i keep knocking it off in my sleep!

NO matter how hard I try I can not keep the dambd nasal mask on me head it keeps coming off or I end up taking it off while im asleep and dont even remember doing it .
any answers
Help!

Hi,

I did that for 6 weeks. That is how long it took me to keep the mask on. I started 7/20/04 on a CPAP machine and an Activa mask but kept ripping it off. After 1 month they put me on an Autopap and I did much better with it. Not that constant pressure all the time.

How long have you been using a cpap? What kind of a machine and mask do you have? Don't get discouraged as it takes a lot of time, patience and determination to conquer this treatment but its so important that you keep at it.

This is a wonderful board with a lot of people, ideas and suggestions that will help you.

Judy

i have exactly the same problems,but everybody says it takes about six weeks to get used to it,i have been on cpap for two weeks now,so roll on the night i keep it on all night,this forum is very good,you can ask anything, i have from bobby from wales in th UK GOODLUCK

Hi,
Same thing still happens to me. I have been using cpap for 6 weeks and some nights I suddenly wake up thinking its time to get up and I remove mask, just to realize its only middle of the night. Strange, because usualy I do not wake up during the night, at least not before cpap. This is entirely new situation to me and I do not have an explanation, but you are not alone in this.

Hi

Yes I had the times when I knocked my nasal mask off my face during the night.... It was a really big pain in the neck. As it often meant replacing the mask during the night.

Fortuantly, I have gotten so used to the mask that I can replace it my my face without having to switch on the light. Try rigging up the headstrap and masking the velcro straps closed with masking tape. It will take a consious effort to get it off.Plus if you are trying get it off whist half asleep you would not be successful unless you are awake to get if off.

3 straps tabs will be taped shut and only 1 velcro strap will be untaped. This is so u can get it on and off. But to take it off you gotta be awake!

Hi ger,

Most of the time it's just a matter of finally getting used to sleeping with all the strange gear - a mask on the face isn't exactly what any of us were used to. As the other replies stated, it might take weeks or months to really get accustomed to sleeping as a "hosehead".

One other thing occurred to me. Might not be the case for you, but.... if your nose gets congested during the night, it would be very difficult (maybe even impossible) to breathe through a nasal mask. Some people even report that it's only after they've been laying down for awhile that their noses seem to get stuffy. It might be that you really do need to get the mask off to breathe. Try to notice next time...can you breathe easily through your nose with the mask on...especially after you've been asleep for awhile?

Another possibility is that you might be leaking treatment air out through your mouth. Or mouth breathing at certain points during the night. If that's happening (a very dry mouth is often a sign) you may be waking up just enough (without being aware of it) to feel like you need to get "that thing" off your face.

I read on another message board of a man who kept taking his mask off in his sleep and turning his machine off without realizing it. Even when he placed his machine too far from his bed to easily reach it. He finally set up a video camera to see how he was doing it. When he looked at the video next day, he saw himself actually getting up out of bed, removing the mask, walking to the machine to turn it off and coming back to bed! He didn't remember a thing about doing any of that.

Like all the other people who have posted here I to used to remove my mask in the middle of the night and not know it. I never undid the straps I used to just pull it up over the top of my head. how I never woke up I will never know. After about 2 or 3 weeks of doing this I told my self before I went to sleep that I had to keep the mask on and it worked. I trained my mind to think it was life or death as stange as that sounds. So i basically told myself that if I take this thing off I could die. I don't think that works for everyone but it seemed to work for me I figured if I can quit smoking cold turkey I can keep a mask on my face just by willing it to be that way.

hope this helps you a little bit


Paul

Has anyone ever used this one and how did they like it? What was the worst thing about it?
Canoesprings

Some people do like the Nasal Aire (I and II) very much. I tried it once and found it waayyyyy too noisy. If you are thinking about trying an interface at the nostrils, my personal preference is the Breeze (with nasal pillows) or the Swift (nasal pillows). Masks that work great for one person might not be comfortable at all for someone else, but those two (Breeze and Swift) seem to suit a lot of people.