so they don't push on my face that I'm aware of. I have no marks in the morning nor is my skin broken out at all which usually happens wherever the mask touches. I sleep on my side most of the time and it's been very comfortable. I am going to try to route the tubes over my head tonight but I don't think that will be to conducive to side sleeping as I think the tubes willl be too far on the side and between my face and the pillow. I'll keep you posted. The hoses wouldn't go between your eyes though. They would go on either side of your face and with the included velcro loops, you attach them to wherever you like on the headgear. With them ahnging down the front, there is nothing to squish them when on your side.

[tillymarigold]

I have pretty bad rosacea and the ComfortLite 2 worked great for me. It only touches the face right at the top of the forehead and at the nostrils. I'm using the Hybrid now and loving it, but the straps do go across the cheeks (although the mask itself just goes around the mouth and then into the nostrils).

BTW Apparently exhaustion is one of my triggers! My rosacea has gotten a lot better since CPAP. In fact, I think it's more that I had relatively mild rosacea that was constantly being triggered so it looked worse than it was, than actually having bad rosacea. (And if I get hit by exhaustion later in the day--which happens occasionally but less and less--it totally comes back.)

[RosemaryB]

I have rosacea and am using the Swift II. It has straps across my cheeks, but not in the areas where the rosacea is worst, so it doesn't seem to have caused a problem so far. I know the pillows come in S-M-L, but I don't think face size matters. If your head is small, there are some fixes for the headgear that look simple and can be reversed.

The one thing that's not good about rosacea for me is that I've been using soap on my face for the first time in years, not the nonsoap cleanser I was using. Complicated by the fact that I am gluten intolerant and cannot use soaps with gluten ingredients (and you can't tell by the label, many ingredients use gluten). I found an extremely mild soap made by California Baby body wash for super sensitive skin It's giving me a small problem with the rosacea on my upper nose where the mask doesn't touch, but way better than most.

What do you use to wash your face prior to using the mask if you have rosacea?

[tillymarigold]

What do you use to wash your face prior to using the mask if you have rosacea?

I'm using Bioré daily deep pore cleansing disposable face cloths. Chemicals are one of the few triggers I don't have, though! My triggers are heat, cold, spicy foods, alcohol, wind, strong emotion of any sort, and apparently exhaustion.

[RosemaryB]

What do you use to wash your face prior to using the mask if you have rosacea?

I'm using Bioré daily deep pore cleansing disposable face cloths. Chemicals are one of the few triggers I don't have, though! My triggers are heat, cold, spicy foods, alcohol, wind, strong emotion of any sort, and apparently exhaustion.

But won't chemicals other than pure soap cause the silicone to deteriorate? That's why I'm using soap.

(Sorry to go OT, but relevant to anyone with rosacea using a mask)

[tillymarigold]

What do you use to wash your face prior to using the mask if you have rosacea?

I'm using Bioré daily deep pore cleansing disposable face cloths. Chemicals are one of the few triggers I don't have, though! My triggers are heat, cold, spicy foods, alcohol, wind, strong emotion of any sort, and apparently exhaustion.

But won't chemicals other than pure soap cause the silicone to deteriorate? That's why I'm using soap.

(Sorry to go OT, but relevant to anyone with rosacea using a mask)

I thought that only applied to what you actually clean the mask with. I've been told not to put on moisturizer before bed, but that's all. In any case, that's why I use ones that promise to leave no residue. I do avoid ones with moisturizer and perfumes, but other than that, I don't see what the problem is if I use the wipe and then go to bed 15 minutes later or so. But I haven't had the mask long (I had a trial CL2 for 6 weeks and just got my Hybrid) so I don't know.

[blarg]

Twlight NP's Medium pillows are not very big at all, and they're very soft. The reason there aren't any small pillows is because you'd have to have TINY TINY nares to to have a problem with the mediums. I still think you should give 'em a try.

[twillson]

I am still searching for masks. Due to Rosacea I think Nasal pillows may be the the way to go. Even the petite nasal masks applies enough pressure to break my facial capillaries. By the time the mask is secure enough to prevent shifting and leaks it does a number on my skin.

I definitely agree that pillows sound like a better alternative.

Since I am not you and don't have Rosacea I can only guess what you need, but of the 3 systems I am most familiar with I would say the Comfort Lite 2 with direct seal would be my first choice. The only points of contact are the straps on the back of our head, the main pad on the front of your head (hairline to crown) and the direct seal on the inner part of your nares. The main pad is large enough that there is very little pressure - I would think you wouldn't have any trouble. You can also use the CL2 with conventional pillows or a mini-mask called the "simple cushion". All three come in several sizes and I would ask my DME to give you the smallest two sizes of each.

Both the Swift and the Optilife work well with the straps fairly loose, but do make some contact with your face for stability. The Swift contacts your cheekbones whereas the Optilife makes a very light contact on your cheeks and (if you use the chin strap) your lower jaw. I wouldn't think the optilife could possibley cause skin irritation because there are no pressure points, but there is contact.

One other factor to consider with pillows is whether you sleep on your side or your back. The problem is hose management. If you are a side sleeper like Restedgal, you will probably do well with the Breeze which has the hose attached pretty far back on the headgear. The CL2 and Optilife work fairly well if you tend to move from back to side during the night. The Swift works best for back sleepers, but can also be configured for side sleeping (I need to reverse my hose to accommodate that.)

Finally, I would suggest that you keep your old mask around after you get your pillow system. You will find that rotating between interfaces is sometimes better for your skin than using just one, no matter how well it works.

[Babette]

Debbie, did you try the Comfortlite 2 yet? If not, I can send you one to test drive. It has the Small, Medium and PETITE pillows, plus the Small and Medium Simple Cushions. I thought I needed the Petite's, but by the time they came, I was used to the Smalls, and the Petites leaked!

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/Comfor ... -Mask.html

Let me know if you're interested. No charge for a test drive.

Cheers,
Barbara