Questions

I have been using bipap for 2 years. Something is crazy going on with my dream station. Sometimes very little water is used in the reservoir at night and then sometimes it is dry. I do not use heated hose anymore. It did not change anything. I have the humidity on 3.The pressure is set from 16-20. I average about 18 they told me when I went to dr a few months ago. I replace all the parts when my Medicare allows it every 3-6 months.

The other major problem I have is an extremely dry mouth. My tongue falls back and blocks my throat completely. I do not breathe thru my mouth during the night. My lips are sealed with stuff in the morning. There is stuff that coats the inside of my mouth and teeth. It is hard to swallow when I wake up. They tell me I don’t breathe thru my mouth on video. I have been checked several times because I keep complaining.I have tried a full face mask but my pressure is so high it is uncomfortable and I sleep with mouth closed. I use a Brevida mask. I have tried using the mouthwash for dry mouth.

I am hoping someone can solve these 2 problems for me. Drs don’t always use cpap and don’t know these answers like fellow cpap/bipap users. Thanks for you input. Madge

Hi - first of all, even video can't tell if air is coming out of your mouth - all it needs is a tiny space and you don't know until you tape that it can be different (better). Second, very little water will be used by the machine if local conditions are humid, if you live near water, if it rains one night, etc... and if things are dry the next day and night it means local and room humidity will be dry, so your machine will use a lot more water than the previous night... that's how water and evaporation work.

Madgeyoung wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 24, 2020 7:15 pm

I have been using bipap for 2 years. Something is crazy going on with my dream station. Sometimes very little water is used in the reservoir at night and then sometimes it is dry. I do not use heated hose anymore. It did not change anything. I have the humidity on 3.The pressure is set from 16-20. I average about 18 they told me when I went to dr a few months ago. I replace all the parts when my Medicare allows it every 3-6 months.

The other major problem I have is an extremely dry mouth. My tongue falls back and blocks my throat completely. I do not breathe thru my mouth during the night. My lips are sealed with stuff in the morning. There is stuff that coats the inside of my mouth and teeth. It is hard to swallow when I wake up. They tell me I don’t breathe thru my mouth on video. I have been checked several times because I keep complaining.I have tried a full face mask but my pressure is so high it is uncomfortable and I sleep with mouth closed. I use a Brevida mask. I have tried using the mouthwash for dry mouth.

I am hoping someone can solve these 2 problems for me. Drs don’t always use cpap and don’t know these answers like fellow cpap/bipap users. Thanks for you input. Madge

Julie wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 24, 2020 8:38 pm

Hi - first of all, even video can't tell if air is coming out of your mouth - all it needs is a tiny space and you don't know until you tape that it can be different (better). Second, very little water will be used by the machine if local conditions are humid, if you live near water, if it rains one night, etc... and if things are dry the next day and night it means local and room humidity will be dry, so your machine will use a lot more water than the previous night... that's how water and evaporation work.

First, Welcome, Madgeyoung!

Please check out the post for newbies in my signature. This will help you with some housekeeping for your profile and so we can help you better.

Second, Julie has great comments about dry mouth and humidity.

The only thing I'll add is that there are a number of ways people approach dry mouth:

• Nasal mask with mouth taped.
• Hybrid mask (like a full face, but covering only the nares, not over the bridge of the nose.)
• Full face mask (covering the mouth and the nose, over the bridge of the nose.)

For my money, the full face mask is the only thing most likely to secure your mouth from dry mouth. Nasal masks always leak out the mouth for me, no matter how well I try to keep my mouth closed, even if I try to tape. No love. Hybrid masks are okay, but if I wear them too long, it pushes up on my nares and makes my nose really sore. Full face masks can cause some soreness for some people around the nose bridge, but the latest crop of full face masks are really well designed and tend to be comfortable over the nose bridge.

Others will debate this with me until the cows come home. All that matters is what works for you.

About Full Face
You don't wear the full face mask so you can breath out of your mouth. You wear it so the pressure between your nose and your mouth are equalized during all pressure changes, thus making it easier to breathe through your nose all night. Because you're not leaking out of your mouth, it doesn't dry out. You can leave your mouth relatively slack but closed and it doesn't dry out by morning. Mischief managed. I seriously don't understand why anyone would wear anything else if they are combatting dry mouth. For me, the mask in my profile is the best mask I've ever used. It may not work for you. You'll need to experiment.

Strappy things...
You can also add a papcap or a mask strap.
Don't buy a chin strap, they're garbage.
Just the papcap by Pur-Sleep or a mask strap by Pad A Cheek.
These help combat chipmunk cheeks and dry mouth too by reducing mask torque when you turn your head unconsciously on your pillow.

Dry Mouth
Dry mouth means large leak. If you have large leak, you're not getting therapy. First fix the large leak. Then we can help you settle into your therapy.

Looking forward to how you decide to progress!

Chris

Thanks for the good information. I will try to switch masks.