[Treatment] Got a cold......can i put something in the water ????

[Trickyman]

Howdy
I have a cold/ flu & finding my runny nose a real pain.
being new i am finding it hard to sleep.
I asked my Sleep Dr if i could put something in the water ie
* Lavender
* Tea Tree Oil
* Vicks
* Eucalyptus
to help me sleep a little better.
My Dr Stated " We dont sugget you put anything in other then water as it will damage the hose & mask ( Resmed Quatro FX), you will just have to get well"
Is that a fact !!!
Any ideas for my Resmed Hi5?????
Any other suggestions as to what i could use & how much????
Thankyou for your support
   

[zonk]

http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...omatherapy

[Bompa]

I put a couple drops of Eucalyptus oil in the water. Works fine.

[PaulaO2]

When I have a cold or allergies, I use a nasal rinse just prior to going to bed then again first thing in the morning. While wearing my mask, I don't notice the congestion. But as soon as I take the mask off, my nasal passages clog again.

Make sure your filters are clean.
Take extra care in cleaning your mask. I suggest cleaning it daily while you are ill. When you are better, clean it extra good again.
Try a nasal rinse with either the bottle or the Neti pot. I use the pre-made packets. It is just saline with a buffer.
Put whatever you normally use during a cold (such as Vicks or eucalyptus) on a cotton ball and put at the filter. Some put it in the water. I wouldn't do it because I have a stupid tank I can't take apart and clean.

[DCwom]

You can do whatever you want, but personally I won't add anything to my water. I'm not afraid of damaging the CPAP, but more concerned about myself. There are too many unknowns about unstudied additives that concern me (ingredients, purity, concentrations etc.).

[zimlich]

Please don't put anything in the water. Hope you feel better.

[TorontoCPAPguy]

I strongly advise not putting ANYTHING in the water unless specifically under doctor's orders. Period. I strongly suggest, as well, using only quality distilled water, cleaning the tank, hose and mask regularly and using Control III or some other disinfectant intended for airway equipment and Control III wipes to wipe down the mask immediately after each use. Acute pneumonia after H1N1 and three weeks on total life support in Critical Care perks up one's ears. In addition? It may sound silly, but if you have a cold I would ensure that I brushed my teeth regularly, flossed and used a quality disinfectant mouthwash as you will be mouthbreathing and having whatever is in your mouth blown into your lungs as well. These are not matters to be taken lightly nor should one follow suggestions without education and quality medical advice (my advice is personal opinion only... from experience). I find that simply cranking up the humidity when I have a cold (grand total of one in the past three years since life support episode.... but it is allergy season) or allergies are kicking up, does wonders. During the day I use a quality nasal spray and try not to inhale it but keep it in my sinus area.

PLEEEEEZ. Take it from one with 60% lung capacity who struggles for air on a regular basis. It just is not worth messing around with. Imagine that you are drowning and cannot breathe and you will get an idea of what I go through each week at least a few times (usually after eating something that contains salt). It is the worst feeling in the world and I compare this with broken bones, kidney stones and the worst kinds of pain imaginable.... trust me, you want to get solid medical advice before blowing ANY crap into your lungs or inhaling it. We have even gone so far as to purchase our cars with cabin air filters that we change regularly to keep the crap out of the cabin air as best we can.

[Sleepster]

Anything you could put in the water would only be homeopathic, and there is no evidence that any of those aroma things, like Mentholatum or Vicks-Vaporub, do anything to lessen your congestion.

Saline rinses, on the other hand, are very effective.

The humidity itself from the CPAP machine will definitely help with the congestion. It's like having your own private personal humidifier.

I also find that HPA Lanolin helps keep my nose from drying out, but like I said, does nothing to help with congestion.

[TorontoCPAPguy]

The key is that you do not want to introduce into your lungs, which are finely tuned organs, anything that is not supposed to be there. Vick's Vaporub IS intended to be there, obviously, but the key there is that it is intended to be there in very low concentration and not blown into the lungs in quantity or concentration. I can remember being in public school in the 50's and 60's when they were blowing asbestos onto the water pipes to keep them from sweating and insulate them. NOTHING was thought of it at the time; even parents who were Dr.'s were not concerned. Now we are finding that those that were exposed closely are paying the price bigtime.

I have to say that I am a believer in the saying that "you cannot put an old head on young shoulders".... I spent some time in Surgical Critical Care not long ago (my problem was resolved in a 20 minute procedure after three or four days of incredible pain... and, in fact, I am going back for 'the Presidential' at the hospital in the AM....the fellow in one of the beds was telling me that they had been looking for the cause of his lung problems for some time and finally discovered that he had 'things' growing inside them. Most of his lungs had been removed and he was on the list for a double lung transplant. His transgression? He burned rotting wood from his hunt camp and in doing so disturbed spores that had been lying dormant for many years. They were heated, dispersed, inhaled and twenty years later ravaged his lungs in revenge to the extent that they had to keep removing chunks. We cannot ever be too vigilant in taking care of what we allow into our lungs. SMOKERS BEWARE! I was a smoker many years ago.... I have absolutely no pity on anyone that willingly and knowingly smokes. You are killing yourself. Please don't ask me to pay for it..... in any event, keep what you don't absolutely need in your lungs OUT OF THEM. I am off to bed shortly and it will be to a clean mask that has been partially disinfected using Control III wipes (odorless). There are several solutions intended for airway support gear and I cannot recommend to your consideration strongly enough that you use one of them to disinfect (and I mean KILL THE GERMS and not just get the gunk off) your masks daily; your hoses and tank weekly. And I do a thorough cleaning on each of my masks after a week of use. First an odorless detergent soak and wash with agitation using a soft bristled paint brush; a good rinse with hot water; then a good soak with Control III (one or two oz. per GALLON) including mechanical agitation with the paintbrush and a good rinse with hot water.

The sinus rinses I hear are good but I do not tolerate them well. So I use a reputable (medical grade) distilled water in my humidifier (because it is being BLOWN into my lungs) and crank it up when I have a cold. During the day I use a nasal decongestant spray (long story) and try to keep it in my sinuses and not inhale it. (If you have aFib, PVC's, etc. you do NOT want to get some of this stuff into your system and the lungs are straight into the bloodstream).

Anyway, nuff said from this OSA sufferer. Hoping for a good night of sleep. Not just OSA to trouble me. I am like a dog chasing its tail. Last night was terrible sleep and I was a basket case today but got some work done for a prominent client and then went shopping with my wife for a new BBQ (steaks on the barB tomorrow!!). I checked my data this AM after such an awful night. AHI=0.3 and SpO2 was 95%+ all night with a pulse rate under 70... I was indeed calm and could see where the pressure on the XPAP went up due to shallow breathing and obstructive incidents during the night... the S9 also records your airflow 'snoring'. None. Did note some leakage off the normal mask specs, so I suspect that I smooshed my face into the pillow and had air blowing into my eyes off and on. Tonight I will be more vigilant setting the headgear.

[pssnn]

There is no need to put anything in the water and as others have already posted doing so may damage your equipment. Simply place whatever you were thinking of adding to in the water next to the filter as other members have suggested. One thing I know that works for me when I can not sleep because of coughing is to put vicks vaporub on my chest (or just a little dab under my nose, however that is no longer an option since starting CPAP). This was suggested to me many years ago when I was a biochemistry major in college and at the time I thought it was total B.S. I got desperate just before finals one night and tried it anyway and it actually worked and quieted my cough!
Good luck and feel better!!