Cannulas, mouth breathing, Nostril dilators, and sleep!
I sleep with a cannula, as many of us here do, I imagine. My nasal passages are narrow, and are rarely so clear that I can comfortably breathe only through my nose. Has anyone tried nostril dilators (strips across the nose, or a device in the nose) with a cannula? What about flared cannula? I'm hoping to find a better way to get more oxygen through my nose!
No, I haven't tried strips. I have two issues. One is the cannula moves when I do, so I wake up and it is half on one nose and I have to fix it. Either that or it is totally off my nose and laying there. Sometimes it is good. My nose runs a lot which makes it difficult. I have to stock up on tissues every week.
I have never heard of a cannula devise. I often wake up with a stuffed up nose and a very dry throat. Also in the Day time I some times I have to carry some tissue as my nose runs. In the mornings when I am at the worst ie, caughing, mucus, and snot from my nose. Also my head feels like I have a head cold.
Just in case it helps, here is a guide on some of the different types of nasal cannulas that might assist! https://copd.net/living/choosing-nasal-cannula Let us know if there's anything else we can do to help! Keep on keepin' on, DPM
Hi
Some found the nasal strips helpful, but they didn't help me. You could try a face mask, which I have had to use periodically. It helped. Others have said it helped them. Others tried different cannulas. You may have to try something different. We are all different. Will your doctor or oxygen provider let you try a couple of types?
Mike, have you tried doing a nasal rinse? That's where you use a neti pot or something similar to put water, with a solution into your nose. That helps to clean nasal gunk, and bacteria out of your nose. It helps to open my nasal passages.
I hope that each of you finds something that will work for you.
Let us know what you find.
Janet (COPD Team)
I will reach out to my oxygen suppliers and see what they have. I'm curious about the mask. I have now tried an in-nose nasal dilator, but found it inflamed my nose. The nasal rinse is something I'm hesitant to do (again), as it has caused me to pass out before!
