How to stop rolling onto my back?

[method115]

I've looked online everywhere and I've found a few ideas but before I just stick to using a backpack stuffed with pillows\sheets I wanted to see what other people do. Rolling onto my back is the last thing I need to solve and I'll sleep like a baby. It's the only thing that interrupts my sleep now. I do wake up to switch which shoulder I'm sleeping on because my shoulder starts to hurt after a while but that's it.

[Sleeprider]

Read our positional apnea Wiki article. It is often just fine to sleep on your back as long as you don't tuck your chin as the result of sleep position or too many pillows http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...onal_Apnea

[Phil7]

Interesting.   I thought all these years (without really thinking about it), that sleeping on your back was the preferred way to sleep with CPAP machines.   Perhaps I got confused early on w/ people maybe talking about sleeping on your back for better mask seals?

Opps, I've been doing it wrong and learned something new?   Thanks.

[quiescence at last]

yeah, Phil, you'll deal with more falling throat flesh if you are on your back. but I would not say there is a mandate against sleeping on your back.

Unfortunately, I have always felt it necessary to have 3 pillows under my neck and to tuck my chin to my chest. (sleeprider nailed me, but lately I have been able to wedge a travel pillow between chest and chin. and that helps.)

QAL

[SevereApnea]

Recently found this article by Marques and others.

Whether you wish/need to sleep on your back or side may depend on your individual anatomy.

Small sample number but interesting observations nevertheless.

Summary in the Discussion:

1. Patients with tongue related obstruction did not exhibit a change in tongue position or airflow upon moving onto their side.
2. Airway patency improved slightly with lateral positioning in patients "without" tongue related obstruction.
3. Epiglottic collapse improves substantially with a change to the lateral body position during sleep.

This highlights how complex this whole business is and how unique solutions are needed for each individual.

Hence the benefit of this Board where we can all learn from each others situations.

Marques

[2SleepBetta]

I discovered for myself what SleepRider wrote, as others have. A high (wide?) enough cervical collar did away with need for a more rigorous method. I had to use the vest/block, illustrated at the link before ordering and wearing a wider (4 inch) cervical collar. The smaller of the two necessarily nested boxes appears to be a 4" x 10" x 15" (?) box my Lincare DME used to mail PAP supplies. The pictured block worked, as verified by accelerometer position data.

I'd had a  3 1/2 inch collar which was not high enough to prevent chin tucking, a bit higher OA and more FL. Without the block now, AHI varies 0.0 - 0.2, occasionally up to 0.5, and  all FL are a scattered few at low level. Sleep is better, often on my back.

The supine lock-out device required a near sit up to switch lateral positions, which I did mostly after a break.

OT: The pictured mouth sealer pair enabled me, a mouth breather, to use the popular Resmed P-10 nasal pillow mask for years. I tried lots of things, but found the clinging but not sticky Silipos Gel-E-Roll to be my best sealing method. The brown mask is an elastic retainer that presses it to my face.

Note: I've learned that "elbows" is not spelled "elsbows". Am fortunate to have AB's spell check on top of all its benefits, but it won't fix attachments.

  http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/attachm...?aid=33700

[CorruptAlligator]

I wouldn't say preferred method is sleeping on back. I think it's it's still best to avoid supine if possible.

Yes, the stability of mask seals is the benefit of supine.

[GWild]

I read somewhere that sewing pockets into sleepwear that fit tennis balls against the spine was effective.

ps: my mask works well enough on my back or side as long as when on my side I am at the edge of the pillow, so that the mask is hanging in free air.

[nightgagger]

I'm not sure what did for it me. I have been a supine sleeper for many many years. I also have a large tongue. On top of it, I would tuck my chin in as well.

Over the course of the year, I bought a CPAP pillow, but even that didn't really help anything. So within the last 5 or 6 months, I started to be consistent in sleeping on my side. With that change, and using my CPAP pillow properly, I was able to lose the collar, and really reduce my AHI and flow obstructions.

I do have a pillow placed between my knees. I'm still not sure if that helps any, but I've stayed pretty much on my side through the night.
Practice maybe???

[CorruptAlligator]

@nightgagger, I find your postings interesting because you try out the same things I do, and similar mindsets in terms of solution.

Anyway, I got used to sleeping on my side as well. I don't think CPAP machines works so well for most of us since we all suffer from apneas based on airway collapse. I'm starting to see how limited CPAP machines really are in treating apneas.

What works for me in keeping me sleeping on my side without a backpack or tennis balls is bending my quads and knees perpendicular to the upper body. It keeps the body in stable position than being in the strait position. This position has good support so upper body will become less tired from being on the side too long. And importantly, this position prevents roll-over. It's much easier to roll-over if you're body is in strait position.

Based on a take home sleep study, I've noticed that my centrals are lowest when I'm on my side. It seems to be true.