AIR ENTERING MY CHEEKS AT NIGHT

Tested at 12-15 mild/moderate sleep apnea (2 at home tests). Airsense 10 cpap machine for her and P10 nasal mask which I love because I am somewhat an incurable insomniac. Reading posts to perhaps turn EPR to off, I get all AHI's down to under one now. I reduced my pressures to 8.2/5 (high and low). No mask leaks but have to tape my mouth from unconscious drooling or slight puffs of air leaks probably from relaxing my tongue unknowingly . This all works fine for me EXCEPT- NO matter where any changes have made to my Airsense 10, I still get puffs of air that enters in cheeks which wakes me up. I hurry and am sure I put my tongue on the roof of my mouth to no available. I feel like I should put something on each side of the inside of my cheeks like foam to quit those leaks or air . By the way I have tried the chin strap and the air even by passes that no matter how tight it is. If I physically pushed in my cheeks with my hands it would quit I'm sure but by then you might as well get out of bed and quit everything. No matter what my setting changes were made, it still happens. 3 years on Cpap. Can't stand full masks and I've tried many kinds. Oh how I wish I could change this.

I also like the comfort of the P10 mask as well. I also mouth tape, and have found that to keep my mouth closed without resorting to chin straps, I need two layers of tape. My first layer is the 3M 1" wide gentle paper tape. I run it fully across the mouth from side to side. I find it resists moisture best, but that one strip alone is not enough to keep my mouth closed. So, I follow that with a second layer of Mefix tape that is 4" wide. I cut it into pieces that are 4" x 2 1/4", and used that to cover the first layer of 3M tape. I tried wider 3M paper tape but found it was not flexible enough and would not stay on all night. The Mefix tape is very flexible and stretches and stays on. I tried the Mefix tape alone but found it was not resistant enough to moisture and then became detached. It takes a bit of time to put it on, but it is what has worked for me.

If this is not enough for you, then you may have to consider a mask that covers your mouth. I tried a ResMed F20 and could not stand it. I could not make it stop leaking and waking me up. I have no personal experience but I hear good reports on the minimal contact full face DreamWear mask. ResMed has one (F30?) that is very similar but the hose goes down, instead of over the back of the head. Some say the DreamWear version can be noisy due to the tubes that go up the side of the face. But, it may be more comfortable as it goes over the head.

Hope that helps some,

Sierra-My tape is the tape you mentioned as your first one and it does not leak all by it's own. My problem is not the tape, it's early in the am that I feel bubbles of air that escape around my gums from back and into my mouth. Not much but enough to keep it up and waking me. I don't know where those little bubbles of air goes. They don't come out of my mouth and they soon disappear over and over. They ride over from the back of the top of my gums to the mouth. I tried knowing this to put a tight seal on my tongue to the roof of my mouth and as soon as I relax the bubbles reappear. If I put my hands and cupped the outside of my cheeks, they would stop. I have asked this question previously and a chin strap doesn't stop it from happening. My pressures are not that high for my mild/moderate sleep tests. What a phenomena! I do love my P10 from all others. Including Dreamwear.

I made my husband a chin strap that is the only one that worked for him as he sleeps on his back and his jaw can drop out of any full mask that has any stretch. . He wears it every night and has not had a leak since. I did pad the bottom of the pure wide velcro under his chin. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkByHPBPwXc.... So about me- last night I put a gel spacer I cut from one of those toe things you put to separate your toes so you can polish them (never used it before) I cut it just enough to shove under my top front lip and then put my tape over my lips on the outside. WaaaLaaaa, it worked. It must have given the inside of my mouth less room for air to escape. Tonight we be night two. I slept over 8 hours at 100% of everything.