Dry mouth and my evil mask !

illinigal · Post by **illinigal** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 12:20 pm

Hi ;;

from what I have read and the responses I got from my first post I feel like I have responded quickly and well to therapy even without support from my medical community...but suddenly I am struggling with a mask that fit 2 weeks ago and now is my worst enemy !

I used to put on the mask, minor adjustment and then drift off to sleep..maybe wake just once and readjust over my nose...I feel like I fight my mask all night long now...minor leaks.( like a soft breeze ) are now major whistling windstorms , waking me often.., my velcro adjustments come undone and of course then the mask falls or slips sideways...I sometimes wonder if I have pulled at my adjustment straps so much the past week especially , that maybe they are stretched to the limit.. I actually boiled the darn thing for 5 minutes this a.m in an effort to shrink it and then dried it on hot ! if its loose it slides off..if its tight it leaves awful deep marks on my face and I am getting a redness the shape of the mask on my face, Can you tell I am frustrated?

My numbers are still good..but they are rising..leaks from .18 up to .24 and last night .32..AI and AHI are up at about the same rate...not only would I like being able to get a full nights sleep again..I got to kinda liking that..but I am concerned that they will continue to get higher and I will undo all the good things that have hapened over the last few weeks.

Also the past 2 weeks I have been waking with such a dry mouth that sometimes my tongue seems stuck to the roof..I have increased the humidity with no change..

I have lost 30 lbs these last 5 months..could that be a factor? Also I see throught different support web sights that masks should be changed about 6 months..is one of the reasons why? Is the entire masks changed or just the big rubber mold and the gasket changed? ..I have the F & P Flex 432.

So all this rambling boils down to ..do you all feel I need a new mask , a different mask or just new gaskets? Despite the fact that my doctor and DME don't know much I will say that they are willing to listen and don'y seem to mind me bring snippets of information I have gotten from my own research. Why the sudden dry mouth? how come all the slipping and fighting?

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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): breeze, Titration, CPAP, DME, AHI

LavenderMist · Post by **LavenderMist** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 7:23 pm

You probably need a new mask. They tend to lose seal after a few months probably due to coming in contact with facial oils, washing the mask etc. It is also possible that your headgear has become stretched out. Check with your insurance company. Some replace masks every 3 mos and other every 6 mos. If you have lost weight it could have also have an effect on how your mask is fitting you. You may need a smaller size. Your DME should be able to resize you. Good luck and hope things get better for you so you get restful sleep again. There is nothing worse than fighting with a mask all night. I know from personal experience.

bdp522 · Post by **bdp522** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 7:54 pm

Try soaking the mask in a water:vinegar (1:3) for about 10 minutes, then rinse very very well. It seems to cut any oils and soap residue that may be left on the mask. Then you can buy heavy duty velcro to fix those straps if needed.

Brenda

alnhwrd · Post by **alnhwrd** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 9:06 pm

If you have lost a bunch of weight (congrats on that , by the way!) some of it might have been in your face and you might need a new mask. Or you could just need a new cushion. My insurance will pay for two cushions a months, but I have been using my current one for 6 months. If you have been using the same cushion for six months it might be worth a try to change it out.

ww · Post by ww » Sun Jun 01, 2008 9:39 pm

You get a dry mouth from breathing through your mouth, even with a full face mask. There are not many good full face masks, but ResMed seems to make a couple of them.There is a nice chart on cpap.com that shows the various full face masks. Several people seem to prefer the Ultra Mirage Full Face or the Quatro Full Face. Fitting to get the correct size is very important, particularly with the Ultra Mirage FF which uses three 3D templates to get the correct fit. Look here:
https://www.cpap.com/productpage/FlexiF ... #topxbrand Then click on the popularity graph over time and take a little time to read the reviews. It is not easy, but a good mask is ever bit as important as anything else to your therapy.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jun 02, 2008 4:57 am

Hi Ilinigil & All,

It seems as i have the same problems as you 're facing as listed.

1) Leaking increaseing over the time of last few weeks....after 6months on the same mask. Could this due to weight loss? Cushion quality degrated?

2) Dry mount more regular as well over last few months espacially now is winter time. Is where you live now much colder now? It seems like more rainout as well in m case. Are you?

3) I lost almost 8kg as well and nout sure this is the main cause of the leaking increase? and dry mount? for sure struggling at some nights due to all thee irritations.

Please share you opinion.

Rest Wishes,
Mckooi

don33taw · Post by **don33taw** » Mon Jun 02, 2008 5:16 pm

30 lbs? wow can I have your old mask?

RipVW · Post by **RipVW** » Mon Jun 02, 2008 8:24 pm

I've found that I need to change my cushion about every two months, or the seal just doesn't work as well.