Quoted for truth. The last time this happened to me, my doctor had to get involved. Afrin is a quick fix, but payback is a bitch.
C’mon! You can’t tease us with a disastrous nose-water story!
Try OTC Zyrtec (or generic version) for allergies. It’s a hell of a lot cheaper than claritan, but it doesn’t have the decongestant.
This is SO AWESOME, you guys. Thanks for all the tips. I’m gonna try a neti pot and see what’s up. The idea is that it cleans out your NOSE only, or your whole sinus cavity?
When my face had puffed up like a chipmunk and my sinuses were putting me in an unbearable amount of pain, I went to the doctor and got antibiotics. I’d always been suspicious of the sinus infection diagnosis but I have to say, it was easily one of the smartest things I ever did. They worked almost immediately.
It cleans the nasal cavity, which has openings that the sinuses use for drainage. Clearing these openings allows the sinuses to drain more freely, thereby relieving pressure and also cutting back on post-nasal drainage.
Excellent. It says on Wikipedia that snorting salty water can work as well. Should I just snort up some warm water until I can get downtown and shop?
It’s nothing beyond what you might expect: the spout of the pot (which is more or less like a teapot) was too fat to fit in my nostril (and I don’t have particularly small nostrils) and I used too much salt.
So I closed my eyes, breathed deeply and visualized pouring the salt water up one nostril and sloshing it around and pouring it back out my other nostril, opened my eyes, and tilted back…and the spout slipped and poured thick salty water half into my nose and half into my eye, and I doubled over and started shaking my head back and forth and whuffing like a walrus, and of course some nasty salt water trickled down the back of my throat and half-triggered my gag reflex so I started hacking and spitting…
Anyway, my sister is a pretty small person and doesn’t have a big nose even relative to her small size, so there must be smaller-spouted Neti pots available. Were I presented with one, I’d try it again, but I’d measure the salt very carefully and maybe make someone experienced do it in front of me so I could imitate the moves.
The spout of mine doesn’t fit in my nostril. You just have to press it firmly so there’s a decent seal to keep it from pouring all over your face.
My wife and I both get a lot of these headaches. Thanks for the advice. But what about the burning, itchy eyes? I get that a lot too. I think there may be a dust problem in our new home. Any advice on how to eliminate it? The people before us didn’t dust at all, and we’ve been cleaning up, but it’s still bad.
I think I pressed too hard.
I can’t use the neti pot, but the squeeze bottle alternative (such as NeilMed’s) works great for me.
HEPA filters. Sears carries them. If the dust is really bad then be sure to buy replacement filters when you buy the unit.
If you have central air, use those fancy expensive filters for it that filter out pollen and smoke. Also hypoallergenic vacuum bags will help keep the dust in the bag and out of your nose.
As mentioned upthread, it may be best to hit an allergist before you spend a lot of money on filters. If it turns out you’re not allergic to dust, you’ll save a pretty penny.
Just in case, ya know?
I just bought a neti pot, and am heating water right now. Reports from the mucus front in a bit.
Thanks, DM, but HEPA would be a good idea anyway. We have 6 cats, so I’m thinking something at home is most likely the issue, or is at least exacerbating it. I don’t feel as bad at work as I do at home (as a rule).
No problem, mang!
I just used the neti pot, and now my head has salt water in it. It’s a weird sensation to have water flowing through your sinuses, partially because half the time I couldn’t tell if it WAS or not.
My general pain level has lessened a lot in the last three hours; hopefully this will hasten its decline.
I tried Claritin but it didn’t work for me. (Regular kind) I use Zyrtec now (Generic brand) and it works better. My teeth hurt when my sinus pressure builds up, it drives me nuts. And my left eye gets red and sometimes hurts. I take the Zyrtec and while the eye remains red, the other symptoms are gone. I should see an allergy specialist but I haven’t found the time. I did see three eye doctors about my eye. They tried the various gambit of steroids and eye drops to no avail. Eye just wants to be red, all the time.
Sounds like you might not have drained the water well - when I get a little water from the neti pot in my actual sinuses, I know I’ve tilted my head wrong and take extra time to drain and dry the nose. Sometimes I have to hold my head down longer than normal to get it to drain right.
But, as I think you’re discovering, even if the neti pot doesn’t cure your problem immediately, its a big relief for a time, even if you’re mostly blocked.
A friend of mine turned me on to the neti pot a couple of years ago. She used it daily for a couple of months and it alleviated most of her allergy problems.
Every now and then, for about a week every other month or so, a vessel in my right eye swells up and I look like I have pinkeye. It’s clearly allergy related, and it burns like hell. OTOH, my eyes are always always always red and swollen from every day issues. Stupid cats!