How To Use Mouth Tape and Nasal Dilators
We are recommending trying nasal dilators and mouth tape, because we have noticed that you have both nasal constriction and evidence of open mouth berating. We have found evidence of this on your wellness scan based on your occlusal wear patterns. Using dilators will help open up your nasal passage ways and allow you to breathe fully through your nose. Once you can fully breathe through your nose it is safe for you to try mouth taping to get a lip seal at night. A great book recommendation with more information about the benefits of nasal breathing and creating a lip seal at night is Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor. We recommend buying the trial pack of Mute Dilators and rolls of 3M mouth tape. There are other brands available, but we have found these to work the best for most people and are both a great starting point. They can be purchased on Amazon.
We recommend trying these products during the day (maybe while watching a movie) to make sure that you can tolerate them before you try them at night.
When inserting the Mute dilators, have the round arms facing you and the flat, ribbed side facing up. You will insert one side into the nostril and then into the other. Press them as far in as they can go. The ribbed paddles (flat sides) are adjustable. You want them to hug the internal curve of your nostrils and at the top creases of your nose. Adjust them to be smaller if there is any discomfort. The size is too large if the bridge overhangs, but there should be some resistance when you try to take them out or it is too small. It may help to apply Vaseline around the rims of the nostrils to help insert the dilators. You will notice your nose will look more triangle shaped and you can breathe better through your nose. You can google “how to use mute nasal dilators” to see a video of how to insert them.
If you normally apply lip balm or lotion to your face, you may want to refrain from doing that before applying the mouth tape so that it can stick better. We recommend folding the ends of the tape in so you can grab the edge when you are ready to take it off. You will want to blot the tape on your night shirt or on your sheets one to two times to reduce the amount of adhesive on the tape. You can apply the tape vertically or horizontally. Most people have to apply the tape horizontally at first to make sure air does not escape out of the corners of your mouth, but you can also use a postage stamp size piece of tape and put it in the center of your lips. You will roll your lips in, apply the tape and then roll them back out to get a good seal. When you are ready to remove the tape, stick your tongue through your lips and wet the tape. This will help loosen the tape and make it easier to remove. You may have to rinse your mouth off with warm water to remove any leftover adhesive residue.
We recommend that you try this for a two weeks. If you find that you like the dilators but cannot get used to the tape, there are many other brands of mouth tape that may work better for you. If you do not like the Mute brand dilators please look on amazon for other styles that may work better for you. Intake breathing makes a nasal dilator that is external and many of our patients have also liked this brand. We also have a habit corrector mouth appliance that can be purchased through our office. This will serve the same purpose as the tape.
