Need info on 2 masks

Hi Everyone

First, I want to thank everyone for all the advice and support I have received thus far on this forum. It has been invaluable. Now I need to decide between which of 3 masks to purchase next. To Those of you who are unfamiliar with my saga: I have had my machine for about 6 weeks now. I have not been able to use it much when sleeping, only while awake. I have mask problems. So far I have tried the Sleepweaver ANEW (won't stay on my face, it is a small, but headgear is huge on me.) Tried 2 other nasal masks - same problem - huge on my face. The best ones were the Resmed P10 and Swift FX (very comfortable) nasal pillow masks. But I cannot use a nasal mask because my jaw is receded and my lips won't stay closed because of an overbite. Can't use chinstraps because my jaw is too delicate, damaged by a drug called Fosamax. I have tried taping my mouth and was able 2 night to get a few hours sleep on the machine but kept waking up more than I would normally, terrible night's sleep. So not a sustainable option. Some of you recommended a soft cervical collar and I have one on order, but am not optimistic. Basically the way my life has been is to struggle 2 or 3 nights with masks and machine, not sleeping hardly at all because of problems with air in my mouth or stomach and then not using the machine for 2 nights just to get some good sleep.

As an aside, I don't have OSA, but probably have UARS. I am mainly trying to solve a problem with acid reflux happening ONLY during my REM sleep, when my stomach would be completely empty. I have been to many specialists and this acid problem at night has always been a mystery for over 20 years. It was partly due to a parathyroid problem, for which I had surgery 3 years ago. It got better but did not go away. Several doctors I know (my husband and brother-in-law are both doctors) thought it could be a sleep breathing issue during deep sleep. That is the main reason I got this machine. My airway is small, jaw receded, typical of someone with sleep breathing problems. The GOOD news is that, even using the machine only part of the night has been very successful in keeping the acid away, so it would seem that is the issue. I just wish I could use it all night every night. I think I could if I could just solve the mask issue. I am now thinking I will need some type of full mask, but so far the "small" in the 2 masks I have tried have been too large for me. So I probably need a "for her".

I searched this website for discussions about masks for those people with small, narrow jaws and receded chins. I came up with the Respcare hybrid (does not come in a for her)and the Resmed Ultra Mirage for that. Can anyne talk about those in relation to my facial type. Maybe I need to post a picture of myself. I am also considering the resmed F10 FF mask because it comes in a small "for her". Any suggestions would be appreciated.

PEF wrote:Hi Everyone

First, I want to thank everyone for all the advice and support I have received thus far on this forum. It has been invaluable. Now I need to decide between which of 3 masks to purchase next. To Those of you who are unfamiliar with my saga: I have had my machine for about 6 weeks now. I have not been able to use it much when sleeping, only while awake. I have mask problems. So far I have tried the Sleepweaver ANEW (won't stay on my face, it is a small, but headgear is huge on me.) Tried 2 other nasal masks - same problem - huge on my face. The best ones were the Resmed P10 and Swift FX (very comfortable) nasal pillow masks. But I cannot use a nasal mask because my jaw is receded and my lips won't stay closed because of an overbite. Can't use chinstraps because my jaw is too delicate, damaged by a drug called Fosamax. I have tried taping my mouth and was able 2 night to get a few hours sleep on the machine but kept waking up more than I would normally, terrible night's sleep. So not a sustainable option. Some of you recommended a soft cervical collar and I have one on order, but am not optimistic. Basically the way my life has been is to struggle 2 or 3 nights with masks and machine, not sleeping hardly at all because of problems with air in my mouth or stomach and then not using the machine for 2 nights just to get some good sleep.

As an aside, I don't have OSA, but probably have UARS. I am mainly trying to solve a problem with acid reflux happening ONLY during my REM sleep, when my stomach would be completely empty. I have been to many specialists and this acid problem at night has always been a mystery for over 20 years. It was partly due to a parathyroid problem, for which I had surgery 3 years ago. It got better but did not go away. Several doctors I know (my husband and brother-in-law are both doctors) thought it could be a sleep breathing issue during deep sleep. That is the main reason I got this machine. My airway is small, jaw receded, typical of someone with sleep breathing problems. The GOOD news is that, even using the machine only part of the night has been very successful in keeping the acid away, so it would seem that is the issue. I just wish I could use it all night every night. I think I could if I could just solve the mask issue. I am now thinking I will need some type of full mask, but so far the "small" in the 2 masks I have tried have been too large for me. So I probably need a "for her".

I searched this website for discussions about masks for those people with small, narrow jaws and receded chins. I came up with the Respcare hybrid (does not come in a for her)and the Resmed Ultra Mirage for that. Can anyne talk about those in relation to my facial type. Maybe I need to post a picture of myself. I am also considering the resmed F10 FF mask because it comes in a small "for her". Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Hi PEF- welcome to the forum! I've only been on cpap for a little over a year, so am not an expert on masks like a lot of our longtimers here. I am wondering if you have considered looking at pediatric masks. I'm assuming you can find these on the internet, and possibly at a local DME. Another idea is to ask your local DME if you can go in to try on various masks; one of my local distributors allowed me to do that after I was diagnosed. Also - I would think it is possible that one of the big mask manufacturers - Resmed, PR, etc. - would be willing to make a custom mask for you. You can always ask!

Hi Sleepeyes21, Thanks so much for taking the time to write. I probably should have clarified my living situation in the post. We are retired American citizens living in Panama, so I have no access to anyone who knows about this stuff. I have to pay for it all myself and can't try on masks. Pugsy was nice enough to send me 3 masks to try, bless her heart. So that saved me some money and aggravation.

Good idea about the pediatric masks, but I am afraid they might be too small in the cheeks and just fit in my lower jaw area. There was also not much to chose from when I looked before, but I am going to check several different sites this time. I did write to Resmed. They gave me some info, but it was not anything other than what I read on the forum. Well, I am still working on solutions and really don't want to give up. I figure sooner or later a new mask will come along that fits. I just hope I don't have to spend a fortune. I can't afford to buy too many so I am chosing carefully. Right now, I am leaning toward the Resmed Airfit F10 for her because at least it comes in my size. Then I can work on plugging the holes. I have such bad insomnia at times that I can't help taking Ambien, but I think that works against me also. I was hoping, if I could successfully use the machine, I could get off the tiny dose of antidepressant and the Ambien. I really want to be completely drug free.

Honestly, it is just a vicious circle.

1. My brain doesn't want to go to sleep because it knows I could choke in my sleep and it has to work overtime all night to prevent that.
2. To overcome my brain's resistance to falling asleep, I take a sleeping pill.
3. The sleep medication makes my breathing problem worse by relaxing all my tissues and muscles so that the mask can't do it's job effectively.
4. Rinse and repeat!

Let me start by saying I have no idea how you might implement this but.....

I have heard of mouth only masks that you bite between your teeth, now if one of those fit AND you could also use a separate nose mask with some kind of "Y" adapter to connect to the CPAP you would be a super duper hose head with a rocking set of head gear. This would of course disconnect your nose supply of air from your mouth supply of air and maybe accommodate both.

Are you absolutely sure that you cannot use a nasal mask? Did they switch you to a full face mask during your titration? There is no way they could have completed a titration with a nasal mask if you had serious mouth leaks. Just because your lips open a bit, doesn't mean you are necessarily letting air escape through your mouth. If you can sleep with the nasal pillows, use them, and have a look at your data in sleepyhead.

PEF wrote:Hi Sleepeyes21, Thanks so much for taking the time to write. I probably should have clarified my living situation in the post. We are retired American citizens living in Panama, so I have no access to anyone who knows about this stuff. I have to pay for it all myself and can't try on masks. Pugsy was nice enough to send me 3 masks to try, bless her heart. So that saved me some money and aggravation.

Good idea about the pediatric masks, but I am afraid they might be too small in the cheeks and just fit in my lower jaw area. There was also not much to chose from when I looked before, but I am going to check several different sites this time. I did write to Resmed. They gave me some info, but it was not anything other than what I read on the forum. Well, I am still working on solutions and really don't want to give up. I figure sooner or later a new mask will come along that fits. I just hope I don't have to spend a fortune. I can't afford to buy too many so I am chosing carefully. Right now, I am leaning toward the Resmed Airfit F10 for her because at least it comes in my size. Then I can work on plugging the holes. I have such bad insomnia at times that I can't help taking Ambien, but I think that works against me also. I was hoping, if I could successfully use the machine, I could get off the tiny dose of antidepressant and the Ambien. I really want to be completely drug free.

Honestly, it is just a vicious circle.

1. My brain doesn't want to go to sleep because it knows I could choke in my sleep and it has to work overtime all night to prevent that.
2. To overcome my brain's resistance to falling asleep, I take a sleeping pill.
3. The sleep medication makes my breathing problem worse by relaxing all my tissues and muscles so that the mask can't do it's job effectively.
4. Rinse and repeat!

So sorry to hear about all of your struggles, PEF. Kudos to you for not giving up! Have you considered purchasing your mask through https://www.cpap.com? They are the supporters of this forum, and they also offer Return Insurance on a lot of their masks. I believe the way this works is that if you purchase a mask from them and you don't like it, you have a certain time frame to return it to them and get another one (the details of the Return Insurance are on their website.) Cpap.com has a wide selection of all types of masks -from full face to hybrids to total face, and all accessories in between. I think they have good prices, too. They have a chat feature on their website and an 800 number you can call. You may be able to explain your needs to a specialist there and have them recommend a mask to try.