FINALLY Found A Chinstrap That WORKS!

[SleepingUgly]

Now I have tape, chinstrap and a full face mask!! What's wrong with this picture?!!

There is something wrong with that picture! Can you use nasal pillows? Why did I think you were using the Activa LT?

I don't like the itchy-hot review of the chinstrap!

[OutaSync]

I used the Activa, then the Activa LT for a cuple of years and switched to the SoftGel when it came out. The SoftGel was more comfortable on the upper teeth, not so much on the nose. I have to put tape over the bridge and then use the padacheek mask liner to keep from blistering, but I still get pressure sores. The problem that I have with taping my mouth shut is that it puts my lips in between my teeth and I clamp down on them throughout the night. I can't pull the chinstrap tight enough to keep my jaw completely closed.

I don't have high hopes for this chinstrap, especially after hearing that it didn't work for RG. The thing looks huge and I have a small head with a large nose.

[SleepingUgly]

Maybe we are long lost twins?!

[OutaSync]

I knew that mom was keeping something from me!

[nanwilson]

BBBBuuuutttttt - one of you is blue.
N

[OutaSync]

Can you use nasal pillows?

Sorry, I missed that the first time.

I've tried 4 different brands of pillows and it seems that my nares are unusually long and narrow, and no size will fit without constant leaking. Now that I'm aware of things like nares, I have never seen anyone with nares as long and narrow as mine. Yet another thing I was totally oblivious to before CPAP.

[Country4ever]

Rested Gal..........did you feel like the air just went out through the material? Or did it not keep your cheeks from blowing out? Just curious where exactly your problem was with it.
Thanks.

[rested gal]

Rested Gal..........did you feel like the air just went out through the material?

Yes. If my mouth opened (which it would and did) I could breathe in and out through the material. By halfway through the night, the material over my mouth was getting damp with saliva.

Or did it not keep your cheeks from blowing out?

It could handle that all right... could keep my cheeks flat. But was a very bulky way to accomplish that, compared to the chin strap I had been using.

Just curious where exactly your problem was with it.

It was bulkier than what I normally use. I use tape and a wide white Respironics chin strap that I've covered with fleece. I could have gotten used to the bulkiness if it had done what I needed done -- if it could have kept air from gushing out of my mouth. I need an absolute, leakproof dam -- tape. Since the "Ultimate" could not hold the air back, I would have had to use tape or some kind of nonporous barrier under it after all. Since my usual chin strap is comfy and not as bulky, I went back to my old one.

For some people, who need only a touch of "something" pressing against their lips to keep the air from gushing out, and/or need only to keep the jaw from dropping, Russell's invention would work well. For a hardcore breathes-through-mouth-when-sleeping-even-with-chin-strap person like me, it just couldn't get the job done. I've tried a lot of things (including the "PAPcap") and nothing works as consistently well for me as tape and a padded chinstrap.

I don't doubt Russell's "Ultimate" chin strap would work fine for many people. It is nice soft material. There's just...a lot of it.

[Country4ever]

Thanks Rested Gal,

Sounds exactly like what might happen to me. And I wonder.....seems like re-breathing in that air that has been held back by the material, could present some CO2 problems. I've used blue painter's tape for several years and it works great. But recently someone here posted something from the company that said not to use it on the skin. I used to use paper tape, but it would tear my skin.......so now I'm searching for other alternatives. Dang. I hate it when you find a great solution and the solution has its own health risks!
Thanks for sharing your experience with me.
P.S.....what kind of tape do you use?

[howkim]

I am now the proud owner of a prescription for an Ultimate Chin Strap.

My sleep doc was adamant yesterday that we have to do SOMETHING to get my large leaks under control or I'd have to have another sleep study. Thinking about that after my appointment, I decided that given the choice between another sleep study and another colonoscopy, I'd take the colonoscopy.

[rested gal]

P.S.....what kind of tape do you use?

3M Blue Painter's tape. Have been using it for several years and will continue to use it, despite the warning on the label.

[SleepingUgly]

P.S.....what kind of tape do you use?

3M Blue Painter's tape. Have been using it for several years and will continue to use it, despite the warning on the label.

RG, why do I have the feeling you enjoy using it all the more because of the warning?

[rested gal]

P.S.....what kind of tape do you use?

3M Blue Painter's tape. Have been using it for several years and will continue to use it, despite the warning on the label.

RG, why do I have the feeling you enjoy using it all the more because of the warning?

Don't know why you have that feeling. Actually, I'd rather it didn't have that warning, and I'll "enjoy" less my use of it. Not that I've ever "enjoyed" using tape of any kind. I do enjoy using my favorite mask, though...and for me that means...I'll keep using tape. Of some kind.

Weighing the possible risks in the warning on the Blue Painters tape vs how well it works for me compared to other tapes I've used...I choose to simply continue using it.

That's it in a nutshell. Maybe I'm nuts.

[archangle]

I am now the proud owner of a prescription for an Ultimate Chin Strap.

My sleep doc was adamant yesterday that we have to do SOMETHING to get my large leaks under control or I'd have to have another sleep study. Thinking about that after my appointment, I decided that given the choice between another sleep study and another colonoscopy, I'd take the colonoscopy.

I don't think that would really work as an apnea treatment unless you figure out how to close off the nose and mouth at the same time.

[SleepingUgly]

I wonder if it's a blanket "cover our A$$" labeling thing that is found on everything, or if there is something in particular about that tape... I wonder if other tapes say the same thing. If other tapes from the same manufacturer don't say that, I would be suspicious of that tape; however, if others do say that, maybe it's just the manufacturer's attorneys being careful.