Frustrated with the allergies.

[Laser]

I follow my local pollen count and everything that I'm allergic to has dropped to very low levels and I seem to be fine through the day but when I put on my mask at night, I have a hard time breathing. Last night I refilled my Nasonex prescription and was able to breath through the nasal pillows so I finally got a decent night's sleep. I'm wondering if I should get a backup full face mask for nights when I can't breath through my nose. Any suggestions for one of those?

[SuperSleeper]

Hi Laser,

I can't really offer much advice on full face masks, but as a long term solution to pollen allergies, you might try something that worked for me. It was suggested to me by a doctor several years ago that I obtain some locally-produced honey, and take one full tablespoon of it every single day. Supposedly, the pollen embedded in the honey helps the body build up immunity to local pollen. I tried it for an entire year (then stopped) and my allergies have never come back. Who knows if it's pseudo-science or not, but it seemed to have worked for me.

In the meantime, hopefully others can comment about the best full face mask.

[PaulaO2]

Do you clean out your mask and change the filter?

Also, clean off the surface where the machine sits. If there's pollen or allergens on it, it's just sucking it right back into the machine. By regularly changing the filter, you're helping to block a lot of it. The machine does not put more nasty stuff in you, no more than you get without it. But a clean filter and a clean mask can help keep it that way.

Clean the mask, the hose, the everything and let it all air dry. You may also want to get new pillows and hoses, too. That's what I do during allergy season. I use the same one until most of it is gone then I change it out to a new one. I clean the old one really really well and let air dry. It is then my back up.

[PollCat]

It was suggested to me by a doctor several years ago that I obtain some locally-produced honey, and take one full tablespoon of it every single day.

Just what a diabetic needs, a daily spoonful of 'sugar'. The only honey I'm aware of that is supposedly 'diabetic-safe' is Tupelo honey, which is not produced locally. Sounds like a catch-22 if you have diabetes.

[zonk]

A Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down

Masks just like shoes, might fit someone like gloves and no so for someone else, you,ll have try for yourself to find what works for you

Good idea to have full face mask as a backup but did not work for me and never felt comfortable with one.

As Paula said, its important to keep everything squeaky clean, you might want to look into hypo filters. I've been using them for a while and amazed how much dirt they collect while the standard filter always looked the same

Try some sinus rinse, its cheap and cleanse the sinuses so you breathe better.
Humidity something you have to figure out what works best for your nose

[OMyMyOHellYes]

Do you clean out your mask and change the filter?

By regularly changing the filter, you're helping to block a lot of it. The machine does not put more nasty stuff in you, no more than you get without it. But a clean filter and a clean mask can help keep it that way.

Yeah. What he said.

OMyMyOHellYes.

[Laser]

I haven't cleaned the filter yet (I've only had the machine for a month or so). Is that the little square thing on the back? Where do you get the hypo filters? How often should I change the filter? I've been pretty good about cleaning the hoses, mask, water chamber, etc but the DME folks said to just tap the filter every once and a while. Do you pull it out and run it under water or will that kill it?

[SuperSleeper]

Just what a diabetic needs, a daily spoonful of 'sugar'. The only honey I'm aware of that is supposedly 'diabetic-safe' is Tupelo honey, which is not produced locally. Sounds like a catch-22 if you have diabetes.

Diabetics could perhaps reduce that tablespoon to a teaspoon each day to reduce the blood sugar effects. I wasn't a diabetic when I took the honey - I was probably in my early 20's at the time. I'm not certain that Tupelo honey is any more or less "safe" for diabetics as any other honey - most all honey contains roughly the same number of carbs and sugars per volume, no matter what the type, so all of it should generally have roughly the same effect upon blood sugar levels.

Store bought honey would be of no effect whatsoever, as it's heated and filtered, removing most all traces of local pollen. It has to be pure unfiltered and raw honey to work properly.

Also, just as a side-note, be careful about store-bought honey. A lot of the cheaper stuff that passes as "honey" is actually mixed with corn syrup or other cheaper sweeteners to produce a honey-looking substance that is marketed as "honey". You have to make sure the label is for "Grade A Honey". Some put a deceptive label on it like "Honey Farms", showing bees, etc... giving the impression that what you're buying is pure honey. But it's not.

Sorry for going off-topic.

[SuperSleeper]

I haven't cleaned the filter yet (I've only had the machine for a month or so). Is that the little square thing on the back? Where do you get the hypo filters? How often should I change the filter? I've been pretty good about cleaning the hoses, mask, water chamber, etc but the DME folks said to just tap the filter every once and a while. Do you pull it out and run it under water or will that kill it?

Yep, the filter is under that little cover in the back. Just lift it up gently and you'll see the small white filter. Of course, over time it turns grey. It depends upon conditions in your bedroom, but I change my filter about once every 2-3 months. If you have allergies, you may wish to go once a month. I have in the past tried to extend the life of my filters by thoroughly washing them out with hot soapy water and dried them completely and re-using them. Seemed to work okay, but in your situation, you may not wish to do that. They're really designed to be disposable on these S9 machines. My old pre-2007 REMstar Pro had two filters, a washable sponge and a paper filter. On those, you were supposed to wash the sponge filter, but not the paper one. On these S9 machines, the filter is not really paper, but some other material that seems to hold up to at least one washing for me.

You can get the filters online or through your DME. I get mine from Supplier #1 on our Supplier List. 6 pack for about $12. Hypo-allergenic. But you can get them at just about any DME (Durable Medical Equipment supplier). I generally try to stock up on filters when I have to order something else like nasal pillows or hose, etc. That way I save on shipping costs to bundle everything together.

[PaulaO2]

We live in an old house with high ceilings and wood floors. And we have dogs and cats. My filter barely makes it a month. During pollen season (which has been really bad this year!!) I change it more often.

I second the nasal rinse! What a difference that makes. If I wake up and get all stuffy as soon as I take the mask off, I rinse in the morning. But usually I just do it right before going to bed. I use the bottle vs the pot. NeillMed and Ayr are two US brands. There's probably more. You want to use one of their mixes or make your own. Plain water will burn like a sonofa...you know. The pH difference will be painful. I use the Ayr bottle with Neillmed packets.