Nasal breathing has been a focus of mine for a long time. I use it as a signal as to whether my exercise is too intense (if I have to open my mouth). I also tape my mouth shut at night to clean up apnea patterns that showed up in an overnight heart rate vs. time recording. I've posted about breathing a number of times: Mouth taping at night Breathing to convert to NSR Breathing iby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
I have been taping my mouth for the past three months. Should you decide to go that route, your local drugstore sells paper tape which makes peeling it off in the morning easier and less painful. I go one step further, I cut off an appropriate length and tape it onto the back of my hand for a few minutes to make the glue less tacky. Youtube has information on “mouth taping”by Catherine - AFIBBERS FORUM
Folks, try taping your mouth it isn't really dangerous. There are safe options if you don't want to use medical tape. Some I know have used these strips and they swear by it, see link please There are so many benefits from nose breathing in general and most of us don't even realize it throughout the day and this deprives the body of nitric oxide among other things. Many stby johnnyS - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotesmackman George How in the Hell did you sleep with your mouth shut with tape? LOL You must be a sound sleeper. I have to wear a full face mask for CPAP therapy because I am a mouth breather. It took me months to find a mask I could comfortably sleep with and now I cannot sleep without it. Irish breathing instructor, Patrick McKeown, has written, presented and done podcasts on this topic.by GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotesmackman George How in the Hell did you sleep with your mouth shut with tape? LOL You must be a sound sleeper. I have to wear a full face mask for CPAP therapy because I am a mouth breather. It took me months to find a mask I could comfortably sleep with and now I cannot sleep without it. Point is not to mouth breath. That is an issue and it has taken an effort. I've had nasal congeby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
George How in the Hell did you sleep with your mouth shut with tape? LOL You must be a sound sleeper. I have to wear a full face mask for CPAP therapy because I am a mouth breather. It took me months to find a mask I could comfortably sleep with and now I cannot sleep without it.by smackman - AFIBBERS FORUM
In my quest to eliminate all possible triggers, I wore an r-r heart rate monitor during sleep many years ago. You can see apnea patterns in the tachogram (HR vs time graph). I saw mild ones in mine. I started taping my mouth shut at night to be sure I was breathing through my nose. My heart rate patterns cleaned up very significantly.by GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteJackie Hi Jackie, in your link < they talk a lot about chronic fatigue syndrome. I don't exactly have that. For example, on the evening of Feb 14, I was in UT, planning to ski Alta on a powder day the next morning. As I was by myself, I did an experiment. I only ate tins of sardines and oysters for the day (as I only eat once per day). About 350 calories. Then I skied the stby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
I was diagnosed with afib in March at random (more explanation in my previous thread). I have been taking a variety of supplements both via recommendations here, my own reading and my naturopaths suggestions. I am 36 years old and have zero interest in any pharmaceuticals. I am in rhythm about 70% of the time in any given month, generally out of rhythm for 24-48 hours at a clip. I can count oby beardman - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteThe Anti-Fib I am not an expert in this, but is seems to me this is pretty basic, that if one holds there breath during Exercise, creating an Acute Oxygen deprivation, that the Atria will stretch out. This can contribute greatly to having an AFIB episode. Though I wasn't wearing an SpO2 meter, I doubt if I was creating significant O2 depravation. Though it certainly can be done, inby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quick look: Serum CO2 lengthens ERP, and slows conduction This may be why apnea creates a risk for afib (slowed conduction after the apnea). There may be an opportunity to use this to convert episodes without meds (I did this). There may be an opportunity to put afib in remission (speculation) by training the serum CO2 chemoreceptor to accept a much higher steady state level of CO2. There apby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Que, I tape my mouth shut at night < Helps with apnea. Also use amber or blueblocker glasses at night and try to get outside during the day to stimulate melatonin at night. Georgeby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
I self diagnosed myself with mild apnea using a tachogram from my Polar monitor per this Power Point presentation: < (Polar tachogram described in more detail here: < ) A longer description of my self diagnosis is here: < Overbreathing during sleep and all the time is an issue with apnea. To deal with this I now pay attention to always breathing through my nose, including during sby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Another thought, assuming the high heart rate is real. Let your nose be your governor. Learn to breath through your nose all the time, including when sprinting. I know this sounds impossible, but it is possible. It is paradoxical - you need CO2 to utilized oxygen effectively. This is because of the Bohr effect. When you hyperventilate, you reduce your serum CO2 level and hemoglobin will biby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Alex... As George notes, left side sleeping has been recognized as an AF trigger for some. I'm not sure if a cork is large enough to be a reminder not to rollover on one's back ... typically, a tennis ball is suggested. Prone, which is face down, is not good for your back, neck and probably also impairs breathing. Supine, which is face up, allows for the mouth to fall open as muscby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Just talked with a friend who also took the Butekyo technique breathing classes with me years ago, and she reminded me of what the instructor said about proper breathing and testing for whether you have sleep apnea or trouble breathing during sleep. At night, tape your mouth shut with a paper tape that releases easily. Turn under a tab at both ends so there is a quick grab and release mechanby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
I've been using CPAP since 2008 and have gone through all types of masks etc. My mouth opens while I sleep so I had to use a full face mask for a year or two before my Dr got me hooked on a resmed nasal pillow mask. No more nose bridge sores or "raspberries" sounds. However, I need use three small pieces of waterproof latex free tape to seal my lips together. No more dry mouthby RalphL - AFIBBERS FORUM
Here's some of the remedies for Sleep Apnea from EarthClinic.com Each of these suggestions had descriptions on how they used each. APPLE CIDER VINEGAR BETAINE HCL WITH PEPSIN ELIMINATE GLUTEN IODINE, DESSICATED THYROID IRON, VITAMIN C small pinch of borax [ no, not boron nor boric acid ] RAW SUNFLOWER SEEDS TAPE MOUTH VITAMIN Cby Todd - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Maria, When I was first diagnosed with afib, one of the dr's that I was seeing recommended a sleep study for me in 2007. I actually had two of them as the first was inconclusive but the second showed that I was suffering from mild apnea. I have been using CPAP since the second test. I think it is helping but I can't really be sure because I still have bouts of afib, although not asby RalphL - AFIBBERS FORUM
McHale, As to sleep apnea, a possible simple solution is sleeping with a piece of paper medical tape over your mouth vertically (from chin vertically over lips at a bit of a diagonal) to keep it closed. The idea is that when you breathe with your mouth open, you can over breathe & reduce the CO2 level in your blood. This can lead to the pauses that are apnea. Since the nose is more restricby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Mike - Definitely, sleep apnea could be influential. When you lose more weight, the apnea may resolve as a result. When you went down stairs and felt something starting.... I always look upon the early morning 'tendencies' as flirting with hypoglycemia from too long between the last meal and before your morning meal. Prevention is the protein/healthy fat snack 2 hours before bedtiby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks George. I'll try the medical tape method. I make it a point to breathe through my nose, but I suspect I must be mouth breathing in my sleep because I wake up and the roof of my mouth and back of my throat are all dried out.by Mike - AFIBBERS FORUM
Mike, Slowly increase your dose of mag to bowel tolerance levels, then reduce slightly. This may change over time. As to sleep apnea, a simple solution is sleeping with a piece of paper medical tape over your mouth vertically (from chin vertically over lips at a bit of a diagonal) to keep it closed. The idea is that when you breathe with your mouth open, you can overbreathe & reduce the Cby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks George for finding all those links. Yes, it's increased CO2 that makes the difference. When this Buteyko, RT person gives a lecture, it's fascinating to watch her talk and breathe as she visibly closes her mouth and hesitates for a few seconds rhythmically to ensure that she retains that CO2. As far as anyone trying the 'taping one's mouth shut' while sleeping.by Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
A few breathing links: Here's some more info on Butekyo breathing: <; <; Also: This book, written by a Buteyko teacher, addresses both apnea & CPAP machines: "Freedom from Insomnia: The Natural Way to Solve Sleep Problems by Alexander Stalmatski." The Buteyko concept is that overbreathing drives serum CO2 levels too low & causes the apnea (& other issues, lby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
This will be a suggestion from an unusual direction: If you think you have an apnea problem, you may want to look into Buteyko breath training. See my post here: <; This book, written by a Buteyko teacher, addresses both apnea & CPAP machines: "Freedom from Insomnia: The Natural Way to Solve Sleep Problems by Alexander Stalmatski." The Buteyko concept is that overbreathingby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Interesting...I have sleep apnea, bradycardia, mild GERD and use CPAP. Since I am a mouth breather I use PAPER tape, NOT surgical tape with the nasal mask. I have had no luck whatever with using a full face mask. Not being overweight and with a thin face all the masks leak air. The paper tape does not rip off your skin like surgical tape might. I have to admit the CPAP did nothing I am awareby benj - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Dave, For the "off the wall" suggestion of the day: In "Freedom From Insomnia", author Alexander Stalmatski suggests sleeping with surgical tape (vertically) across the lips to keep the mouth closed & breathing through the nose. Stalmatski is a proponent of the Buteyko breathing. There is information about the Buteyko technique posted here in the archives. Brieflyby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks, Dave - I think your comment - "waking up gasping for air" is extremely appropriate. This would certainly signal severe apnea. So would a bed partner's observations. One of my patients was an RN and was having a sleepless night. While she counted sheep, she became aware of her husband's the erratic breathing... who by the way, was totally unaware of his breathingby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Nancy, I have no knowledge of Albuterol, but here is an off-the-wall suggestion - tape your mouth shut at night instead of the CPAP machine. Here is one reference to doing this see about 5 posts up from the bottom. The theory comes from Buteyko breathing. Buteyko was a Russian physcian that developed a breathing program for asthma. The theory is that many people tend to breathe too rby GeorgeN - AFIBBERS FORUM