Adjusting to Bipap

[stumble]

I started using my bipap last night.
I have trouble exhaling
and it makes me drool.

Is it my breathing deficiency or am I missing some setting?
Would the saliva stop if I didn't use water?

 

[dalvin]

You need the water , without the moisture your mouth and sinuses will dry out. You might try to adjust the temp down a little. As for the settings on the bipap you need to speak to your respiratory therapist.

 

[Schmidhogan]

Don't know about the saliva. Bipap takes while to get used to. Just start a few hours a day. Don't fight it. The bipap has greatly improved my life.

 

[Diane H]

Having difficulty exhaling probably means that your expiratory pressure is set too high. It should be about 4. Often the pressures are ordered by a doctor who doesn't have familiarity with ALS and are set as though we have obstructive sleep apnea. Your respiratory therapist can change the settings for you but will probably have to clear it with your doctor first. Or you can lower the EP yourself if the machine will allow you to. A couple of hours test at a lower EP will quickly tell you if that is the problem.

 

[texastracy]

When I started mine, the levels were too high. The respiratory tech got the ok to lower the settings. It took about six weeks for me to get used to sleeping the whole night with my bipap. Now I can't sleep without it making the background noise it does. My daytime settings are a lot different than my night ones.

 

[lgelb]

Besides minimizing EPAP and tweaking the humidity, the fit/type of mask is another aspect to look at. Also, you might play with cycle sensitivity/minimum inspiration time.

 

[stumble]

My Epap can't be changed. Inhale and exhale are both set at 4.
Time to call the provider

 

[stumble]

actually 4 is as low as will go.

 

[stumble]

The man is coming at 3 to reset the machine.

 

[patrick123]

It does take awhile to adjust to a BiPap it took me a few weeks. Take your time with it start slowly and work up. Right now I can't imagine not doing it. I sleep so much better. And give me a sense of safety.

 

[Jeff Long]

Stumble,
Glad a rep is coming to check out the machine.
Concerning the drooling... I tend to slop a bit when I do NOT use the bipap; however, when I DO use it I slobber like a teenage boy at the Playboy Mansion on Volleyball Night. Not sure why, but that's how it is. I have found that a tissue, folded and tucked into the chin strap, collects all the 'treasure'! And damn ALS for sucking our dignity away one annoying trick at a time!

 

[ECpara]

My husband went to biPap a few months ago and has not tolerated it too well. Stumble, he drools constantly, too, and keeps a washcloth under his mouth at night. But as contradictory as it seems, the biPap causes his mouth to dry out terribly and it wakes him up. So today he was outfitted with the humidifier, hope that helps. I guess you have to go through a time of trial and error.

 

[lgelb]

The IPAP and EPAP values or ranges, as well as all other settings apart from fixed alarms, are always changeable by patients and ALS patients don't have some constant level of respiratory compromise. It's a progressive disease. If anyone ever needs to change their own settings w/o a tech, I can tell you how. Stumble, it makes no sense to have IPAP/EPAP the same for you -- that is CPAP, not BiPAP, and low at that.

As for EPAP and drooling, it's worth noting that if you have a pre-existing obstruction, whether you ever were treated or not, the EPAP can actually be too low at 4, collapsing the airway so you cannot breathe in the full IPAP amount. I'm not saying that's the case for anyone here, but untreated sleep apnea is very common esp. at larger neck sizes.

ECPara, the humidifier should help, feel free to play w/ settings as climate/your climate control settings change. Also, if you have the option on your machine for "manual" climate control (separate setting for heat/humidity), you should use them both.

 

[ECpara]

Thanks lgelb! His RT showed us how to adjust the humidity, low in summer, higher as it gets cooler and less humid outside. He tried it last night but I can't say he kept the biPap on any longer. Hopefully over time he will adjust.

 

[Ronnie& sissy]

ECpara, our RT says the opposite, the less humidity the lower the number, higher humidity higher the number. ( on the humidifier part of machine that is) ? What model do you use?