Headrest/Aura headgear is HUGE!

[RosemaryB]

I have a small head, but not tiny. I have been trying the Headrest/Aura and am loving it, except that the headgear is somewhat too loose. I have the velcro straps so they are as tight as possible and it's still too loose. I run out of velcro. I'm using the pantyhose, but if that headgear stretches out the least tiny bit, it won't work. (The velcro has only a few teeth holding it as it is).

I looked at some of the posts but did not see this mentioned. Perhaps I missed it. If there are any fixes out there, I'd love to know about them. I haven't decapitated it or anything yet. I'm still not sure I understand that fix either, but one step at a time.

When people say that they don't design these masks for women, they aren't kidding with this one!

[kteague]

I think it has been mentioned that this headpiece runs large. It was loose on me also. I did end up deconstructing it just because I didn't like the rubber next to my head on these hot summer nights. Even before that I still reinforced it with a strap around the nose and another one higher to stabilize the unit.

I now take my pantyhose tights strap at about hairline level and wind it over the bar on one side, under the tubing, then back up over the bar on the other, then tie it in the back of my head. Really anchors the whole thing.

Good luck at getting the quirks worked out.

Kathy

[rested gal]

I run out of velcro. I'm using the pantyhose, but if that headgear stretches out the least tiny bit, it won't work. (The velcro has only a few teeth holding it as it is).

I know exactly what you mean, Rosemary. If I wear it with the headgear, I have to take it up until there's just a tiny smidgen of velcro holding each strap.

I think College Girl folded and either pinned or stapled the velcro of the back strap to take it up more. My problem wasn't just that strap around the back. The side straps were too long, too.

The fact that the headgear is a little too loose on many women's heads (and some men's) has been brought to the attention of Aeiomed repeatedly ever since the Headrest mask first came out under its original name "Aura."

Last year they finally did something (they thought!) about it. They added an extra slot in the buckle of the back strap to let that strap be taken up more...about 1/16th of an inch more! LOL!!! Talk about a drop in the bucket. Nothing was done about the length of the two straps that are on the top sides of the head. So, they had their chance to fix the size issue, but let the chance slip by. The revised headgear (only revision to the headgear was that silly extra slot in the buckle) STILL couldn't be taken up enough.

Believe me, I contacted Aeiomed more than once about the headgear size. Even brought it up again when I trialed the "new" headgear as the straps still couldn't be taken up enough.

When people say that they don't design these masks for women, they aren't kidding with this one!

Yup.

Thank goodness for pantyhose tights!!

With a homemade strap (the leg cut off a pair of pantyhose tights) stabilizing the whole thing, I can wear it with its own headgear. But if I'm going to have to add an extra strap or two anyway, I'd just as soon not have the headgear simply perched up there doing nothing, so... I took the headgear completely off and use just my homemade straps. Been using it that way, sans headgear, for two years now. Love it.

[Snoredog]

How MANY wraps of duct tape did you use?

Think it only takes 5

[Born Tired]

Hi Rose,

The following is what I wrote quite a while back when this topic came up:

"I shortened the strap (that goes around the base of your head) by pinching up a portion of the fuzzy part of the strap, then folding it over and using a safety pin to hold it in the shortened position. This made it short enough that the hooks on the velcro were able to grab onto the fuzzy fabric. It makes a slight lump where it is pinned, but since I am rarely on my back it doesn't bother me. (I kept thinking I would cut it and stitch it so it would be smooth, but that never happened. ) This made the headgear fit snug enough so I didn't need to use the homemade strap around the nose. I almost never had to adjust it once it was set. Just popped it on and off like a baseball cap--well except for the nasal pillows thingy. The worst part for me was the hat hair in the mornings. Which is why after well over a year I have finally deconstructed my beloved Aura. It's not bad this way but I did really like the feel (of nothing on my face) and ease of donning and removing it with the headgear. Who knows--in time I may love the deconstructed model as much as RG and Linda."

It has now been over a month that I have used the deconstructed version with a variety of straps. At present I am using the headgear (lightweight strapping) from a Tiara nasal prong system (couldn't deal with the prongs). The hair problem is almost eliminated, and I have rigged part of the strap to act as a built in chin strap (which I always have to use--taping didn't work for me). "

Well, it has been 9 months now, and I'm still using the same "rig". I do need to replace my nasal pillows soon, but the Aura/Headrest is still the best for me.
Esther
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[RosemaryB-guested]

Thanks, everyone!

RG, I'm not quite ready to deconstruct it yet. If I find out it's way better than everything else, I'll do that and be ready to get another as a backup just in case. You were right, I do love the way it lets my cheek be supported by my bed pillow instead of hanging my face off the side of the pillow, which gives my neck some problems. It's the most comfortable sleep yet. My AHI is somewhat higher than with the Nasal Aire II, though. It may be a matter of adjusting to the mask. Last night I had a straight leak line with a single blip and the leak rate was exceedingly low. This was with the pantyhose strap in place. (And my new mouthband/taping combo).

Esther, thanks for the tip on how you handled this. I'm going to try this and see how it works for me. I do like the idea of using it without the PH strap so I can pop it off and on easily if I get up during the night. I'm sure in the summer this headgear would be hot, so I may deconstruct it for summer. Or if it starts to make my hair thin (it's already a bit on the skimpy side).

Snoredog, they make prom dresses and tuxes out of duct tape. Someone here may try duct tape headgear yet. At least it would be custom made and you could choose different colors to match your PJs.

[CollegeGirl]

Hi Rosemary

Yes, the headgear is ENORMOUS. RG is right, I modified it.

What I did is bought some self-stick Velcro at Walmart. I stuck the very end of it to the end of the velcro already on the headgear, and ran about 2 1/2 inches of the self-stick stuff up the plastic headgear strap. Since it won't stick to the actual headgear strap (material it's made out of just won't stick) I used a safety pin to pin the top end where I wanted it. I've worn it like this for more than a year now and never had a problem with the safety pin coming undone or anything. Let me know if you need pictures or further description.

Good luck!

[JZ]

Rosemary,

Here is how I am managing my non-decapitated Aura/Twilight. First I am using jcarn's rubber band fix to help snug up the nasal pillows:

viewtopic.php?t=5962

I have the upper side straps as tight as possible before running out of velcro. Then I use my panty hose strap at just above ear level. In the front the panty hose strap runs across where the pillows attach (about an inch below the exhaust port). I am going to try Kathy's method for the panty hose strap and see how that works for me.

The lower side straps were completely loose and of no assistance. I thought I was going to be smart. I cut through those straps and was about to put adhesive backed velcro on them so they would overlap to whatever tightness I needed. Too bad I didn't check first to see if the velcro adhesive would stick to the strap material. It wouldn't.

I think, though, it might be possible to add a little strip of adhesive backed loop velcro on the upper side straps where the loop velcro ends so those straps could be tightened more.

This mask is worth messing with for side sleepers. Everytime I turn on my side (and am still awake), I go, ahhhh - how nice.

Janna

[JZ]

CG,

If you can post pictures, I sure would like to see them.

By the way, I was "talking" in the chatroom the other night with Karen Moore (padacheek). She said she thought maybe she needed to create a forehead pad for decapitated Aura users. So those of you who have decapitated and are using a variety of items for pads may want to let her know if you are interested. Even if you have a workable pad, you could be more stylish with a padacheek.

Janna

[RosemaryB]

Wow! Lots of good stuff to try this weekend. Thanks, everyone .
I'll let you all know what works. I'd be interested in seeing the pictures, College Girl.

Does a leak rate of 18.05 at a pressure of 8.5 H2O sound right to any of you? I can't read that small chart for anything. It seems like it should be higher. But that's with a straight line and only one small blip. Still, I'm wondering about the CO2, which I don't understand too well, but seems like it might be important. My AHI is slightly higher with this mask than with the Nasal Aire II, though it might just be that I need to give it a bit more time.

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