RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
My husband said bubbling but then admitted that wasn't quite "it". No, it's not truly a wet, bubbling sound. I just got up after trying for an hour to sleep. Once again, I was disturbed not so much by an odd sound but by an odd sensation. It happened about three or four times. It's as if I have a bubble of AIR in my mouth and I sort of automatically puff it out. Husband is sleeping in another room, and I don't blame him, I am so restless. Out of desperation I am attaching my old headgear and nasal pillows to my new AirSense 10. The old apparatus is much more comfortable to sleep in and when I run the test on the new machine to see if there's a good seal, it passes that test. Does anyone out there know if cobbling together an old headgear and its nasal pillows will compromise my therapy? I might start a new thread about doing that!
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
I have mouth leaks where slight amounts of air leak out between my tongue and cheeks causing a sensation like you are describing. I started wearing a 2.5 in wide lady's headband around the back of my head passing just under my ears and over my lips. I wear it under the Ruby chin strap I was already using. The head band keeps enough pressure on my cheeks to keep air from escaping between my tongue and cheeks. I still get an occasional leak, but they are very few and far between. Once in a while the head band irritates my lips so I put chap stick on them before putting the headband on. I use a clean one every night. My headbands are getting a little stretched. I think I'm going to have to get my wife to shorten them a little.
Good luck with finding a solution to your problem.
Mitch
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
Thanks so much! This is the most helpful suggestion yet! Interestingly, I myself last night (and the problem persisted for the 4th night in a row!) wondered if I could pull out a headband and use it as you describe! Sadly, the only headbands I had were very stretched out. BUT it's an easy and inexpensive solution. I had also considered using a chin strap. I could likely get my medical supply people to furnish me with a chin strap. If not, I can order one online easily enough, and I'd be happy to pay out of pocket for that and not mess with insurance! I called my med supply folks this morning, wanting to come in and let them observe what happens at an air pressure that's over 10, and the guy I've talked to repeatedly was very impatient with me and said he couldn't help,that I needed to go in to see my doc. Problem with that is that she is terribly overworked and getting an appt. with her difficult. This med supply guy said he'd call me right back and it's now been over an hour. So perhaps I need to try your solutions and give up trying to get help from these "professionals"! Thanks so much!!!!!
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
I hope my experiences help you.
I would like to expand a little. When I said the leaks I experience are few and far between, I was referring to the leaks between my cheek and tongue. I have leaks from mouth breathing most every night. The chin strap and headband combination keep my mouth leaks well below large leak levels and allow me to use a pillow mask.
Sleep well.
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
My husband's ResMed S9 makes a funny sort of bubbling also. He can't hear anything without his hearing aids so nothing bothers him. I wear a soft foam earplug in my topside ear so don't hear much noise from the machines on both sides of the bed!
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy--update and new problem!
Initial problem (strange noise when I puffed out air) when using new ResMed Air Sense CPAP with nose pillows mask) was solved by sleep doctor at the lab which did my 2nd sleep study. I had concluded myself that air pressure set at 4—18 was way too high as this puffing didn’t happen until pressure was over 12 or so. So last night with top pressure range set at 10 (on previous CPAP it was set at top pressure 7), I didn’t experience the sensation and noise that kept me from going to sleep. But a new problem emerged: extreme mouth dryness, which woke me up likely 6 or 8 times over the course of the night. Sleep doc did recommend a different type and brand of mask and asked provider to order one for me. But last night with my first new mask for awhile and then my old one from my original CPAP, the mouth dryness occurred. Thanks for all the good feedback from my initial problem! Now I need some advice about this one. Yes, I slept longer, but was awakened far too often for optimum sleep!
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
The mouth dryness is most likely from mouth breathing. I use a chin strap to help with the mouth breathing and Biotene gel to relieve any dryness I may have. Being proactive is better when using the Biotene.
RE: Strange noise preventing therapy!
Thanks for advice! I do recall that you were the one who recommended the chin strap plus the women's headbands to wear across the mouth to further prevent the mouth from opening! I'll check into the Biotine gel!
