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Rooster I'm new to the forum and just wanted to tell you thanks for the easy to understand directions.
I've heard of taping but never have attempted it. Tonight will be my first taping. Wish me luck and thanks for the good advice.

georgia boy.

georgia boy wrote:Rooster I'm new to the forum and just wanted to tell you thanks for the easy to understand directions.
I've heard of taping but never have attempted it. Tonight will be my first taping. Wish me luck and thanks for the good advice.

georgia boy.

Good luck.

In all fairness I must tell you the rest of my story on taping. I could not tolerate a traditional full face mask because of a very sensitive nose bridge so I used nasal pillows and taped my mouth. Then in August 2006 the Hybrid mask was introduced and it does not touch the bridge of the nose. I switched to the Hybrid and have used it exclusively since then. No more mouth taping.

Tape now but consider trying a Hybrid.

Also good luck with getting those Russians to go home.

This is the tape method I have tried (Rooster's). I'm still going back and forth with taping and chin strap. The ONE night I had an almost "flat line" with leak rate and the lowest leak rate, was with this tape method. The large leak rate has gone down significantly but not where it should be. For my next mask (when insurance will pay), I will try a FFM, and see what happens. And if not good results or not comfortable, I will go back to nasal mask with tape and/or chin strap. I have a petite face, and my skin is probably sensitive as I'm "older" and your skin gets thinner (I'm told). My doc didn't say I should not use tape (when I confessed to her I was using it), just didn't acknowledge that it was ok to use it. I'm sure she doesn't want any malpractice suits So...taping is worth a try, if your brave enough, and your skin can take it. I didn't think I would ever try it (taping) it's a personal decision.

Here is another economical source for hypoallergenic tape

http://www.vitalitymedical.com/vitality ... KND2419_bx

Haven't yet used this myself but will be doing so if mouth taping addresses my problem with mouth breathing.

Hi, I tape too, but I must say that it was VERY scary, to put it mildly, when the hydro went off one night and I woke up in absolute terror unable to breath
until I became of aware of my circumstances and ripped the tape off, probably only seconds altho at the time it seemed longer. It was THE most awful feeling and must be akin to what your body went though without you being aware of it when you had apneas pre diagnosis and machine use. I continue to tape. but if it is a very windy night, when we are likely to get a tree down on the lines somewhere, I switch to a battery and just hope on the other nights that it doesn't go off for some other reason. Thinking about it all now makes me think that is not such a good idea!

Ms Piggy wrote:Hi, I tape too, but I must say that it was VERY scary, to put it mildly, when the hydro went off one night and I woke up in absolute terror unable to breath
until I became of aware of my circumstances and ripped the tape off, probably only seconds altho at the time it seemed longer. ....

With a nasal mask and mouth taped, you are breathing through your nose when the power is on. Since all masks have vents, why were you not able to continue to breathe through your nose when the power was off?

Since all masks have vents, why were you not able to continue to breathe through your nose when the power was off?

Uh, Rooster? People on this board have obstructive sleep apnea, remember?

Without cpap, when you have an apnea, you open your mouth and try to breathe. Often snore.

With a non-presurized nasal mask, you have an apnea, you try to open your mouth, and you can't - major panic - you wake up.

And until you have that panic inducing apnea, there not too much co2 washout going on, so you're not getting to much oxygen anyway....

O

ozij wrote:

Since all masks have vents, why were you not able to continue to breathe through your nose when the power was off?

Uh, Rooster? People on this board have obstructive sleep apnea, remember?

Without cpap, when you have an apnea, you open your mouth and try to breathe. Often snore.

With a non-presurized nasal mask, you have an apnea, you try to open your mouth, and you can't - major panic - you wake up.

And until you have that panic inducing apnea, there not too much co2 washout going on, so you're not getting to much oxygen anyway....

O

A summer or two ago when we had a power outage at about 2:00 AM, I could breathe through my nose OK without the air pressure assisting me.......at least for the time period it took to come to the realization of what was happening. I think it was actually the absence of the air pressure that woke me up......and it was VERY quiet (and dark)......no rhythmic machine/air sounds either. I didn't "panic", but for a brief moment, I couldn't figure out why I couldn't re-start my machine by breathing in the mask. Kind of a weird feeling/sensation, but not exactly "scary".......at least for me.

Den

ozij wrote:

......Without cpap, when you have an apnea, you open your mouth and try to breathe. Often snore.

With a non-presurized nasal mask, you have an apnea, you try to open your mouth, and you can't - major panic - you wake up.

And until you have that panic inducing apnea, there not too much co2 washout going on, so you're not getting to much oxygen anyway....

O

Well O, Ms Piggy said she woke up and had to rip the tape off. As soon as she woke up she should have been able to breathe through her nose. But I will grant if she was already in a major panic, breathing through the nose might not have seemed like an option.

I think awaking in a panic is the key point. If you are claustrophobic, you'll start doing anything at all to get air. I know that I find it very hard to get what I consider "enough" air through my NAII if there is no pressure going. I'd of done the same thing.

Anyway, just wanted to add my two cents - I started doing this last Friday night with the blue painters tape. I haven't gotten up ONCE during the night since I started taping. Very significant change. And the tape comes off cleanly and painlessly. I don't know about toxins, as Gasp pointed out, since this tape wasn't made for medical use. But right now, I'm feeling so good, I really don't care. If the tape toxins get me, well, the OSA was going to get me sooner or later, and my bad attitude is surely going to get me axe murdered one of these days.

The only downside I've discovered - if my mask shifts, I can't feel the leak on my upper lip anymore. And I woke up this morning with some significant shifting. Not enough for me to feel like I wasn't getting air, but enough that I probably have a pretty wonky leak line going.

Cheers,
Babs

Congratulation, Babs.

Full face masks have safety vents - the only safety for us tapers is in the oxygen deprived human brain, which clangs like mad to make sure we tear that obstruction off our face pronto! And you don't have to be claustrophobic for that, the human brain is hard wired to keep us from losing oxygen. It keeps us from sleeping if it sense a lack of oxygen, and will sent us into major activation when we want to open our mouth to breathe and can't.

O.

Babette wrote:.........
The only downside I've discovered - if my mask shifts, I can't feel the leak on my upper lip anymore. And I woke up this morning with some significant shifting. ..........
Cheers,
Babs

Babs,

Can you use a ladies' tights leg on the nasal pillows without blocking the exhaust vent? I use one on my Hybrid nasal pillows and it provides great stability when I am tossing around in bed.

Actually, I've got the most stable configuration I CAN get right now. I think. But there's still a point where I'll grind my face into the pillow, and no amount of strappage is going to keep it perfectly seated through THAT.

BTW.... Just to put it all out there - I woke up at 3 am last night, pissed off about work stress, couldn't get back to sleep, finally got up, ripped off the tape just to be pissy, and laid back down and tossed and turned until 7 am.

I really don't think it had anything to do with tape. I think it has everything to do with feeling homicidal about my boss.

Yup, I'm looking and feeling my best this morning. Is it just me, or is my right eye nearly swollen shut? Also, do you think grinding and snorting the Excedrin would make it work faster?

LOL,
Babs

automanRT wrote:I am a autocpap user, and a respiratory therapist. I have 15 years experience with setting up cpap's in patients' homes. I am telling you this so you can see that I am qualified in this field.
I can not stress enough that using tape over your mouth is EXTREMELY dangerous! If you ever became sick or had acid reflux with your mouth taped you will most likely inhale and drown in your own vomit, before you could remove the tape. If you have a respiratory condition such as asthma you could die from obstructing your airway. Thats' if you even awoke enough to know what has happened.
You would be better off using a full face mask to correct the problem. Please explore other options instead of attempting such a dangerous practice.
Good luck and god bless.[/b]

May sound like 'great textbook' advice but when I go to several DME's...RT's and say..."fine, show me a FF mask that will work for me .."...and guess what...NO reply. When professionals in the field tell me what not to do and have no alternatives to suggest, it frankly turns me off. This is not any intent to disrespect but when people with a serious problem seek help from those in the field who cannot suggest solutions but lecture instead, we will find things that will work ourselves. If you suggest a FF mask, what brand, what proof do you have it works for those with thin faces and not leak like a mesh screen? Without those answers and more, ingenuity will win out and as for risks, I guess I need that proof as well.

could someone post some indicative ages of you all? I am 31 I am about to start cpap and although happy about the total effect once it is regulated well, I am afraid of the inpact on my personal life...