First night with Hybrid

[yardbird]

For me, this mask has some promise. I watched the instructional and fitting videos.... several times. I fiddled with combinations of parts.... several times. I think I got it pretty close but WOW does this thing leak! I don't think it was leaking so much from the mask seal or pillows, but I think the anti-suffocation valve was stuck open or something. At 8cm the manual says mask leak is around 40. Mine was 75! I will make some more adjustments and try again tonight. Last night wouldn't you know I got that little stinging irritation just inside the nares on one side. When that happens I'm done. I have to switch masks. So I switch to the CL2.

This morning I took a look at my data. Aside from the horrendous leaks it looks promising. When the mask leak was low (relatively), I had no hypopneas and no apneas. During 2 spikes of exceptionally high leak, I had a couple hypopneas but still no apneas. When I switched to the CL2 I had far more hypopneas and even a reported apnea (along with some mouth leaks).

My wife said I slept until I woke up to change masks. I'm not convinced that I slept WELL, but ..... I'll keep trying.

I will say that even with the excessive leak rates, the Intellipap maintained pressure extremely well. I must have worked it hard though.

Anyways... that's my first night with the hybrid in a nutshell. Gotta go to work.

See y'all later.

[roster]

YB,

Here are some tips for the Hybrid: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=14422&p=121169#p121169

What position(s) are you sleeping in?

[yardbird]

well... I've taken to falling asleep on my stomach. I end up on my side or my back, but I started falling asleep on my stomach because with the Swift, Swift II, Swift LT, I could fall asleep kinda with my chin over my folded arms and that would keep my mouth shut! Eventually I end up on my side or my back which is fine as long as I'm asleep.

I'm going to read that post in your link. I really want to give this mask some attention. Sometimes I think people give up too easily .... hey ... we all have different levels of tolerance, patience, frustration.... but for me, this is really a combination that I think can help if I can get it adjusted right. The nasal pillows that I love and the bottom half of a full face mask PLUS the chin flap (I left it on.... I didn't even notice it and it was very comfortable).

So we'll see. It's much more comfortable for me than the UMFF.

[yardbird]

Ok well actually I already had READ your post. During researching this mask I guess. I have the old head gear with this. Velcro on the top. Not the newer type with the buckle. I have to figure out where it's leaking. At 8cm the leak rate is published as around 40.... not the 75 I was seeing. So it has to be leaking somewhere. I checked the operation of the flap on the anti-suffocation valve this morning and it appears to be working perfectly. It just seemed like a LOT of air was moving last night.

[neverbetter]

Check the anti/suff valve and make sure it is not pushed to the side and that it will cover the hole when flat. Next, make sure the air holes are not the old ones from 2006 (unlikely), but you can call Innomed or Respcare and give them the numbers on your box and insert and they can tell you. The old holes were much bigger, but set off alarms on resmeds cpaps so the went conventional. If you bought on CPAP.COM, it's not an old one.
This mask is worth your trouble, trust me. Once you get it, you'll love it.

[cflame1]

yardbird... how you tell the old head gear from the new head gear... is the color!

gray and black is newer than black and black

[yardbird]

headgear is black and black so I know it's older. If I have a frame with holes that are too big, will they send me a new frame?

I mean it's either that or I'm going to plug a couple holes


I really want this to work. It was pretty comfortable and when it wasn't leaking to teh max it loked like I was getting great therapy from it.

[roster]

headgear is black and black so I know it's older. If I have a frame with holes that are too big, will they send me a new frame?

I mean it's either that or I'm going to plug a couple holes


I really want this to work. It was pretty comfortable and when it wasn't leaking to teh max it loked like I was getting great therapy from it.

I did not think of the old shell. Good point neverbetter.

I expect they will send you a new shell no charge.

I do consider that it takes more time to figure out sizes and adjust the headgear of the Hybrid as compared to other FF masks. But once I got it right, it became easier to adjust. Once properly adjusted, I go for many months without readjusting the headgear.

[yardbird]

Ughhh.... just awful. I made changes to the mask, adjusting this and that, fiddling with the headgear adjustment.

I had a terrible night. Leaking like mad. Apneas, Hypopneas. Felt like I was awake most of the night trying to get the Hybrid to stop leaking. Obviously my careful adjustments screwed things up worse. I'm not giving up. I'm trying again tonight after making still more changes. This mask is turning out to be a bit more finicky than some others I've used. But, again, it just shows too much promise to abandon it so easily.

So why am I writing again?

Hopefully it will help newbies understand that even though I've been on CPAP for about 10 years now, there may still be times when we struggle. Masks don't last forever and at some point you'll need a new one. And trying new things can be.... shall we say.... challenging. I can still fall back to another mask if I need a break from this one (meaning.... I'm not getting any sleep!), but I think if I can get it adjusted right, it could be a very nice mask.

So I'll keep trying...

[roster]

.......Obviously my careful adjustments screwed things up worse. .......

Are you using the ladies tights fix?

Something that helped me was to sit my machine on a counter in front of a mirror. Then I could adjust the mask while the machine was running and listen for leaks.

Repeating myself, it did take some nights of fiddling, but once I "got it right", the mask just never leaks or needs adjusting again.

Good luck,

[yardbird]

Actually.... nobody is home right now so I went up and changed the mask to large size face piece with large pillows. Standing by my machine with it on I get teh mask just right... lie down on the bed... leaks. Seems I am looking slightly down when I'm standing up fitting the mask. As I lie down my neck is more in a position of looking more straight ahead or slightly up (if that makes sense). If I adjust mask while neck is slightly bent down, and then get into normal sleeping position, the bottom straps pull tight and the top of the mask (with pillows) pulls away from my face a bit. Enough to cause leaks... maybe if I moved around a bit, it would also be enough to eventually dislodge a pillow from a nostril.

In any even, I have now made the rough adjustments while standing and then while lying down I loosened the bottom straps just a touch and tightened the top just a touch. When I had the Medium face piece in there last night I found that I could often stop leaks just by puckering my lips a little. Like my mouth was just on that borderline of being too wide for the medium face piece. So I went to the large. Looked at it in the mirror first (like the video) and it's a touch wider.

Lying on the bed I could go on my side, on my back, turn head from one side to the other while lying on my back... no leaks. Smile a little, relax... no leaks. Move jaw up and down a little, almost like chewing... no leaks. So I think this might be closer to the right configuration. Although I may still drop back to the medium pillows .... the large ones feel good now while I'm awake. How well they'll remain seated when I'm sleeping in them remains to be seen. I use the large pillows in all my Swift models and on the CL2 so using large pillows doesn't really surprise me any more. Even though I don't see myself as a large pillow person. *shrug* ... it is what it is.

[roster]

....... maybe if I moved around a bit, it would also be enough to eventually dislodge a pillow from a nostril. .........

Rested Gal's ladies' tights fix will handily prevent pillow dislodging.

[yardbird]

thanks... I'll see if I can get a band prepared ahead of time for tonight. I'd LIKE it to work without extra stuff, but I can't say I've ever complained about having my wife's leg wrapped around my head....

oh... that could be taken several different ways I think... oh well... it is what it is

[yardbird]

OK, Rooster, I'm counting on you for some advice here...

I tried the large pillows with the large face piece last night. This was MUCH more comfortable and I did not detect any leaking at the corners of my mouth as I had experienced with the medium-sized face piece.

So here's my issue...

I can't seem to get a balance between the top straps and the bottom straps that will prevent leaking from the bottom. At some point during the night I think I slide down so only half of my head is on the pillow. This causes my chin to tuck in towards my chest. This causes the bottom straps to loosen enough to let air escape down by the chin flap. Not from UNDER the chin flap, but rather from both edges of it.

If I tighten the bottom straps more, it pulls VERY tight when my head is in a normal position, causing the TOP of the Hybrid to pivot out away from my face. This dislodges the nasal pillows after a while. (Picture yourself hooking 2 fingers into your nostrils and pulling straight out!)

With my head/neck in a neutral position, this mask works nice and it's really comfortable.

I'm almost wondering if I should try sleeping without a pillow at all. My current pillow may be too firm.

[roster]

YB,

1. Your experience so far is similar to mine during the first two weeks. Part of success is perseverance as you already know.

2. Hose management is sometimes important because it can apply torque to the mask in certain positions. Although I personally haven't found hose management important in my case, it may be different for you. Sleeping on my side or back, I run the hose under the cover at navel level and then straight up to the mask. Sleeping on my tummy, I run the hose on top of the pillow above the crown of my head and then curve down to the mask.

3. Another tip is to read the instruction manual and my instructions over and over in front of the mirror with the machine running. I think I had Innomed's video and manual memorized at some point.

4. As words of encouragement let me say again I use the mask in back sleeping and sleeping on either side without problems. When tummy sleeping, I still have some problems with pull on the headgear and am trying to work that out. But I have recently slept many full nights on my tummy with the Hybrid.

5. You will find the new headgear is sturdier. If you start getting too frustrated, you may want to skip a couple of nights until the new headgear arrives.

BTW, in my younger days I once got it in my mind to be a yardbird. Gave that idea up. Damn farmer's kids kept squirting me with a watergun.