For whatever reason today this popped into my mind. I do not have a beard and do not plan on growing one in the near future (can't with my job anyway).
But it hit me that when I was in the Air Force that I was told that the reason that military men (And some women, I'm kidding) are not allowed to grow beards and even their mustaches are to be kept at a certain size and shape is due to the fact that we all are trained in the use of gas masks in the event of a biological or chemical attack and if you have a beard the rubber of the mask simply cannot conform to the contours of your face and therefore will not get a proper seal (In other words you would die).
So it stands to reason that if you are on a CPAP / BiPAP machine with a full face mask that it probably is not a good idea to have a beard. Especially since a full face mask has considerably less surface then even the skimpiest gas mask.
Just a bit of advice from someone that is in no way the authority in such things but is still capable of putting two and two together. And I know that I have seen on here in a little piece from last year about the advice of using the nasal pillows with a beard. But I am sure that I am not the only one here with a deviated septum and can only comfortably use the full face mask.
Take care of yourselves...
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