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Respiratory Therapist/Sleep Tech wrote:Try turning up the heat/humidity on your humidifier. I use this technique to hold my mouth closed during CPAP therapy.

I am using the Resmed S9 Elite with climate control tubing and the Swift FX For Her Nasal Pillows. I keep the heat/humidity feature at 86 degrees F every night..........

I teach my patients at the sleep clinic this technique every day. There are times when it fails, and we have to move on to having a patient use a chin strap, but I always like to try the heat/humidity option first.

I would love to know what the explanation is for this working. I keep my temperature set at room temp which is 65 in winter; I can't imagine , in my wildest dreams, raising the temperature 20 degrees.

Thanks

JJ

PiobGuy wrote:I would love to know what the explanation is for this working. I keep my temperature set at room temp which is 65 in winter; I can't imagine , in my wildest dreams, raising the temperature 20 degrees.

The humidity on the CPAP humidifier, not the temperature in the room...

SleepingUgly wrote:

PiobGuy wrote:I would love to know what the explanation is for this working. I keep my temperature set at room temp which is 65 in winter; I can't imagine , in my wildest dreams, raising the temperature 20 degrees.

The humidity on the CPAP humidifier, not the temperature in the room...

Right, I set my S9 at 65deg, the DME said to set it a room temperature. If I set it at 80 I feel like I am in a sauna.

JJ

PiobGuy wrote:...

Right, I set my S9 at 65deg, the DME said to set it a room temperature. If I set it at 80 I feel like I am in a sauna.

JJ

I have mine set to 78 degrees, on nights I am feeling really congested, I up it to 80. But that is me, ymmv

-tino

I personally keep my jaw shut all night, but air leaks out between my lips. Great fun. I just turn the humidity up as high as I can so it doesn't dry me out. I have an autopap so it just pumps more air through to keep me breathing. I have considered taping my lips together...ha. What would happen if you put something kind of sticky on your lips? Like a thick vaseline or something.

How about using a chinstrap then an Ace bandage over it.

I too have the chipmunk problem... and loose lips... chin strap doesn't help...
Is a full face mask better? My daughter has a full face mask and says I should not even bother with the nasal mask and chin strap.
But now I may have to either convince the dr to give me one or pay for it myself...

Help

Hopefully the initial poster has corrected the mouth breathing issue by now, as it's almost a year later. I would however like to throw my two cents in about chinstraps. First, think of a chinstrap like it's a training wheel on a bicycle. Hopefully, with time, you'll be able to teach yourself to keep the air contained in the circuit. When initially fitting a simple strap, get it close to the tension it needs to be and then take it off without undoing the velcro. After you've removed it, using your thumb as a guide, tighten it another 1 to 1.5 inches. This should provide a snug fit to keep your lower jaw in place without giving you a headache. For the more complex chinstraps, a little extra tension is usually needed on the top. After a day or two, omit the chinstrap, at least at the beginning of the night and see how you do. I have seen many patients able to do without the strap entirely after the "training" period.

I had months of trying to find a chin strap that worked for me with much of the same issues. Tried all of the ones mentioned. The Ultimate Chinstrap is the one that finally worked.

I use two Sullivan chinstraps, I wrap sheet cotton (what the MDs use prior to casting your broken limbs.) then I wrap coban ( what they wrap around your arm after you give blood) around the sheet-cotton. The sheet cotton adds padding and bulk (causing the chinstrap to become tighter) the Coban is there for friction (I'm balding so I need this to further reduce slippage).
I've also sewn down the Velcro straps together after custom sizing the straps as tight as I can get them.
I've had great success with this method. As a matter of fact it's been too right so I have to debulk the sheet cotton sometimes.