One Night down--question on swift pillow

sleepless in ny · Post by **sleepless in ny** » Tue May 24, 2005 5:45 pm

Well, I got my machine yesterday and used it for the first time last night. After the first hour or two of fiddling with the Mirage Swift nasal pillows I think I actually did pretty good.
I do have a question for anyone using the nasal pillow system. Does the slot for the exhalation bother you? It seems like the air was blowing on my arms all night. I don't usually sleep with my arms under the covers so it really bothered me. At first I thought that the pillows weren't sealed under my nose, but the respiratory therapist assured me that this was to remove the carbon dioxide that you exhale. Do all masks have this? I don't remember anything like this at the sleep clinic, but of course I didn't use the nasal pillow there.
I would also like to thank the person that suggested the memory foam pillow (for under your head, not your nose). I have never slept with anything other than a down pillow, so I was skeptical. I went to Wal-Mart and found a memory foam with down surrounding it. I love it.!!!!!

DanishLass · Post by **DanishLass** » Tue May 24, 2005 5:59 pm

You and I have the same equipment and we started on the same day! One day down. God this is crazy! I too had that same problem where the air was blowing out on my arms. I hope the pressue is okay. I slept okay with it until about 4AM, I think I had it on too tight because the bottom of my nose started really hurting, so I pulled it off and went back to sleep. Needless to say I don't feel much different today.

snork1 · Post by **snork1** » Tue May 24, 2005 6:15 pm

Try some searches of this forum under "Swift" for a LOT of very recent hints on the subject of making it more comfortable.

The air blowing on the arms is an unfortunate design choice. You can rotate the barrel a bit to get the air up, but that is limited by optimizing the fit to your nostrils with the same barrel rotation.

Basically I find with the several interfaces that use that direction for exhaust air, that you learn to get the sheet over your arm or position your arms to stay out of the air flow.

We adapt....since the interface designers do not.....sigh......

IWannaSleep · Post by **IWannaSleep** » Tue May 24, 2005 7:23 pm

Yes without the exhalation ports, you would end up re-breathing the same air over and over which would be very bad, since it would be mostly carbon dioxide after a few breaths. All masks have them which is why if you look at your data you will see a "leak" number, which minimally will include the normal flow of air out of the exhalation ports as it washes the used air out of the system. So, your leak will never be zero.

And yes the Swift unfortunately is designed to blow down the front of your body which many of us find annoying as it blows directly onto your arms. I am like you and used to sleep with my arms on top of the covers (unless I am cold). I now am adjusting my arms so that the air does not blow on them...as said, another adjustment you have to make to use the swift.

ron

gailzee · Post by **gailzee** » Tue May 24, 2005 9:18 pm

Yes, you will feel the swift exhalation blowing over you at some spot or other. You will get used to this. I also have taken the advice of others and bought the memory foam pillow which I am getting used to to help in me sleeping on my side which I prefer. Something else I bought was a 3" memory foam mattress topper. It has helped my back, which was giving me a lot of trouble since on apap, due to sleeping mostly on my back and not being a back sleeper. The memory foam has helped in the comfort dept.

[quote="sleepless in ny"]Well, I got my machine yesterday and used it for the first time last night. After the first hour or two of fiddling with the Mirage Swift nasal pillows I think I actually did pretty good.
I do have a question for anyone using the nasal pillow system. Does the slot for the exhalation bother you? It seems like the air was blowing on my arms all night. I don't usually sleep with my arms under the covers so it really bothered me. At first I thought that the pillows weren't sealed under my nose, but the respiratory therapist assured me that this was to remove the carbon dioxide that you exhale. Do all masks have this? I don't remember anything like this at the sleep clinic, but of course I didn't use the nasal pillow there.
I would also like to thank the person that suggested the memory foam pillow (for under your head, not your nose). I have never slept with anything other than a down pillow, so I was skeptical. I went to Wal-Mart and found a memory foam with down surrounding it. I love it.!!!!!

Tampa Tom · Post by **Tampa Tom** » Wed May 25, 2005 6:48 am

Funny, it never bothered me on my Swift. But then, I sleep with my arms under the covers, so that's not too big a problem for me...

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Wed May 25, 2005 11:28 am

I do have a question for anyone using the nasal pillow system. Does the slot for the exhalation bother you? It seems like the air was blowing on my arms all night. I don't usually sleep with my arms under the covers so it really bothered me.

That was the most bothersome thing to me about the Swift when I kept trying it over and over, thinking, "Darn, this really is a good mask, but I hate the way the exhaust hits my arm."

I recommend the Swift a lot to new users, simply because it is so easy to adjust and wear compared to many other masks. But I don't use the Swift myself. I much prefer the way the exhaust of the Breeze and the Aura point - especially the Aura's exhaust which goes straight up, the way an exhaust should go in order to not hit anything, including a bed partner.

Aura (with a lot of modifications) and the Breeze (with side straps down low) are my favorite nasal pillows masks.
_____________________________________
My disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, nor have I ever worked in the health care field. Those are just my personal opinions. A mask or machine I love/hate could be completely the opposite for others. Finding suitable equipment can be an expensive trial and error experience.

rock and roll · Post by **rock and roll** » Wed May 25, 2005 5:01 pm

While occationally my wife does tell me to turn over because of the air hitting her from my Swift, personally I love it and the air does not ever bother me. But I sleep with a ceiling fan on summer and winter and to me it is just more refreshing breeze to keep me cool. I could see this bothering cold blooded ladies though. By it's design though, I don't see how else it could vent though.

hrc54 · Post by **hrc54** » Wed May 25, 2005 9:23 pm

Hi-

i have the Tempur-Pedic pillows which I love. Is this memory foam pillow similiar?

Thanks-Bob

rock and roll · Post by **rock and roll** » Wed May 25, 2005 11:04 pm

Yes, the Temperpedic is the best known of the Viscoelasctic memory foam pillows around and the most expensive. There are some good ones for less such as Boyd and Hickory at Home.

One Night down--question on swift pillow

One Night down--question on swift pillow

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Re: One Night down--question on swift pillow

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