Hi and a question about breathing please.

Hi,

Firstly, thanks for a great forum. I've spent a while here reading, learning and being heartened that I am not alone!!

I was recently diagnosed with severe sleep apnea. I have been prescribed a CPAP set at level 14 and a full face mask.

I have used it 4 nights now and already feel much less depressed, am not waking up with a headache, am not going to the bathroom during the night, am not waking with the pillow soaked from night sweats, am not waking up choking, am not falling asleep during the day or evening. I hope my BP will also start to fall in due course, too. I am enjoying feeling tired because it's late and I nbned to go to bed rather than because it's 2 in the afternoon and I need to sleep.......I still wake during the night but so far it's been to adjust the mask. I'm hpoing in time I will be able to go to sleep and not wake again until it's time to get up!!

I have a full face mask and I have a question about breathing please. This may seem like a daft question but how am I meant to breath so that the CPAP has best effect on me ? Should I try and breath in and out through my nose keeping my mouth closed or is breathing through nose and mouth at the same time OK?

Any advice would be very welcome, thanks.

Hi...I personally find it easier to breath through my nose in my FF mask. I tend to leak through my mouth occasionally
that's why I use the FF Quattro mask.. I think you do whatever is the most comfortable. Why don't you fill in your equipment detail in the User Control panel/Profile in the upper left corner. It makes it easier to answer questions about your treatment.

If I breathe through my mouth when using a FFM, it makes my mouth excruciatingly dry, even though the CPAP therapy still works. If I have a cold, of course there's not much choice, but otherwise, I always try to keep my mouth closed.

Cub, It is healthier to breathe through your nose when you can. You should try going to sleep breathing through your nose with your mouth closed and the tip of your tongue place on the roof of the mouth at the juncture with the two upper front teeth. You may find that during the night your mouth reflexively opens and you breathe through your mouth. This is not ideal but you should not worry about it. Many of us have found if we control nasal congestion, we don't often breathe through the mouth. You should also practice nose breathing throughout the day.

Here is an article describing a few of the benefits of nose breathing: http://www.breathing.com/articles/nose-breathing.htm.

Also, from an article by Dr. Steven Park:

In addition, the nose and sinus cavities make a gas called nitric oxide, which has two important beneficial properties. The first property is that nitric oxide is antimicrobial, both in the nose as well as in the lungs. This gas, when inhaled even in small amounts into the lungs, can increase oxygen absorption up to 20%. Not breathing through your nose for whatever reason has potentially detrimental effects on your health.
Full article: http://doctorstevenpark.com/index.php?s=nitric+oxide

BTW, congratulations on the excellent progress in only four days! Eventually you will make other improvements and the CPAP therapy will become natural to you. You are a fine Newbie!

Thanks for your replies and Rooster those links were VERY helpful

Just want to say hi and welcome to the forum. Sounds like you are doing fine, and have prepared and educated yourself. Glad you're seeing positive results already.

BUT, if you have trouble nose breathing, especially if you have a cold, etc., then by all means mouth breathe - after all it's the point of having a FF mask, to allow you to do so without losing therapy air. Ideals are fine, but a lot of us don't always fit the boxes !