marks on my face

[cookie810]

So when I first wake up I have a bunch of indents on my face- I did loosen up the straps- I am at the point where the straps are at the loosest(is that a word?) without it falling off my face-
But I still wake up with indents- is that just normal and I need to deal with it?

[DeepBreathing]

So when I first wake up I have a bunch of indents on my face- I did loosen up the straps- I am at the point where the straps are at the loosest(is that a word?) without it falling off my face-
But I still wake up with indents- is that just normal and I need to deal with it?

I've got so many wrinkles I don't notice any mask marks.

[trish6hundred]

Hi cookie810,
You can get strap pads to lessen or prevent marks on your face. The pads attach to your mask straps with Velcro. You might try googling pad a cheak and check them out to see if they have something that will help you.
Hang in there for other suggestions.

[surferdude2]

I'm afraid it's a common problem and there is no easy answer. From what I gather, the more sodium you have in your diet, the worse this condition will be but it's also exacerbated by other factors. The pressure on your facial tissue forces the retained moisture out and it takes quite a while for it to return once you remove the pressure. I notice it not only causes the facial marks where the mask lands but it also give me some pronounced bags under my eyes. Both of those blessings disappear when I remove the mask and rise to meet the day but it takes up to two hours for me to be my beautiful self once again.

I suppose a low sodium diet might lessen the effects but I tried that for a few hours once and decided I liked Doritos & stuff much too much to ever give them up. I weigh 150 lbs. so weight isn't my problem. I suspect the age of my capillaries is my major causative factor but I can't do a lot about that. I'm 78 years young and planning on living forever...so far so good.

Once you get used to looking ugly, it's not so bad. I try not to look in the mirror until mid morning...YMMV

BTW, The bright red patch on my nose that the mask creates works like a "red herring" to distract folks from noticing my mask marks. There's good in everything, you just gotta look hard for it.

Click here for even more depressing details.

[justMongo]

[Sleepster]

But I still wake up with indents- is that just normal and I need to deal with it?

Two things. First, no one else looks that closely at your face that early in the morning. We don't even do that with our spouses. If you're single and doing the dating thing that might be the exception. So what I'm saying is the problem is not as bad as it seems and in that regard yes, just deal with it.

Second, try a different mask. One that matches the contours of your face better might not leave marks as pronounced.

I had at one point gone to a nasal pillows mask that left no marks. But then I had to add a chin strap that left marks, and then the mask was discontinued. So, back to lots of marks from both the mask straps and the chin strap. But as I said they fade fast after awakening. Within a few minutes you are the only one observing closely enough to see them. Soon after that they fade away and no one could see them even if they tried. Trying to see them, by the way, is what we are doing when we look in the mirror to see how bad they are.

Recently I had to switch to a FFM because the chin strap just wouldn't stop the mouth-leaking. To my surprise I now have no marks, or possibly marks on the one side I happened to be sleeping on just before I got out of bed.

[PaulaO2]

Sadly, strap marks and mask marks are just part of it. If they do not go away after an hour, try some of the things Trish suggested. Or switch to a different mask with better headgear that fits you better. We all have different facial structures and what fits me, won't fit you. You don't want the mask so loose it leaks just so you don't have marks.

[brianwood619]

make sure you stay hydrated, and use a good moisture rich lotion on your face, the red marks are a form of dermatitis, take care of your skin and you should not have any problems. I just went through this and realized with winter weather i had not been drinking as much water so i got dried out and thats when the red marks stayed for several days.