Palatal prolapse mitigated with positional therapy.
I have been struggling with palatal prolapses (PPs), which I successfully mitigated with Alaxo Hybrid Stent. See:
Alaxo Hybrid Stent with CPAP - Therapy Thread ( 1 2 3 4 )
Nevertheless, you can find an alternative and less demanding mitigation approach based on positional therapy below.
I noticed that the frequency and length of my PPs are lower during side sleeping than in the supine position due to the effect of gravity on the position of the soft palate. Hence, I tried to sleep on my stomach, but I could not maintain that position for long because of terrible neck pain. I tried to sleep face down with a special bed arrangement (like a massage table), but it placed unbearable pressure on my forehead. Finally, I found this product:
MedCline Shoulder Relief Wedge and Body Pillow System
I covered it with a five-inch memory foam but left the hole open for my right arm and shoulder. I added a five-inch thick soft memory foam pillow, too. I did not put the Body Pillow over the wedge (contrary to the manufacturer's suggestion); instead, I placed it around the wedge to support my head and the added pillow. When the Body Pillow, the 5-inch pillow and the wedge are correctly arranged, I can sleep a bit face down and maintain this position without shoulder or neck pain the whole night. I also used the following device to prevent turning on my back (although my locked-in shoulder mainly restricts my position).
Side sleep enforcer for positional apnea
Outcome:
There are 1-3 days/week when I have no PPs. On the rest of the days, I have 10-40 minutes. I understood that my success depends on my head position; a slight misalignment can make my PPs worse. It took about four months of experimenting, but finally, I managed it.
However, the stent is more effective and manageable without all these hurdles. However , I had an issue with the stent, which I will report soon in
Alaxo Hybrid Stent with CPAP - Therapy Thread ( 1 2 3 4 )
Alaxo Hybrid Stent with CPAP - Therapy Thread ( 1 2 3 4 )
Nevertheless, you can find an alternative and less demanding mitigation approach based on positional therapy below.
I noticed that the frequency and length of my PPs are lower during side sleeping than in the supine position due to the effect of gravity on the position of the soft palate. Hence, I tried to sleep on my stomach, but I could not maintain that position for long because of terrible neck pain. I tried to sleep face down with a special bed arrangement (like a massage table), but it placed unbearable pressure on my forehead. Finally, I found this product:
MedCline Shoulder Relief Wedge and Body Pillow System
I covered it with a five-inch memory foam but left the hole open for my right arm and shoulder. I added a five-inch thick soft memory foam pillow, too. I did not put the Body Pillow over the wedge (contrary to the manufacturer's suggestion); instead, I placed it around the wedge to support my head and the added pillow. When the Body Pillow, the 5-inch pillow and the wedge are correctly arranged, I can sleep a bit face down and maintain this position without shoulder or neck pain the whole night. I also used the following device to prevent turning on my back (although my locked-in shoulder mainly restricts my position).
Side sleep enforcer for positional apnea
Outcome:
There are 1-3 days/week when I have no PPs. On the rest of the days, I have 10-40 minutes. I understood that my success depends on my head position; a slight misalignment can make my PPs worse. It took about four months of experimenting, but finally, I managed it.
However, the stent is more effective and manageable without all these hurdles. However , I had an issue with the stent, which I will report soon in
Alaxo Hybrid Stent with CPAP - Therapy Thread ( 1 2 3 4 )
