Cheeks red and inflamed

Day 4 - Still not sleeping. I put in 4 to 6 hours and remove the mask and then go to sleep. How long will this last? Now I have bright red, inflamed cheeks. This happened during my sleep study also and it took a few days to go away. Mask is a nasal pillow, small, comfortable. Am I allergic to it?

Exactly which nasal pillow mask and exactly where are the cheeks red?
Is it maybe where the straps touch the skin?

Use strap covers if that's where there at. At least you are getting O2 to the area. Pad-A-Cheek to the rescue... Jim

Thank you. My cheeks are red were the mask is. Straps are so small and don't seem to be bothering me.

zinnia wrote:Thank you. My cheeks are red were the mask is. Straps are so small and don't seem to be bothering me.

They have cloth products to help with that, between the mask and your face. Jim

Nasal pillow masks don't normally touch the cheeks very much.

And you didn't say with mask you are using so I don't know what might be available as a barrier to the skin but you might check padacheek.com and see if there is some sort of liner or barrel cozy that would keep the silicone from touching your skin.

Also...did you wash the mask really well before you used it?

http://www.padacheek.com/

I have the Fisher Paykel Brevida Nasal Pillow Mask. The sides of it touch my lower cheeks opposite my nose. I washed it well with baby shampoo (natural) as per instructions of seller and wash it everyday after use. Since I don't have any liners right now, I think I will try a soft kleenex or napkin tonight to put a barrier between the mask and skin. Hopefully it won't cause leakage. Any comments on the not sleeping part of my question? I'm really exhausted from lack of sleep.

The not sleeping part.....
Are you simply not able to fall asleep at all? If so, is this new to cpap or was the problem present before cpap was added?
Or are you falling asleep but waking often? If so, any idea why the waking?
Comfort? Mask just being there?

Do you take any medications of any kind and if so, what?

You have to try to figure out the why you aren't sleeping first and then look for ways to try to fix it.

I am familiar with the Brevida and its construction is such that part of it does touch cheek area of the face probably more than other nasal pillow masks.
It wouldn't be impossible for your skin to not like the silicone...it's rare but not impossible.
Finding a suitable barrier might be a bit of a problem due to the way the "wings" fold around the nose and end up touching the skin. I don't know if Padacheek has something that would work or not.
If not...I suggest looking at one of the other nasal pillow masks that do have barrel cozies available. I have used her barrel cozies on a couple of nasal pillow masks and there are really nice. The material she uses is a very soft fleece type and it feels like silk against the skin.

Also...some people have had good luck using Phillips Milk of Magnesia liquid as a barrier....light coating on the affected area and let it dry then put the mask on. Easy to wash off in the morning.

Just one, You aren't going to like it.

Taking the mask off and sleeping the rest of the night without it, just tells you brain it doesn't need to get used to this invader on your face. That give you brain the OK not to get used to it.

Might need to wear it in the evening while watching T.V., with the machine on, the faster you overcome taking it off the better. Also if you use the RAMP, is the low pressure bothering you, most aren't happy with pressures under 7cm., air starvation... Good Luck and keep trying. Jim