A five-year veteran of CPAP, here. My experience is primarily with the nasal pillow variety with an Adams Circuitas seen here . When I was first diagnosed, the tech fitting me suggested the nasal pillow route because I have always worn a mustache, and he was concerned that a mask would leak around the 'stache.
Others have since told me they have had no problems between their mustache and a good seal with their mask, but now I’m used to the nasal pillows, which work fine for me. I do have to readjust the velcro straps on the headgear every so often to keep the pillows in place without pushing too hard on my nose so that I wake up with a sore honker.
If you’re sore, try loosening the straps slightly. Too much, though, and the fit will be so loose that the air will feel as if it’s blowing across your nasal passages rather than inflating them. When that’s happened to me, I wake up in the middle of the night with heavy mucus formation, as the body tries to prevent the nasal passages from drying out in the “wind.”
A few months ago, my brother-in-law, who works as a technician at our local sleep lab, suggested I try a new design, the NasalAire. The design meant no headgear (except for a chin strap) and allowed me to wear my glasses and read with them on (I like to read before going to sleep, and my thought was that this would let me get setup, start the CPAP, read for a bit and then just turn out the light). All of which worked fine, except I could never get a good seal, even using the largest sized nasal cannula. After a month or so, I donated it to the sleep lab where they could sterilize it safely and give it to help out a low-income patient.
Hope that helps. Don’t give up on CPAP. It can be a lifesaver. One tip - know your pressure setting (mine is 11 pounds) and have your machine checked regularly to make sure it’s putting out the proper pressure. Should you ever be hospitalized and your own machine for some reason not available, the staff will need to know the pressure to adjust the machine they will provide you. Again, if you’re having general anesthesia for anthing, the anesthatist needs to know you are a CPAP patient.
Other CPAP users on the board are sure to chime in, but I’ve got to go put my rig on and crash.
Happy (safe, non-snoring) dreams,
Hometownboy