Neck aches

Anyone experiencing neck aches from their Cpap mask? I tried to loosen the straps but still get neck aches.

What mask? Try to keep the bottom straps at the base of your skull rather than on your neck. It worked for me.

You can go to http://www.padacheek.com and see if Padacheek has a pad for the neck strap. If she doesn't just ask her about one, she is sure to be able to help. You can also PM PADACHEEK, she is a forum member.

Brenda

RiverDave wrote:What mask? Try to keep the bottom straps at the base of your skull rather than on your neck. It worked for me.

It's the comfort gel nasal mask. O.k. I will try that tonight. Thanks.

bdp522 wrote:You can go to http://www.padacheek.com and see if Padacheek has a pad for the neck strap. If she doesn't just ask her about one, she is sure to be able to help. You can also PM PADACHEEK, she is a forum member.

Brenda

O.k thanks Brenda, those are pretty neat.

I don't know if this is what is causing your problem, but when I started CPAP I began to have neck aches because for the first time in years I was sleeping in the same position long enough to cause them!! Pre-Cpap I just flopped around all night so my neck never stayed in one place! So it could be a good thing.

AMANN wrote:Anyone experiencing neck aches from their Cpap mask? I tried to loosen the straps but still get neck aches.

I see you use the ComfortGel. I did have neck aches when I used the ComfortGel - minor, but still had them. When thinking about it, I wonder if I raised my chin and tilted my head up in an effort to keep the mask sealed. When raising my chin and tilting my head upward it makes the mask tighter.

I remember lowering my chin/head tilt when I went to the Mirage Vista, but still did it as it helped the mask seal better. Recently, I noticed I actually slept with my head in a natural position as raising my chin/tilting my head up does not make the mask seal better.

I had not thought this through until your post. Thanks for posting so I could do this. I now realize how nice it is to sleep with my head in a normal position.

I hope this helps you too.

alnhwrd wrote:I don't know if this is what is causing your problem, but when I started CPAP I began to have neck aches because for the first time in years I was sleeping in the same position long enough to cause them!! Pre-Cpap I just flopped around all night so my neck never stayed in one place! So it could be a good thing.

LOL! I can relate to this too!!
Getting the right pillow also helped with that....

echo wrote:

alnhwrd wrote:I don't know if this is what is causing your problem, but when I started CPAP I began to have neck aches because for the first time in years I was sleeping in the same position long enough to cause them!! Pre-Cpap I just flopped around all night so my neck never stayed in one place! So it could be a good thing.

LOL! I can relate to this too!!
Getting the right pillow also helped with that....

Me too! I wake up every morning with one arm asleep. I don't move all night so my arm goes to sleep!

Mike

RafterRattler wrote:

echo wrote:

alnhwrd wrote:I don't know if this is what is causing your problem, but when I started CPAP I began to have neck aches because for the first time in years I was sleeping in the same position long enough to cause them!! Pre-Cpap I just flopped around all night so my neck never stayed in one place! So it could be a good thing.

LOL! I can relate to this too!!
Getting the right pillow also helped with that....

Me too! I wake up every morning with one arm asleep. I don't move all night so my arm goes to sleep!

Mike

What they said about staying in one place. I was achy after my titration study, by haven't been since. I think the difference is my pillow setup. I use a regular one with a neck pillow (well, it's advertised as a lumbar pillow, but it's perfect for me) on top of it. it costs about half of the specialized pillows for people using cpap masks. You can see it here (the customer review by "meb" is mine): http://www.amazon.com/Bucky-Baxter-Lumb ... 554&sr=8-1

Good luck!!
Marsha

marshaeb wrote:What they said about staying in one place. I was achy after my titration study, by haven't been since. I think the difference is my pillow setup. I use a regular one with a neck pillow (well, it's advertised as a lumbar pillow, but it's perfect for me) on top of it. it costs about half of the specialized pillows for people using cpap masks. You can see it here (the customer review by "meb" is mine): http://www.amazon.com/Bucky-Baxter-Lumb ... 554&sr=8-1

Good luck!!
Marsha

Marsha, I use a neck roll on top of regular pillows, but this Bucky pillow looks interesting. I was going to ask you a bunch of questions, but then went back on Amazon and read your review, which is very informative! Have only one question now--about how thick it it? This might work much better than the neck roll!

Pam

gasp wrote:

AMANN wrote:Anyone experiencing neck aches from their Cpap mask? I tried to loosen the straps but still get neck aches.

I see you use the ComfortGel. I did have neck aches when I used the ComfortGel - minor, but still had them. When thinking about it, I wonder if I raised my chin and tilted my head up in an effort to keep the mask sealed. When raising my chin and tilting my head upward it makes the mask tighter.

I remember lowering my chin/head tilt when I went to the Mirage Vista, but still did it as it helped the mask seal better. Recently, I noticed I actually slept with my head in a natural position as raising my chin/tilting my head up does not make the mask seal better.

I had not thought this through until your post. Thanks for posting so I could do this. I now realize how nice it is to sleep with my head in a normal position.

I hope this helps you too.

If one has a tendency to get neck aches, then sleeping with even a slightly different neck position , or the slight pull of the straps on the head, if the straps has ridden down the neck, could cause neck aches. I had cpap only for 3 months now, and I had this problems. Sometimes, as gasp said, I would keep the neck in a different position because that had reduced the leak problem. Since everybody's neck conditions are different, you need to experiment. It is really worth trying out different masks, and when you try them, try each for at least a week.

Also try to support the hose near the head with strings, elastics so that the tube does not pull on the head. For me, very carefully adjusting this so that the hose is very well balanced when I sleep on either side, has helped reduce neck problems.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I will give them a try. Last night I tried my old Ultra Mirage II mask, and it seems to fit better now, less leaks. It's funny because at first it was giving me problems so I switched to the comfort Gel, but now it gives me problems, it seems to be leaking more. Maybe it's time for a new seal? I've been using it for about 4 months now.

WearyOne wrote:Marsha, I use a neck roll on top of regular pillows, but this Bucky pillow looks interesting. I was going to ask you a bunch of questions, but then went back on Amazon and read your review, which is very informative! Have only one question now--about how thick it it? This might work much better than the neck roll!

Pam

I love my Bucky!! But I need to be careful about what I say, because I do tend to refer to it as "him," and I occasionally get strange looks from people. Actually, he's the perfect pet -- warm and snuggly when I need him to be; requires no feeding, bathroom breaks or vet appointments; travels well, smashed inside my luggage; and only occasionally needs to be thrown into the washer. (Not that I advocate throwing REAL pets in the washer. Or dryer. I don't.) (Notice how well I resisted the temptation to say anything about men or husbands. Well, almost.)

I've had mine for somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 or 6 years, and I know it's a lot more "shapeable" (if that's a word) now.... probably because the hulls have broken down somewhat since then? So it's tough to say how thick it is. New, it's 5" in diameter. But I do literally scrunch it around until it feels and fits just right. For instance, you can push all the hulls to one end and angle the pillow a bit so it's thicker or divide them in half and have the hulls kind of surround your neck with a bit of a valley in the middle.

Marsha