Tips for continuing PAP through a cold

[Bostonsnow]

Hi all

I guess I could have searched for past posts on this topic, but not feeling too great....... amazingly through 6 months of PAP therapy I have not caught a cold (nor COVID) until now where I have caught a cold.   Any tips / pearls for continuing therapy through a cold?  Some things I'm finding/ thinking about:

1) with a sore/ sensitive throat, I found the past couple of nights that the usual airflow that I tolerate fine is irritating my throat, making me cough, and waking me up.  I'm going to try dialing up the humidity setting to see if that will help....

2) I am using nasal pillows with mouth taping to prevent mouth leaks. However with a good mouth taping, I find that you just cannot cough very well. I think I have to leave mouth taping off, so then will get mouth leaks I guess....

3) my nose is not too congested yet, but, if it gets more congested, the nasal pillows are not going to work.   I have a FFM that I usually dont like to use as much. I could switch over to that, but not sure how comfortable it will be coughing, hacking and slobbering into the FFM!

appreciate any tips!   luckily my apnea is not too severe (AHI around 17 if off therapy), so in my case, if needed, I can just go without for a few days and will be ok, but will snore like a loud train and keep my wife awake!

[gainerfull]

Try afrin / sudafed for the congestion. Helped me clear my sinuses right up during my last sickness and made it easy to continue using cpap.

[OpalRose]

3) "my nose is not too congested yet, but, if it gets more congested, the nasal pillows are not going to work"

Actually the opposite is true.  I have found that with the direct air in the nostrils, it has the ability to blast through any congestion.

Raising the humidity may help with a dry irritated throat.  The air should be a little warm, not cold.  I would leave the tape off until your coughing subsides.  

Don't worry about numbers or low level leaks while you have this cold.  It's best to focus on feeling better.  You can always get back on track after the cold is gone.

[mesenteria]

My father suffers from pre-waking congestion and agrees with OpalRose.  He says the nasal pillows are the cat's butt because they open the nostrils and provide more forceful access to the nasal cavity for the therapeutic volume of air it is meant to deliver to you.

[Deborah K.]

I used my pap machine through covid with no problem.  I also mouth tape and have found that I can cough inside my mouth without opening my mouth at all.