Trying to figure out the Opti-Life mask

[JJJ]

I've been to all the websites of the suppliers and I'm hopelessly confused. I even called a couple of them on the phone and I can't get two people to give me the same stories.

Apparently there are pillow, or a cradle, and a chin strap. I'm especially interested in this mask because of the chin strap. Plus it seems to be on sale at the moment, although that may not be a good sign. But there are a bewildering number of options for the purchase. What comes with the mask and what are the options? What is the cradle and how does it work?

If anyone has an Opti-Life mask I'd appreciate some guidance.

[PaulaO2]

I don't use the mask but have you checked Amazon? Sometimes they have a "what's in the box" list. Not always, seems to be hit and miss.

[bwexler]

I had never heard of this mask before your post. I looked at Supplier #1 web site and find the mask intriguing but found very little info on the cushion. I called and got a reasonable explanation.
First they offer two versions one with nasal pillows only and the other with pillows and cushion. both varieties include the chin strap and multiple sizes. either p, s, m or m, l, ln.
They absolutely recommended the return insurance.
If you like the nasal pillows (I do not) the videos at supplier # 1 do a good job of demonstrating how it works. They are also pretty clear on what you get when you pull down the size selection .
I did not check any other sources.

[big_dave]

I've got an Optilife that I use for reading in bed, so I don't fall asleep without a mask. It's very comfortable with minimal leaks (with the pillows). I would use it more often but the headgear is inadequate and it gets knocked out of position easily.

I've also tried the cradle cushion but I didn't like it. It sits slightly outside of your nostrils like a tiny mask cushion. I could not get the leaks under control.

The chinstrap is really designed for holding the mask in position. It doesn't do much for keeping your mouth closed. Replacement cushions and pillows cost next to nothing on eBay.

[PollCat]

I've used this mask for several years and love it. The mask stays in place whether I sleep on my back, side , or stomach (which requires one to hang off the side of the bed's pillow). Each mask comes with four different-sized pillows (XS, P, M, L), if you need it, an XL can be ordered separately.

Since I use the Mediums, I either give the others to friends who use different size pillows or send them to SecondWind. I have also tried the cushions and had the same experience big_dave encountered.

[JJJ]

Thanks to all for the comments and suggestions.

I ordered the OptiLife from Supplier #1 ($75.95 with shipping, but the version without the cradle), and it arrived yesterday. I spent some time during the afternoon getting everything adjusted the way I thought it ought to be. I went to bed about midnight, keen on my first night's sleep with it. It was mostly a disaster:

[attachment=513]

You'll notice that there is a dramatic change about 2:30 am. Before then the leaks were waking me up every 20 - 30 minutes. I would adjust and try again. At one point I switched out the medium pillows for the small, and thereafter it seemed to work better. The main problem was that the chin band kept slipping off. I couldn't adjust the length of the band any way to make it stop coming off. I am not impressed with the design of the chin band. The plastic pieces that it hangs on needs to project at least several cm. further back to keep the band from coming off.

About 2:30 I gave up. Leaving the OptiLife on, I grabbed my custom chin strap and applied it over the OptiLife, just as I did before with my Wisp. Notice what happened to the leak rate after that!

There are some other problems with the OptiLife. When I wake up in the middle of the night I sometimes need a few swallows of water to allay dry mouth. This was especially true during the first part of the night before I added my custom chin strap. But it is just about impossible to take a sip of water with the OptiLife on. The plastic part that holds the pillows projects backwards and prevents you from raising the glass to your lips. You have to use a straw (try to find a straw in the middle of the night) or you have to take the mask off.

The OptiLife is also inconvenient when you go to remove it. Unlike the Wisp and most other masks I have used, there is no quick-disconnect snap. It is attached firmly to the tube that it come with. To take it off you have to pull the other end of the tube out of the 6' tube from your CPAP machine. How much more would it have cost Respironics to make a quick-disconnect clip where the tube goes into the mask? I am not impressed.

I wanted to try the OptiLife because a) I was hoping the chin band on the OptiLife would make it possible to eliminate my custom chin strap and, b) the Wisp has knobs and bumps on the sides which make it uncomfortable for a side sleeper. The OptiLife succeeds to a large extent for (a), but for (b) it is a total fail.

I'll probably give it a few more nights (keeping lots of straws handy by the bed), but it doesn't look encouraging.