Maybe one of those chin straps that supposedly work for snoring?

I started having this problem when I started using my cpap machine. Have thought of buying the medical tape "patches" but not sure I can tolerate them. I use a chin strap but it doesn't help much. Sometimes it gets really bad and I have to get up and swish water in my mouth. Will be following replies you get.

When I started using a CPAP, it became apparent my mouth was not staying closed because I'd awaken with severe case of dry mouth. As if I'd been sucking on a hair dryer for hours. A soft and thin neoprene chin strap with a velcro fastener was recommended. I used those for several years and all was fine until my lips decided they wanted to crack open while I slept.

The solution, also from a sleep doctor, was to use tape. 3M Nexcare paper tape. I use the 1 inch size. No more chinstraps. I've been doing this now for a long time, maybe a dozen years. I put one strip over my mouth opening along the lips from one side to the other with some overlap and a folded tab on the right side so that I can remove it easily. The tape comes off easily and leaves no stickiness or residue.

It's a good thing I've remained married all these years. My appearance after I've prepared for sleep is anything other than normal or attractive. But it works for me. Good luck in finding what will work for you.

My doctor also suggested the Nexcare tape but surprisingly I don't need it even though I was a mouth breather before bipap. I do keep a glass of water with a lid next to the bed for sipping during the night as needed as the machine still can dry me out even with humidity. I could never sleep with tape on my mouth. It is bad enough when the power goes out in the night and I forget to open my mouth to breath.

This is a really good question Chisue. And timely. I'm getting my metal braces off in 6 weeks. I put bands on the braces and now....amazingly....I don't have a sore throat any more. Yeah...I must breath with my mouth open...and it gives me a sore throat. My husband says my snoring is soft, not loud now too. When the braces come off...so will the bands. Nexcare tape or a chin strap....I'll look into it.

" I could never sleep with tape on my mouth. It is bad enough when the power goes out in the night "

That was the concern that I posed to the doc who suggested taping my mouth closed, as I use a nasal pillow-type mask.

His response was to the effect - "If the power goes out, you'll wake up. Quickly, believe me. Not necessarily happily, but no risk of asphyxiation. Trust me, I use tape and I've had my wife pull the plug on my machine for testing, a few times when she awoke in the middle of the night. True devotion but reassuring to know."

Just as a double check, I also have devices where I sleep that simply plug into a socket that sound a loud enough but not too startling alarm when the power goes out. It's happened to me maybe 3 or 4 times in the past 25 years of CPAP use. Between the alarm and the doc's prediction to sensing the machine being off, I've woken up pretty quickly.

PS - these devices are cheap and easily found on Amazon.

I always wake up when the power goes out. It happens several times a year. But I still would not want to use tape as I would panic. I also use a nasal pillow. I didnt think it would work for me but I had problems with plastic masks. But that is me and I think most people can benefit from tape. You can but try. Obviously you aren't going to die.

I forgot that my Bipap beeps several times when the power goes but I wake up because the air stops. I would still say try the tape. Everyone isn't me.

Thank you so much for the NexCare tape suggestion!! My mouth (and even into the throat) gets so dry with my nasal pillow CPAP machine that it wakes me up more than once every night. Horrible. I will try the tape, and hope it works for me. =)

An additional personal experience to add - it can be challenge sometimes in stores like CVS to find 3M brand paper tape. Instead, they seem to like to push their generic store brand. Believe me, they're very different. The CVS tape has an odd taste and the adhesive isn't as gentle. Remember, it's on your lips, you don't want a tight grip. My wife once bought the CVS type, saying "I found this but not the 3M one". I learned first night it wasn't a like for like replacement.

Walgreens in my area seems to do a better job of offering branded products in addition to their house brand. All the same, I usually buy from Amazon for time efficiency, like so many other things people like to get from Amazon.

Isn't the purpose of a cpap machine to force you to sleep with your mouth closed by forcing air through your nostrils. I find it really uncomfortable to open my mouth when I have the machine turned on, so my mouth stays closed. @chisue Perhaps your machine needs an adjustment?

" Isn't the purpose of a cpap machine to force you to sleep with your mouth closed "

Nope. Not at all. Not even close. The purpose is to add pressure to incoming air to force it into the lungs, past obstructions often from the palate or in the back of the mouth or throat. That's why the common condition is called OBSTRUCTIVE sleep apnea, OSA.

CPAP users whose mouths or lips open, experience that when they're asleep and lacking the consciousness to sense and control it. .

But if your mouth is open, the air comes out your mouth instead of being forced down into your lungs. If I open my mouth when using the machine, I can't really breathe properly because trying to breathe through the mouth is impossible. The air coming from the machine out my mouth is stronger than me intaking a breath through my mouth.

I just started using papmd mouth strips for about a week. very comfortable, I dont notice it. it is latex free. However, i live by myself so i dont know if i am still snoring. Mouth is not dry in morning.

These machines by pushing air at a higher pressure makes it easier to breath in but we all dont have obstructive sleep apnea. I have a Bipap with responds to my breathing out making it easier to do so because I dont empty my lungs properly. There is at least one other sort of machine as well. If you use a full face mask you can breath through either your nose or mouth. Some people cant breath through their nose well. If you use nasal masks you need to keep your mouth closed as well as position your tongue up close to the palate as the air coming in will go out your mouth instead of into your lungs. It can push your mouth open if your machine is set really high like mine.

My machine also has a humidifier and maybe that is what Chisue needs. It gives you humid warm air that helps with the ouchy dryness. It has multiple humidity levels.

A good sleep clinic works with you to iron out all these issues so you get maximum benefit.

I don't use a CPAP machine. I'm just old, and my jaw relaxes when I sleep.

A chinstrap would drive me nuts! I'm picturing Doris Day (?), who supposedly fought the ravages of age by slathering herself with vaseline and wrapping up like a mummy overnight, complete with chinstrap. She -- or some other female star -- also did headstands to counteract sagging due to gravity.

@ladypat -- I saw that PAP MD advertised. Glad to know it helps. (It's a rectangular 'patch' for the mouth.) Reading here, I wonder if it isn't made of the 3M Nexcare material Elmer mentioned.

Well at least you dont have to deal with that. I get the chinstrap thing. I would hate it. I had a heck of a time finding a mask that worked for me. You feel like a gargoyle and the hard masks really hurt. Try the tape. My sleep therapy person who is a sweetheart suggested it.

" I'm picturing Doris Day (?), who supposedly fought the ravages of age by slathering herself with vaseline and wrapping up like a mummy overnight, complete with chinstrap. "

That's exactly what I pictured - an old 60s movie star with a chin strap to help stop sagging skin. When I went to try and find an image, I found these from about 100 years ago

1914

1929

I'm a relatively new BiPAP user, and I find that I only open my mouth when I try and sleep on my back; since I prefer sleeping on my side, it's not as much of a problem for me now that I've figured that out. When I am wearing it and I'm on my back (even awake), small amounts of air will burp softly and unexpectedly from my mouth, probably because not all the air I inhale is making it down to my lungs. It kind of makes me laugh.

Simple things seem troublesome for you.

Please go back and delete this. Even if it were true and it is not, if I or anyone should not understand something, the solution is to explain better. My father would always say, if you truly know something, you will be able to explain it to anyone. He was a doctor, biochemist, cancer researcher, but was able to explain the most complex of ideas to me even when I was a young child.

Not only does the above phrase reflect badly on your ability to explain a concept, it is needlessly hurtful (and untrue). For someone who almost daily complains about being insulted, why would you say something like that to anyone else? Delete it.

Read her repeated comments droning the same thing in the face of my comments, and those of others, disagreeing with her allegations concerning the ecotourism sites restoring populations and habitat. I had recent information, she had none. Reminescent of the Monty Python Argument Bureau skit.

"You're not offering a counterpoint or an interesting difference of opinion, you're just arguing to argue"

"No I'm not"

Look that over and tell me what you think. It was childish.

Team dog team cat thread

Stop with the excuses and red herrings and redirection. It was a horrible thing to say. Delete it.

That person has a history of being deliberately obnoxious to me. She dislikes men. My flagging her comments usually has no result. I normally take it quietly. It was going on in two threads and I picked one.

chisue, I'm like you. Old, mouth falls open, I wake up with dry mouth. But I did figure out it is mostly when I have caffeine during the day!

My DDS, bless her heart, recommended Xylimelts! They are fantastic! You put one in your mouth, wet it, then the beige side of one will stick to the side of your mouth or on your gums. I prefer side of mouth. On rare occasions I will wake up and need to get another one. But they are a game changer. I buy them from Amazon in a bottle, cheaper than the local drug store. I use mild mint flavor, it's very mild.

Kathy G in MI