Hello Guest, Welcome to Apnea Board !
As a guest, you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use.
To post a message, you must create a free account using a valid email address.

or Create an Account


New Posts   Today's Posts

Leaking Swift Fx pillows
#1
Sad 
Leaking Swift Fx pillows
I did very well with the Bella Loops along with the SwiftFx for Her for the first three months, especially after I learned to adjust it. I'd get leaks here and there in different spots and I'd just adjust the mask until the leak stopped.

However, starting a few days before my three month mark, I began getting a leak at the top of my left nostril. Always the same place. It was time for new pillows, but that did not help. I had been most recently using the medium size, so I went back down to the smaller size, as my new medium seemed larger than my old one. This seemed to help somewhat, but changing positions to lay on my right side would always start the leaking. I could sometimes make it better, and sometimes not. I've been often giving up totally in frustration, as the noise of the leak wakes me up an irritates me endlessly. Always in the same place, but not always as prominent.

I noticed recently my loops seem stretched out, and the notches slip out, which I don't recall ever happening in the early months. So I've ordered new ones this time around. I think maybe I was too free with just yanking them off whenever I went to the bathroom, which is way too often.

Has anyone else had this problem of a leak always in the same place?

-The Pink Whinging Pom
To sleep; perchance to dream...
[Image: resmedforher.gif]
[Image: Sleepwellpink1_zps36e39dba.gif]
Post Reply Post Reply
#2
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
Although I didn't use the Bella, I had a lot of leak problems with the Swift FX, went to the Swift LT and made a big difference. Don't know if it will solve your problem but hang in there and you'll get more replies to your query.
Sleep-wellCoffee
Post Reply Post Reply
#3
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
I don't have your mask, but I am a side/stomach sleeper and that often pushes my mask in weird ways. The leaks wake me up. Often a quick readjustment stops the leaks until I fall asleep again and my head slides down off the pillow. It's annoying but I haven't found a away around it. If I only slept on my side I wouldn't have that issue, but my arthritis doesn't always allow me to be comfortable sleeping on my side.

Do you notice the leaks in the same place when you sleep a certain way or does it happen regardless of your sleeping position?
Post Reply Post Reply
#4
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
Thanks for the replies! I really like the loops because I have a hard time reaching the top of my head, so adjusting the usual type of headgear is probably impossible for me.

iSnooze, when I first started, I would have the same thing you have - and I turn often. At first, it was not difficult to readjust to correct, but the leak is bizarre in that it's always in the same spot and at times, no amount of shifting around will correct it. It's usually easy to correct if I'm on my stomach, left side or back, but it's very persistent on my left side. I have to change positions often due to the arthritis in my shoulders and my fibromyalgia.

PS, Love your hedgehog!
To sleep; perchance to dream...
[Image: resmedforher.gif]
[Image: Sleepwellpink1_zps36e39dba.gif]
Post Reply Post Reply
#5
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
Just an update on the mask issue - I thought I had done so before, but NOO! I got the new loops and that did indeed help. My old ones really were stretched out. I still get this same leak at times, but I can almost always correct it with just a little shifting of the mask.I've been more careful with taking the loops off and putting them on, so my newer mask is holding up pretty well. I hung on to my old one until I noticed it had a hole on one of the loops - so I really had been giving it a beating.
To sleep; perchance to dream...
[Image: resmedforher.gif]
[Image: Sleepwellpink1_zps36e39dba.gif]
Post Reply Post Reply
#6
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
I started with the Swift FX, but found my movements were knocking the pillows askew and causing leaks (even with the full headgear). Big culprit for me was the hose...didn't take much drag on the hose to pull the pillows and cause a leak at the top for me...perhaps something to look for? Smile
INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.
Post Reply Post Reply
#7
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
That is one reason I modified the hose fitting so that it runs to the top of the head gear and is fixed there (with enough slack of course), thus rendering the problem of the hose pulling the pillows out of position null. Also it keeps the pillows from getting easily dislodged by the side sleeping, by keeping the pillows better fixed in one position.
Post Reply Post Reply
#8
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
(09-09-2013, 03:18 PM)DocWils Wrote: That is one reason I modified the hose fitting so that it runs to the top of the head gear and is fixed there (with enough slack of course),

Do you have a photo of the mod.

I love the pillows - (which has been reinforced to me as I currently have a cold and am forced to use a nasal mask until my nostrils are no longer red and angry) any way to make them more effective is of interest to me - I currently loop the hose over my shoulder and try to catch it on the pillow with some slack in it. My leaks are well under the red line but would like to get it better.
Post Reply Post Reply
#9
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
I use the Swift FX pillows and have had pretty good luck with the although I toss and turn a lot. Like another poster, trying to keep the hose free is the toughest thing as it will pull down on the mask if not supported properly. My straps have required adjusting as they seem to stretch over time.
"Sometimes the magic works . . . and sometimes it doesn't" -- Chief Dan George in the movie Little Big Man
Post Reply Post Reply
#10
RE: Leaking Swift Fx pillows
I finally decided to try going the night with the Swift FX instead of my Quattro FX FFM. Knowing I have a mouth leak problem, I used a chin strap, then added tape at three places across my mouth to try to keep my lips sealed.

So far, so good.

I managed to make it to around 3:00 a.m., when I woke up with my cheeks puffed way out and air blowing through my lips. All further attempts to get my air management under control failed, so at 3:30 a.m. I gave up and removed the pillows.

Curious about how last night's data would appear, I loaded it into Sleepyhead. Oddly, my AHI was a not too bad 2.2, with most of the being "clear airway" events. But the leak graphs literally blew me away. I had constant leakage over and above the 24 limit nearly the entire night.

So now I'm even more confused, because with leaks like that CPAP should have been worthless, yet my numbers were pretty good.
Post Reply Post Reply


Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  How do I reduce mouth leaking? meatheadmd 6 376 Yesterday, 01:42 PM
Last Post: Old Codger
Question Difficulty Exhaling with Nasal Pillows? chill 23 10,771 03-26-2024, 06:13 AM
Last Post: 40plus
  Nasal pillows vs. cradle GOIRISH65 8 391 03-04-2024, 07:44 PM
Last Post: Deborah K.
  Flow Limitations Full Face Mask vs Pillows wickedsleepy 4 399 02-23-2024, 10:44 AM
Last Post: wickedsleepy
  ResMed Airsense N30i elbow leaking? Elton525 2 346 02-13-2024, 01:24 PM
Last Post: Elton525
Question Snoring worse with FFM vs pillows PaulaO2 12 934 01-28-2024, 12:25 PM
Last Post: PaulaO2
  Resmed Airfit P30i Nasal Pillows Mask Leak Question fuzz 2 485 01-25-2024, 03:10 PM
Last Post: fuzz


New Posts   Today's Posts


About Apnea Board

Apnea Board is an educational web site designed to empower Sleep Apnea patients.