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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 22, 2009 at 11:53pm

Hi. Carolyn. I would sure like someone to come on here and say their "oral appliance" is great! No need for CPAP.
I don;' know why you are concerned about noise with a mask, I use Swift Mirage, the Mirage II is virtually silent, they put in a new vent clip-slot which buffers the noise by, I would say 50%, since I've used them both, the Mirage Swift II is virtually silent, as far as the machine, they are also, so please ask us more. I'm sure any sleep meds are ok, whatever it takes to try this.

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Permalink Reply by Carolyn on October 23, 2009 at 12:07am

Thanks Gordon. So I take it Oral appliances are not that effective. Glad to hear about the silent machines. There seem to be so many choices I am completely overwhelmed and don't really know where to start...although I will keep trying :)

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 23, 2009 at 12:24am

You can try wearing a mouth guard if you want, I still am wanting to hear how great it is, I'd like to know what dentists think about it changing the "bite" too, maybe they love the business? How is changing the bite going to change the position of the tongue? If we have flabby mouth tissues and the tongue collapses as we relax on our backs, which many of us love to sleep, so, ok... we move the upper jaw? the lower jaw? depress the tongue? I don't get it. I bet it encourages bruxism, the dentists get more business from that too.
CPAP gives you the air you need. I hope you proceed.
My wife loved the sound of my machine from day one, as opposed to me snorting in the night, and that was Mirage I mask, the II is silent as can be, I don't know how ResMed designed that vent clip to be so quiet, but I still feel, for me at least, I got better exhalation, using the Mirage I, I can't prove it, we are spilling hairs here, which you don't need at this point.

Carolyn said:

Thanks Gordon. So I take it Oral appliances are not that effective. Glad to hear about the silent machines. There seem to be so many choices I am completely overwhelmed and don't really know where to start...although I will keep trying :)

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Permalink Reply by Mike on October 23, 2009 at 12:30am

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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Permalink Reply by Carolyn on October 23, 2009 at 12:47am

How about a nasal pillow mask? It looks less invasive.

Mike said:

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 23, 2009 at 12:53am

Hi Carolyn. Here's the nasal pillow masks, I use the Mirage I, which isn't shown, (it's still available) but they have a "her" one, I guess that's for women, on the right>http://cpapplus.com/CPAP_Masks/Nasal_Pillow_Masks_1.html
test it.
If it helps anybody here, I got my stuff at Progressive Medical in Carlsbad, California, 92011 you can call them and
ask them flat-out what are the most popular masks, don't get into sales rep bs, just ask them what they recommend, in full-face or nasal. They REALLY know what they are doing, and I will call them, if you
like, since I need an update also and update their info if you like.

Carolyn said:

How about a nasal pillow mask? It looks less invasive.
Mike said:

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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Permalink Reply by Mike on October 23, 2009 at 12:57am

what Gordon said -- if you're going with nasal pillows, go with ResMed LT for Her. it's the latest/greatest and women i've spoken to tend to like it a lot.

that said, i'd caution against nasal pillows for side sleeping. my experience was that they became dislodged when sleeping on my side. could have been the crappy pillow i had at the time which let my head sink in too much though -- that makes a big difference.

gordon nelson said:

Hi Carolyn. Here's the nasal pillow masks, I use the Mirage I, which isn't shown, (it's still available) but they have a "her" one, I guess that's for women, on the right>http://cpapplus.com/CPAP_Masks/Nasal_Pillow_Masks_1.html
test it.

Carolyn said:

How about a nasal pillow mask? It looks less invasive.

Mike said:

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 23, 2009 at 1:01am

I like that Mike, the tube @the chin/middle, maybe I DO have leakage on my side, that mask looks good. thx.

Mike said:

what Gordon said -- if you're going with nasal pillows, go with ResMed LT for Her. it's the latest/greatest and women i've spoken to tend to like it a lot.

that said, i'd caution against nasal pillows for side sleeping. my experience was that they became dislodged when sleeping on my side. could have been the crappy pillow i had at the time which let my head sink in too much though -- that makes a big difference.

gordon nelson said:

Hi Carolyn. Here's the nasal pillow masks, I use the Mirage I, which isn't shown, (it's still available) but they have a "her" one, I guess that's for women, on the right>http://cpapplus.com/CPAP_Masks/Nasal_Pillow_Masks_1.html
test it.

Carolyn said:

How about a nasal pillow mask? It looks less invasive.

Mike said:

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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Permalink Reply by gordon on October 23, 2009 at 1:21am

Mike- this version with center tube looks good, any feedback? Maybe I get less leakage than Swift Mirage i-side tube.
http://cpapplus.com/CPAP_Masks/Nasal_Pillow_Masks/Mirage_Swift/Mira...

gordon nelson said:

I like that Mike, the tube @the chin/middle, maybe I DO have leakage on my side, that mask looks good. thx.

Mike said:

what Gordon said -- if you're going with nasal pillows, go with ResMed LT for Her. it's the latest/greatest and women i've spoken to tend to like it a lot.

that said, i'd caution against nasal pillows for side sleeping. my experience was that they became dislodged when sleeping on my side. could have been the crappy pillow i had at the time which let my head sink in too much though -- that makes a big difference.

gordon nelson said:

Hi Carolyn. Here's the nasal pillow masks, I use the Mirage I, which isn't shown, (it's still available) but they have a "her" one, I guess that's for women, on the right>http://cpapplus.com/CPAP_Masks/Nasal_Pillow_Masks_1.html
test it.

Carolyn said:

How about a nasal pillow mask? It looks less invasive.

Mike said:

i think oral appliances have their place, but only with a subset of the population whose anatomical features are suited to it. to determine that, i'd consult an ENT or a sleep doctor -- i.e., the question of whether you'd be a good candidate for an oral appliance. one bummer about oral appliance vs. cpap is that oral appliance is not "smart" -- i.e., cannot report to you how effective it was last night at treating the problem. CPAP can and will, if you buy the right machine.

on that subject, there are machines out there -- newer better ones -- that are virtually silent. make sure you get one of those.

i think you should try a nasal mask first. i'm personally a fan of the ResMed Activa Nasal Mask. with that mask and a newer kind of machine, you shouldn't need any sleep med for the noise because there won't be much at all.

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