Cpap vs second hand smoke.

[Peter2477]

When using a CPAP machine, does second hand smoke increase the amount you are breathing in? Plus it gives me a really bad headache and dry throat.

[SleepDisturbed]

Yuck! I can't even imagine trying to use a cpap in a smoking environment. I don't know that is any worse for you than just normal breathing, but second hand smoke can kill you, so isn't that bad enough?

Get whoever it is to stop! Number one best thing in the world for your and their health that you can do.

[Julie]

What comes through the machine to you is the same air you breathed before putting on the mask, plus the benefit of the filter(s). If you have trouble with the smoke - mask or no mask - that needs to be dealt with separately. And you want to check your leak rate, whether with SleepyHead software (or whatever you're using), whether the dryness could also be due to your mask not fitting well, or the fact you may be using a nasal mask vs a full face one if you sleep with your mouth open and lose Cpap air that way.

[LSAT]

Once that smoke gets into the machine it's v e r y difficult to get it out.

[Peter2477]

Yes it's very hard to get out. I'm a non smoker. When I visit my mom her roommate smokes. I'm not sure how to tell him that this is life or death for me when it comes to a sleep disorder. The roommate is think headed and set in his ways about smoking. I just need away to tell him that he needs to stop smoking in the house. Any idea's?

[Julie]

A short time (? few hrs) of 2nd hand smoke ?? once a week is not going to impact your OSA/Cpap. Just isn't.

[webbie73]

Yes it's very hard to get out. I'm a non smoker. When I visit my mom her roommate smokes. I'm not sure how to tell him that this is life or death for me when it comes to a sleep disorder. The roommate is think headed and set in his ways about smoking. I just need away to tell him that he needs to stop smoking in the house. Any idea's?

Not sure how it is anymore of a life and death issue for you than anyone else. With or without cpap you will have the same exposure as everyone in the house. Not to sand harsh but a week here and there is not a lot of exposure.

[BlackSpinner]

Make a stand - visit but don't sleep there. If they don't like it it is their problem.
I had a brother in law who smoked - I walked out with my daughter before xmas dinner because I was not prepared to deal with his selfishness.

[Tatooed Lady]

Unfortunately, MANY people (myself included, when I smoked) are a-holes about smoking, as it's "their right" and non smokers need to "deal with it". Now that I'm on the other side of the fence, I find that I'm VERY touchy about smoke odors...they make me gag. 5 minutes of exposure to a group of drivers smoking just outside the front door of our terminal (smoke wafting into the building, I was never closer than about 40' away) had my sinuses burning and the icky smell of secondhand smoke in my hair, clothing and on my skin. I felt icky til I showered last night.
If you have an issue with a roomie, MAYBE to suggest smoking take place outside or only in his/her room with a window open to vent would be workable. The tar coats EVERYTHING...think of all the crud that gets sucked into the TV, stereo, computer...ever see windows in a car where someone smokes heavily? Or walls in a house of a smoker? Like I said...I used to. Don't anymore. I'm now just an intolerant old biddy, when it comes to fresh air being compromised.

[Hosehead4ever]

My machine seems to pick up odors quite easily. My mother has a farm and her house smells like male goats in rut (similar to skunk), mostly because it gets on clothing and shoes and never comes out. I've never gotten the smell of it out of my old machine. I wouldn't dare use my new machine in a smoker's house. Though, to be honest, as a former smoker, I can't be around it without cravings so I wouldn't go into a house where someone smoked indoors. YMMV Hopefully you and your mother can get this worked out so the smoker either smokes outside or your mom finds a new roommate, if possible. In any case, I wouldn't expose my machine to that, much less my lungs.

[Nick Danger]

I agree with spinner. Visit, but stay at a motel. It is a bit selfish of your mother's roommate to smoke, but it is, after all, their home. I assume it is important to you to spend time with your mother, so you definitely want to visit.

[archangle]

The CPAP shouldn't make the smoke problems any worse. Without CPAP, you'll be breathing the same air as without. Your machine may smell of smoke for a while after your visit.

A backup CPAP machine is a good idea anyway. You might watch your local Craigslist for a cheap CPAP to keep as a backup, and use the backup machine when you're in stenchville.

[Krelvin]

Unfortunately, smoke causes me issues period. If there is a smoker in the home/office, I'm not going to be there. We have a few relatives that still smoke (another state), and I meet them somewhere other than their home due to the issues it causes. Simply not worth the time it takes to recover from it.

Ex smoker myself (quit Aug 1st 1980) , and I am a royal A*hole about it as I know what damage it did to me and what it does with even some second hand smoke now.

[InsomniacGuy]

Having recently purchased a 1.3 blower hour machine from a smoking household -- well, it did sit in the household for over 16 months, I can attest to the difficulty in eliminating the smoke odor. The seller threw in the masks, and everything that is silicone -- mask parts and machine parts -- seems to absorb smoke into the actual material. Even after soaking those parts for a week now, it's only 60% better.

[chunkyfrog]

Seal all the silicone in an airtight bag or container, along with a clean cloth (not touching the silicone) that you can spray
with Ozium a couple times a day. In a few days, the smell should be almost, if not completely gone.