BajaNomad

CPAP masks

BajaBlanca - 9-7-2023 at 08:36 PM

Hello everyone. It has been ages since I have posted here in the health thread but here we are, Years after Les got his first CPAP, used it with no issues yet now he is having serious issues with it leaking.

When it leaks, it whistles and wakes me up too.

He has changed masks over and over and still no success.

Do you have a brand you prefer?

Sleepless at home, Blanca

Count your blessings!

AKgringo - 9-7-2023 at 09:12 PM

I am also affected by sleep apnea, but I am not able to tolerate a CPAP device. I guarantee that my snoring is way worse than any noise that is coming from Les's mask!

BajaBlanca - 9-8-2023 at 12:15 AM

AK the problem with not using the mask is not only the whistle but if you need it and do not use it, it effects your heart. It took Les 6 months to get used to the machine. I wrote about the nightmare back in the day.

Lencho, do you use felt? The whistle is indeed between the mask and the face.

Russ - 9-8-2023 at 06:42 AM

There are many different masks brands. I have the Philips Air Sense 10. When mine starts to leak I tighten the straps a little so it's still not uncomfortable but tighter. I recently changed the strap and it really made things nice. Good luck with the whistle. Sweet dreams:D

pacificobob - 9-8-2023 at 07:17 AM

Some use a nasal pillow instead of the mask style

BajaBlanca - 9-8-2023 at 07:49 AM

He did NOT laugh at the superglue idea but I did!

He has changed masks and really tightened the straps. Works for a while.

Is the nasal pillow the one with an empty space on the side? That is a really good suggestion and I bet it would work.

AKgringo - 9-8-2023 at 08:02 AM

My sleep apnea symptoms were obvious long before I even knew there was a name for it! I did develop cardiac issues (a-fib and an enlarged left ventricle) but I am able to carry on near normal activities without a pacemaker.

Because of my heart issues, and other factors in my life at the time, I decided to eliminate alcohol completely from my diet. That was 15 years ago.

One thing that I did not expect was that my apnea issues would be dramatically reduced! Even moderate drinking used to have me waking up gasping for air, but that doesn't happen anymore.

When I did the sleep study six years ago, and had so much difficulty with the CPAP, even the people who sell those things said my condition was moderate enough that I would probably be all right without one unless my condition got worse.

BajaBlanca - 9-9-2023 at 12:33 AM

AK That is great that you can live without it and that alcohol made the difference.

It did take 6 months for Les to get comfortable with the cpap but it worked for ages until now. He just got home with a new "original" brand mask - we shall see if it works. fingers crossed.

BajaBlanca - 9-10-2023 at 07:21 AM

IT WORKED!

pauldavidmena - 9-10-2023 at 09:49 AM

For as long as I could remember, I would frequently wake up from a sound sleep, startled and disoriented. It wasn't an issue until I no longer slept alone. I realized that if I wanted the latter trend to continue, I'd have to get to the bottom of it, so I did a sleep study at the Center for Sleep Medicine at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. Sleep apnea was ruled out; instead the diagnosis was night terrors, which described the phenomenon perfectly but didn't offer much in the way of treatment options.

I was referred to a neurologist, who prescribed light dosages of several different anti-seizure medications. None of them really helped, and at least one of them made the issue much worse! Ultimately I determined that stress had an impact on the frequency and severity of the night terrors, and I eventually stepped down from a management role at a financial services company. About 5 years later I got out of downtown Boston, and the combination of a less stressful job and less angst-filled commute helped. Now that I'm retired, I'm trying to remember the last time I woke up thinking that I was being electrocuted or that the dog was barking.

BajaBlanca - 9-10-2023 at 06:18 PM

Wow, great that you could figure out that stress was the culprit and even better that it is now under control.

Les did a sleep study in Ensenada many years ago that showed the apnea clearly and another one more recently here. The first one he had to stay overnight in the study center but the one here in Turkiye they came to our home and set him up at 9:30 pm.