u/oretoiron

Been a long time since I posted.

My problems were severe. I ended up getting both corneas debrided after horrendous recurring erosions that caused vision problems, flares, light streaks etc.

What has worked for me:

- Vevye prescription drops every day. Absolute game changer.
- Muro 128 or generic equivalent every night
- Padded eye mask every night
- Refresh Optive MEGA-3 drops about 10 min before I apply Muro at night, and first thing upon waking up, prior to opening eyes fully
- those same MEGA-3 drops as needed during day (I use a full vial every 24 hrs)
- if I really want to be comfortable, limit gluten and sugar

In my case I strongly believe my dry eyes are environmentally caused, probably by allergens in the area I moved to about 6 mos prior to onset.

Thus, the anti-inflammatory approach (the foundation of which is Vevye) has been incredible.

I did everything else - warm compresses, eyelid massage, oil supplements, etc but the problem was never the glands themselves. It was inflammation.

So for those like me, who maybe moved somewhere new and are suddenly getting dry eyes, do get your glands checked and all that, but keep in mind it may be an inflammation issue.

My life went to absolute hell and has come back thanks to this strategy. I plan on moving sometime in the future but can’t now…but it would be nice to live somewhere that doesn’t cause dry eyes. One of the reasons I strongly suspect it’s my location is that even brief travels elsewhere cause a near-instant remarkable decrease in dryness.

Day 9 nic free. While getting an altoid from a drawer in my office, I came across a barely tapped can of 3mg wintergreen Alp that had what looked like all but one pouch still in it.

The old me would have celebrated a lost-and-found can as a gift from above. Today I immediately stood up, walked to the trash can, and threw it away, and it was easy.

You can do it too!

I’ve posted a time or two here before dipping my toe into the possibility of quitting.

This time I’ve quit and will never go back.

Besides the mint flavor and oral “fidgeting”, pouches give me nothing. Because even the small rush they give is just the elimination of a withdrawal symptom that non-users never have. At best, using pouches simply makes me feel like someone who doesn’t use pouches (but who might pop a mint every now and then).

But the downsides are massive.

Financial is clear.

Secrecy, depending on your circumstances, is another.

Mental real estate, counting quantities to make sure you can last through the day or if you “need” to run to the store, one more thing to check off your carry list.

Libido strangled and left for dead.

Sleep disruptions due to brain stimulant activity.

And for me, the absolute worst of all, is the constant sinus congestion, which started gradually but has gotten so bad I cannot ignore it and has absolutely destroyed my sleep due to upper airway restriction.

I’ve chalked it up to getting older. To allergies. To sleep apnea (which, despite getting a super minor result on my sleep test, I followed through with by buying a cpap machine that didn’t solve the problem). I’ve been to the ENT. I bought a MAD device. I’ve done, maybe not all, but most all that could be done.

But still my sleep feels no more restful than my waking, I snore and sort of “nose-whistle” like I never have before, and I’ve gotten multiple sinus infections in the past few months. Can’t wake up without a headache and fog.

The only variable left and the one I suspected all along is the pouch. Coating my mucosa in chemicals that paralyze cilia, constricting my blood vessels during the day and causing rebound congestion at night, irritating my palate and airway all day every day for two years.

Do I have scientific proof this is the culprit? No and I never will, it’s all anecdotal. But I strongly suspect I’ll see improvements over the next few months.

I currently have a sinus infection and I have elected to use it as the right time to cease my habit. If I’m going to feel like shit might as well double down.

Thank you all, I look forward to reporting back here in a month or two.

I haven’t quit yet, in fact I’ve jumped from 3mg Zyn to 6mg Alp recently, and I am having a very unpleasant experience that may or may not be related.

I wouldn’t describe it exactly as a headache or even pressure. It is more like a sick feeling of malaise or unspecified yet very unpleasant illness all around my cranium.

Never really felt anything like it before other than after maybe a really terrible nights sleep while sick - for example when you snore for 8 hrs straight and don’t actually get any sleep.

This has been going on for a few days almost around the clock.

It‘s somewhat comparable to a dehydration headache I suppose but I’m staying hydrated.

Anyone else? Is this nic related?

Hi everyone,

Looking for some advice.

I am a ~40yr old male with beard. I have a narrow palate/arch that causes an overbite/retruded lower jaw when bite is fully closed. I am not overweight at all.

According to a Lofta home sleep study, I have mild apnea at around 6 AHI and I snore about 80% of the time I'm asleep. (For that matter, when my jaw is fully closed it is very easy to induce snoring while awake and upright; my facial structure seems like the problem.)

I consistently have ring/band headaches in the morning, feeling like my face is smashed in, exhausted, brain fog, no energy, mentally and physically dragging. The worst of the mornings include a sensation of body chills.

So I got an Airsense 11 with P10 mask about two months ago (cash pay, so minimal doctor oversight) and have had maybe 3-4 nights of better sleep with it. I tape my mouth shut with 3m sensitive skin blue tape.

Other than those 3-4 good nights, the last two months I've been dealing with one issue or another and cannot figure it out. My sleep seems just as bad as before. Here are some categories of variables I'm trying to dial in (some of which I have, some of which I can't seem to figure out) ...

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Mask Slippage
This was my biggest problem at first with the P10. I'd wake up every night with my neck or forehead getting blasted with air. Thankfully, I completely eliminated this problem by not splitting the headband, just keeping both straps running "horizontally" around my head right above the ears. It does not substantially move anymore.

Pressure
Low pressure (5-8 or so) doesn't seem to fully take care of the snoring. But high pressure (9-12) causes mouth leaks and/or chipmunking which painfully dries everything out, waking me up. Beginning at pressure 12, I also get RERAs and chest soreness from what feels like "over-inflation" of the lungs. I have tried a chin strap to help keep my mouth closed but it doesn't really work for me and adds a lot of bulk to the setup.

EPR / Exhalation
For the first few weeks I felt like I couldn't exhale fully, so I put EPR at 3 but that caused a slight delay/vacuum-like feeling in pressure when beginning an inhale, which I couldn't sleep with. So, I poked a few very small holes in the P10 filter area and that seems to have remedied both problems (easier exhale, more readily available air on inhale even with EPR at 3) but I fear I've messed things up there by causing general leakage. I don't know if that's okay or if I should order a new P10 and try again with no holes poked in the filter. Maybe I could get used to the effect of the EPR on the inhale and get away with 7-8 pressure.

Different Mask?
I tried the F40 but it leaked like crazy around my beard. I would definitely be open to a full face mask that plays nice with a beard, but I have one other limitation -- due to EBMD (a chronic dry eye condition) I absolutely must sleep with an eye mask on or I risk corneal erosions, and over-the-nose masks may interfere with that.

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I think that about sums up the variables.

I am going to see an airway-specializing orthodontist about SARPE/DOME/MARPE to see if the structural issue can be fixed, since weight loss cannot be a factor in my case. If so, I'll be selling everything I don't need in order to afford the potentially $20-30k cost of surgery and treatment ...

In the meantime, I am wondering from fellow bearded folks if there is a good mask out there, and/or what I can do with the nasal pillow setup to improve therapy even a small amount. Thank you!!