NOSE STRIPS ALTERNATIVE

[sleepless_johnny]

Hi:

I'm trying to start this thread looking for an alternative to the famous Breathe Right nose strips. Not to talk bad about the product, it's great, but it just didn't work for me. My nostrils are too closed and need a lot more pressure to stay open.

I'm new to this, since i just saw Dr. Park in New York. I flew from South America just to see him, and he, after seeing a thousand sleep apnea doctors in my country and in the US, i was told by him for the first time, that my nostrils are constricted, being that part of the cause of my sleep apnea, and that i need to use Breathe Right nose strips. I just used them with no success. They didn't make any difference and even being awake i can feel no more air passing through my nose, which i did when he pulled my nostrils wide open.

So i'm thinking, is there any other appliance that probably goes inside your nostrils and pull them wide open? Perhaps at an orthopedic store or on the web? I'm trying to be optimistic thinking that since this is a new diagnosis perhaps i'll sleep a little better using something to really open my nostrils. Does anybody know? I'd aprreciate any help. thanks!

John.

[49er]

Hi John,

Breathrite strips have not worked for me either. This product in which you insert into the nasal cavity looks interesting and is one I might try:

http://www.eden3000.com/

It looks like there is a money back guarantee. It doesn't look like there is an obvious way to determine size but the owner said if you send a picture of yourself, she would be able to tell by looking at it to give you the right information. Who knows?

49er

[Stanley56]

I've ordered one of these, but have not received it yet. I'll post about it after I've had a chance to try it out.

http://www.respifacile.com/

[49er]

I've ordered one of these, but have not received it yet. I'll post about it after I've had a chance to try it out.

http://www.respifacile.com/

Wow Stanley56, that looks very interesting. And I like the fact that you don't have to figure out the bleeping size to wear.

Please keep us posted.

49er

[ChicagoGranny]

sleepless_johnny

It is strange that no one asked you if you are a CPAP user.

[BlackSpinner]

sleepless_johnny

It is strange that no one asked you if you are a CPAP user.

Maybe because everyone assumed he is still in the diagnostic stage and being pro active.

[blueh2o]

I was using Breathrite but it was removing too much skin which is not good for sun exposure. Try Nozovent. Inserts in the nostril and applies outward pressure.

[drj130]

Looks like someone took the nose holders off a set of eyeglasses and stuck them on to some metal frame. I could be wrong, but it doesn't look like it would last long.

[DeadlySleep]

my nostrils are constricted, being that part of the cause of my sleep apnea,

Your nostrils could be completely closed (some people's are) and it would not cause sleep apnea - you would just breathe through your mouth. Your body would open your mouth reflexively - you don't even have to think about it.

perhaps i'll sleep a little better using something to really open my nostrils. Does anybody know?

If you have untreated sleep apnea, it won't make much difference.

I agree with Granny. Before your questions can be answered properly, we need to know if you are using CPAP and if so, some details like pressure settings, type of mask, machine model and anything out of the ordinary. It would help to know what else Dr. Park told you and a little summary of the severity and any peculiarities of your sleep apnea.

Without knowing more details, the recommendations you receive may be worthless or even harmful.

[49er]

Deadly Sleep,

I am not sure what the problem is. Nasal congestion is a well known contributory factor to apnea and since Dr. Park had advised him to get breath rite nasal strips and he was seeking alternatives, the suggestions were perfectly appropriate.

Since he seemed to infer in his post that he was either under treatment or in the diagnostic state, I saw no need to ask about whether he was on a machine since he didn't ask about it. And because he saw Dr. Park, I assumed those discussions were taken care of. No way was anyone suggesting these were substitutes for pap therapy.

By the way, if my nose was completely shut off, it would be impossible for me to use my machine. And I saw on one site that mouth breathing causes a narrow airway so again, nasal congestion isn't as benign as you think it is.

49er

[DeadlySleep]

Since he seemed to infer in his post that he was either under treatment or in the diagnostic state, I saw no need to ask about whether he was on a machine since he didn't ask about it. And because he saw Dr. Park, I assumed those discussions were taken care of.

"Assume" = ass u + me

By the way, if my nose was completely shut off, it would be impossible for me to use my machine.

As a stand alone statement this makes no sense. Plenty of us have used FFMs with completely clogged noses and just breathed through our mouths. Of course I don't know what kind of alien anatomy you have.

And I saw on one site that mouth breathing causes a narrow airway so again,

You have misinterpreted something you read. Mouthbreathing, from the age of a few months all the way through the end of physical development (generally age 18 or younger), will tend to cause a narrow airway to develop. As an adult the airway anatomy is set and mouthbreathing will not cause it to "grow narrower".

nasal congestion isn't as benign as you think it is

Do you read posts or do you just imagine what you want them to say?

I never mentioned nasal congestion and I never said anything is benign. I am well aware of the unhealthy nature of mouthbreathing. But if you can't breathe through your nose, you better damn well open your mouth and breathe.

You will be much more helpful to the forum if your advice moves more toward characterization by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole.

And that doesn't only go for you, it goes for many who post here.

[49er]

Thanks for such a polite reply Deadly Sleep But heck, your message wasn't a surprise since you criticized a previous post I wrote because it wasn't worded exactly right. In fact, I would have died of shock if you had responded in a nice manner.

49er

Since he seemed to infer in his post that he was either under treatment or in the diagnostic state, I saw no need to ask about whether he was on a machine since he didn't ask about it. And because he saw Dr. Park, I assumed those discussions were taken care of.

"Assume" = ass u + me

By the way, if my nose was completely shut off, it would be impossible for me to use my machine.

As a stand alone statement this makes no sense. Plenty of us have used FFMs with completely clogged noses and just breathed through our mouths. Of course I don't know what kind of alien anatomy you have.

And I saw on one site that mouth breathing causes a narrow airway so again,

You have misinterpreted something you read. Mouthbreathing, from the age of a few months all the way through the end of physical development (generally age 18 or younger), will tend to cause a narrow airway to develop. As an adult the airway anatomy is set and mouthbreathing will not cause it to "grow narrower".

nasal congestion isn't as benign as you think it is

Do you read posts or do you just imagine what you want them to say?

I never mentioned nasal congestion and I never said anything is benign. I am well aware of the unhealthy nature of mouthbreathing. But if you can't breathe through your nose, you better damn well open your mouth and breathe.

You will be much more helpful to the forum if your advice moves more toward characterization by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole.

And that doesn't only go for you, it goes for many who post here.

[Stormynights]

I've ordered one of these, but have not received it yet. I'll post about it after I've had a chance to try it out.

http://www.respifacile.com/

I ordered one of those and it won't stay in my nose. I contacted the company and didn't get a reply yet. It should last it is titanium but if it won't stay in it is worthless.

[SleepingUgly]

my nostrils are constricted, being that part of the cause of my sleep apnea,

Your nostrils could be completely closed (some people's are) and it would not cause sleep apnea - you would just breathe through your mouth. Your body would open your mouth reflexively - you don't even have to think about it.

Not necessarily. See this article

http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/22/5/827.full

in which "OSA" was experimentally induced in healthy subjects by occluding their noses, but not by occluding their mouths.

[SleepingUgly]

As an adult the airway anatomy is set and mouthbreathing will not cause it to "grow narrower".

Wrong again. Mouth opening most certainly can facilitate airway collapse. I'm sure how much it collapses varies from person to person, with some having such severe impact on their airway as to induce SDB by mouth opening alone. See this article by way of example:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2556917/

You will be much more helpful to the forum if your advice moves more toward characterization by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole.

And you will be much more helpful to the forum if you learn to write an intelligible sentence and stop criticizing everyone who doesn't agree with you. And let's face it, the ones who do "agree" with you are just your alter sock puppets, so they don't really count, do they, Granny?