I am DONE With Stupid CPAP! :(

[ThomasMcKean]

If they want me to wear this damn thing every night, that's fine. I really don't have a problem with it.

But until they give me a mask that doesn't leak, I ain't turning that machine back on. That means it'll be at least Monday. I am done trying all the tricks y'all are telling me. I am done reaching up every 30 seconds to adjust the mask. I am done being frustrated by this damn liberty that doesn't work. I don't need this frustration. If I had a mask that didn't leak, I'd have no problem with this. But since the mask does leak, I am just wasting my breath. And I mean that in the literal sense.

It's going back the case. NOW.

[Marietjie]

Oh, Thomas, I'm so sorry to read that you are SO cross with 'CPAP' and the leaks ! ! !
Hold on, someone here IS going to help you but in the meantime tell us what mask it is that you have.
I had to change from a nasal mask to nasal pillows. The nasal pillows work fine for me - it is just when I put my face in my sleeping pillow that I experience a leak. A nasty habbit of mine to do that - now I'm used to not roll my face in the pillow anymore.
Maybe it is a good idea if you could, in daytime check your mask for leaks - don't do this before bedtime - it will just upset you and you won't come right. Oh, I really feel so sorry for you - holding thumbs that you will very soon get help.
Greetings - Marietjie

[greenvelvetdragon]

Maybe it is a good idea if you could, in daytime check your mask for leaks - don't do this before bedtime - it will just upset you and you won't come right. Oh, I really feel so sorry for you - holding thumbs that you will very soon get help.
Greetings - Marietjie

Please Thomas don't give up, the above is an excellent suggestion. I just got a new mask, my first "new" mask since the original one I started cpap with and i too have had much trouble, so i started adjusting during the daylight hours, checking, fixing, tweaking etc and that has paid off. Many lovely people on this site will give you more positive encouragement and advice so hang in there!!!!

cheers
GVD

[Julie]

Thomas - the point is not that "they" want you to wear the mask, but that it's for your benefit. If the Liberty isn't working, what else have you tried?

[Guest]

Depending on how bad your sleep apnea is, could be a very costly move. Although you are not likely to die in your sleep (it does happen, however, just ask Reggae White about that) over time, cardiac enlargement, cardiac arrhythmias, stroke, and MI are likely. The fact that a successful CPAP user wakens with hours of quality (stage 4/5) sleep with brain, heart and other organs well rested and saturated with adequate oxygen levels is also a driving factor for compliance.

I work for the VA, we are very diligent in ensuring that a veteran's mask is properly sized AND fitted before they walk out the door. A proper mask fit is the primary factor in compliance. Other than the mask not fitting properly, high pressures also contribute to leakage. When this is the case, I use a RESMED ConfortFull GEL mask rather than the Respironics Mirage Quattro series that has a thinner silicone liner. It often helps.

Add quality years to your life and insist that your provider find a solution to the leaking issue.

[Gerald]

Well, Thomas........

Julie is right. What "they" want you to do is beside the point. You have to be convinced....all the way down to the end of your little toenails.....that CPAP is vital.

You have to take charge of your own therapy.....and if you can see no value in doing so, scrap the project. Get your will in order....and arrange your affairs so that your early death won't affect others in a negative way. Without CPAP, you're "going down"....and you need to arrange the "crash and burn" in such a way that the splatter won't make much difference to others.

[Sleepy Boy]

Hi Thomas: I have a question for you. I don't know what you did before cpap? But, are you ready to go back to whatever "THAT" that was?? If so, let me know what "THAT" was, maybe I'll try it. Untill then, some nights the "leaky" mask will win, but most nights, "I WIN"
Keep on Keepin' on.. Thanks, Larry...

[RipVW]

Oh, Thomas, I know we all feel your pain, been there. It does sound like your mask is just not working out for you, but know that most of us struggle with that issue. I have a drawer full of trials that I bought before finding the right one for me. If you end up having to purchase any of your trial masks, try cpapauction.com where you can often find them (new!) for around 1/2 the regular price. Good luck, and hang in there!

[plr66]

Thomas, if you're willing to try taping your mouth (with 2" blue painter's tape for delicate surfaces), I'd like to recommend that you try a Mirage Swift LT--and make sure that you ask the DME to loan you all 3 sizes of nasal pillows from the outset, so you can get it just right. This mask is "minimalist," simple to adjust, and seems to work for a large number of folks on this forum. As you know, one mask is not universally workable for everyone. But this one might increase your chance of success. The tape was amazingly easy for me to accept--and this is a fortunate thing for me since I do need it for effective therapy. Read up on taping, and do another search on the Swift LT. (The Optilife is similar, and is readily available on cpapauction.com for about half the price, though I personally found it less comfortable).

Turn that angry energy into continuing your previous constructive effort. You will get through this mask-hunt successfully if you remain determined and approach it with an attitude that this is a pragmatic process of steps in figuring it all out to best suit you.

[LinkC]

Well, Thomas, your options would seem to be keep on with CPAP until you get the mask issues sorted out; or leave your OSA untreated. If you prefer constant fatigue, loss of memory and/or concentration, and risk of stroke/heart attack, then there's your answer.

The good news is, you probably won't have to live with those symptoms as long as you'll live with CPAP...

[ozij]

Thomas, you have a machine, and you have a mask.
The mask you have now doesn't work for you.
It could be the wrong mask for you.

Each of us has to work at making even the right mask work for us. It's not intellectual work: it's not something that has a right answer - its not as though anyone can tell which is the right mask for your face.

You know from your own experience that something that is great for one person, is terrible for the other.
You've learned to use all kinds of adaptations to help you along the way - like the teether on you key ring.

You will have to treat your masks and their leaks as problems which you alone can solve by trial and error. Sadly, nobody can give you a mask that will fit.

When you buy shoes - do you make sure they fit you feet? I sure hope you do. Same with finding the right mask.
It's very frustrating - much more difficult than finding the right shoe - but it will be OK - eventually. When you have a new mask in hand, put your mind to it, analyse it, try to figure out what will make the mask fit better. And do it sometime when you're wide awake - not when you're dying to sleep.

A leak is not a sign of success or failure: it is information. When people post their results here, it is in order to get advice on how to make things better, or sometimes as a way of sharing how bad, or how good things were .

The Liberty is a difficult mask: according to cpap.com "127 People have Purchased this Insurance and 40.63% Have Returned the Mask"
Of the Quattro, on the other hand, cpap.com reports "521 People have Purchased this Insurance and 30.84% Have Returned the Mask"

O.





I

[kteague]

Ahhh, Thomas, I was hoping you'd be one who took to this like a duck out of water since you were so willing and even eager to get started, and now you've got mask issues - RATS! If I understand you correctly, you plan to not use the machine tonight and then tomorrow you'll get a different mask to try. Do take as many precautions as you can tonight. Elevate the head of your bed just a few inches and sleep on your side. A quick easy way to elevate your head is to roll up a blanket and place it across the top of the bed between the mattress and box spring. Don't just use extra pillows as they shift and the resulting neck positions can make matters worse.

I don't advocate taking a night off, but to be honest, I quit for a few months when I couldn't get help before I found this site. But every night I was miserable and even scared, so with lots of prodding from my new friends here I kept plugging away until things did finally fall into place. Sorry to hear you've had a disappointing start. Hope it gets better soon.

Kathy

P.S. Enjoyed the photos you linked to in another thread.

[N6CRV]

Hello Tom, not sure if you read my post but I'm was/am having the same trouble with the Liberty. The Small is to small and the Large is to big. I tried something yesterday and got a GREAT nites sleep. Got some Macks ear plugs made a thin rope out of a couple then stuck, flatten them to the seal on the Liberty. Last night it did not leak and was kind of stuck on my face. If they hold up for a week at a time it will be great. When I went to take the mask off this morning I had to peal it off. I could see where every leak would of been in the silicone.
Good luck
Don

[Marietjie]

Thomas, Hi again, just remembered something - If you do change your mask - when trying it on lie on a bed (and pillow) with the new mask - standing up is not the right position to try a different mask. Many of us (as you've read) make our own changes to solve leak problems by using tape, silicone earplugs (rolled up and pressed on leaks) O-rings (nasal pillows) etc. with success.
Please let us know how it is going.
Good day!

[carbonman]

Thomas, life is dynamic.
I don't think anyone needs to remind you of that.

I hasn't been easy for any of us.

Patience, perseverence and persistance......you know these things.

There may be another book here:
Soon will come the sleep: A view from inside the CPAP puzzle.
Just a thought.

Failure is deadly,
the rewards of success are great.

It's a journey.
Go the distance.