Help! Taking my mask off EVERY night!!!

[kevster324]

This has happened each and every night since I first got my machine in Feb. of this year. I am fully concious and aware when I take it off, but I can't keep myself from doing this. It usually occurs around 4:00-4:30 AM. I had nasal pillows until last month when I switch to a Quattro FX FFM. I thought that maybe switching masks would solve the problem, but no such luck. I'm sure this is a redundant topic, but I haven't seen anything posted here on it, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Any help is GREATLY appreciated.

[freshair]

using a face mask comes easy to some, and others find it hard to adapt, but you got to keep going on to get the prize, I use to wear the Quattro Mirage and it drove me nutz and I was taking it off because I was having visions of that alien thing in the "ALIENS" attached to my face, wore it for 9 mos and I was getting some benefits from it, I switched to the Quattro FX and I very seldom take it off during the nite, I think wat happens to me is that i'm a side sleeper and i use these king size feather tick pillows and i bury my face into them and blocking off my bypass air and then i take it off but I do wake up and i put it back on, another thing i did was made an elastic hanger off my high head board to keep the hose up above my head and this helps alot also because i don't roll over on my hose which could cause the mask to move and lose your seal--FA

[LSAT]

This has happened each and every night since I first got my machine in Feb. of this year. I am fully concious and aware when I take it off, but I can't keep myself from doing this. It usually occurs around 4:00-4:30 AM. I had nasal pillows until last month when I switch to a Quattro FX FFM. I thought that maybe switching masks would solve the problem, but no such luck. I'm sure this is a redundant topic, but I haven't seen anything posted here on it, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Any help is GREATLY appreciated.

If you know that you are taking the mask of around 4:00-4:30 you must be partially awake...Put the mask back on.

[nanwilson]

Tape it to your face or tie a strap of sorts around your head.....make sure you don't block your exhilation ports though.

[HoseCrusher]

You could try playing a psychological game with yourself...

When you take the mask off at 4:00, get out of bed and start your day. Remind yourself that the next night you will try to go a little longer.

When you end up taking a nap that day, strap the mask on and take your nap.

Eventually you may convince yourself to keep your mask on all night.

[mebeingme]

do not tape the mask on! Put your mask on then add a chin strap. Try turning up your humidifier.

[DaveMunson]

When I woke up taking my mask off I discovered it was because I could not breath. Not enough air. I had to get the mask off so I could breath. Once I found out why, the fix was easy.

Turned out in the middle of the night I needed a higher setting on my machine.

[archangle]

Why are you taking it off? Suffocating feeling, other discomfort, etc.?

Try getting up and not going back to bed until you're ready to put the mask back on.

[Gerald]

You may be taking it off because your sub-conscious (the brain that's "in charge" while we're sleeping) is not fully convinced that you need CPAP therapy...or that you'll die an early death without it.

Sell the CPAP therapy idea to your sub-conscious and you won't have any more problems.

G

[hosehead_dolphy]

I do not take my mask off everynight, but I have about 4 times since I started using my CPAP. I started about 2 months ago. What is really strange though, is I took my mask off last night. I do not even remember doing it. But when I took the mask off, I even took it apart! I woke up realizing I was not wearing my mask and I picked it up to put it back on. Then I realized I had to put it back together! I thought wow, how did this happen? I do not remember any of this! LOL So I put it all back together and went back to sleep! Has anyone else done this?

[Alshain]

I've been having this problem for the last 2 weeks all of the sudden as well. The difference is I'm not consciously doing it. Also, I'm not simply knocking it off, so I don't think a strap will work. I wake up and find my mask neatly put away where in belongs when it's not in use and the tubing coiled up next to the machine and then wonder "How the hell did that happen?" It's like sleep-walking... except it's "sleep-putting-your-mask-away-and-turning-off-your-CPAP".

[hosehead_dolphy]

LOL but I didnt turn my machine off and I didnt put it away.. maybe I was getting ready to clean it LOL who knows.. I blamed my hubby and said he did it!

[Alshain]

LOL but I didnt turn my machine off and I didnt put it away.. maybe I was getting ready to clean it LOL who knows.. I blamed my hubby and said he did it!

Lol, I'm single and live alone. I could blame my two cats but even working together... with the lack of an opposable thumb... I don't know....

[hosehead_dolphy]

After having a CPAP and finding out I have been taking my mask off at night, really makes me wonder what else I have done at night while asleep LOL

[robysue]

This has happened each and every night since I first got my machine in Feb. of this year. I am fully concious and aware when I take it off, but I can't keep myself from doing this. (emphasis added)

You say you are FULLY CONSCIOUS and AWARE of what you are doing when you take the mask off. That means you are also FULLY RESPONSIBLE for your actions. Saying you can't keep yourself from doing it is a cop out: You are making a CONSCIOUS choice here to do what you WANT to do instead of what you KNOW you SHOULD do. Rather like a severely overweight diabetic who tries to pay attention to their diet, but "can't resist" eating the cookies, candy bars, and ice cream every day.

And the solution is obvious: It's called will power. Will power is the ability to do what you know NEEDS to be done even when it is HARD, DIFFICULT, and even UNCOMFORTABLE instead of doing what is easy and comfortable and apparently desirable. And you need to develop some will power here.

Because right now your conscious brain (at least at 4:00 am) does not really and truly believe that you need to sleep with that mask on ALL NIGHT, every night. You are indeed choosing to behave in a manner that indicates that you (emotionally? or irrationally?) believe that if you make it to 4:00 or 4:30 with the mask, that you are entitled to reward yourself with a "treat" of sleeping the rest of the night sans mask. And that's why the pattern continues and continues and continues.

What to do? I think HoseCrusher has the right idea when he says:

You could try playing a psychological game with yourself...

When you take the mask off at 4:00, get out of bed and start your day. Remind yourself that the next night you will try to go a little longer.

When you end up taking a nap that day, strap the mask on and take your nap.

Eventually you may convince yourself to keep your mask on all night.

By getting OUT of bed at a time you DON'T want to be awake, you take that "reward" of sleeping sans mask away from yourself. By strapping the mask on during your nap (if you need one), you are reinforcing to your CONSCIOUS mind as well as your unconscious mind and body that Time to Sleep = Time to Mask Up.

By exchanging the mental "reward" of allowing yourself to sleep sans mask for a "punishment" of getting out of the bed if you can't stand the thought of continuing to wear the mask at 4:00AM, your CONSCIOUS mind, your unconscious mind, and your body should all start learning to avoid the "punishment" by sleeping longer WITH the mask instead of responding to the current "reward" by continuing to wake up every morning at 4:00--4:30 and allowing your conscious mind to "reward" itself by taking the mask off.

Now another part of the puzzle is hinted at by others: If you can identify WHY you feel compelled to take the mask off every morning at 4:00, then you can work on addressing those issues. Because ANY identifiable UNCOMFORTABLE cause for taking off the mask such as:

• I feel like I'm suffocating
  I have serious rainout issues
  I have aerophagia that's waking me up
  I have serious leaks that wake me up, etc

can be tackled by problem solving with plenty of help from others---IF you make the CONSCIOUS decision at 4:00AM to keep the mask on and WORK on the solution to the problem instead of simply taking the mask off so you can get more sleep.