Been fighting a nasty cold for about a week now, and the sinus pressure is nothing like I've felt before. It's not constant, but will increase dramatically in an area or 3 for a few hours everyday or 2. Over the counter cold/pressure meds do nothing. 1000mg of tylonel or 400 of ibuprofen do nothing. A hot compress will take the edge off for a bit. Ideas? Twice I've woken up in the night sweating it hurt so bad. Oddly I can breathe fairly well at this point, but my eye feels like it's gonna pop out of my head.
Antihistamine/decongestant? I'm not a doctor, but I used to play one on TV!
Well, no. Not really.
That sounds like a large red ball type tracking device has been inserted into your sinus cavity. You are going to have to fish around in there with some pliers and pull it out. When you do - they will come looking for you. Your wife is not who you think she is. Trust no one. Good luck.
Have you by chance broken or injured your nose recently, or ever?
Ive been getting the same type of sinus pressure ever since I deviated my septum and possibly broke my nose about 8 years ago playing rugby. Pressure just builds and builds and builds, but my nose won't always get very runny. Unfortunately I don't really have a solution to offer you.
Good luck. I've had sinus problems for a while now and have thought about taking a knife to them.
Huckleberry wrote:
That sounds like a large red ball type tracking device has been inserted into your sinus cavity. You are going to have to fish around in there with some pliers and pull it out. When you do - they will come looking for you. Your wife is not who you think she is. Trust no one. Good luck.
well I do have a wet towel on my head....
fasted58 wrote:
Stefan wrote:
Netipot
yes, try this first
Haven't people gotten really sick from those? Some sort of weird mold/bacteria thing?
Inhaling steam helps. Put some Vicks Vapor rub in the water.
In reply to Gearheadotaku:
If you get a new one, you're pretty safe. It's using the ones that have been in the cabinet for 10 years that can cause big problems. They also have like "disposable" style ones you can get at the drug store, sometimes a saline spray, sometimes netipot style.
I'd actually suggest making a good pot of hot chili and just standing over it.
Or Trepanning
Gearheadotaku wrote:
fasted58 wrote:
Stefan wrote:
Netipot
yes, try this first
Haven't people gotten really sick from those? Some sort of weird mold/bacteria thing?
Only if they are idiots and don't clean them before and after use.
Another netipot but opposed to salt to make a saline solution, snort an 8 ball through it.
My doctor had me try this. It's not bad but if I have a blockage and squeeze the bottle too hard I do something to my ears, get dizzy and drop to the ground.
I used to have problems with that when I was younger.
Sometimes the best thing in the world, was a piece of surgical tubing and a syringe. Stuff the tube up the nostril, use syringe to vacuum sinus. Repeat as necessary.
Do you have a humidifier? If so use it at night religiously. It will keep things from drying out and setting up like concrete.
Other than that, honest to goodness Pseudoephedrine. Not the fake crap they try to foist off on you now, but the stuff you have to show a driver's license for.
I've had sinus issues for years. When they are really bad, the only thing that will cut it is Afrin nasal spray. Just don't overuse it or use it too long or things will actually get worse.
First question, is it snot or inflammation? I've noticed when I get a cold, sometimes my sinuses are completely empty but I still can't breathe through my nose. Usually that is the case with pressure and headaches from sinus problems. If you think about it, mucus can't "pressurize" in the sinus because there are plenty of big exits. If you have pressure, chances are its inflamed tissue; either the tissue causing the pressure itself, or causing a blockage to the exit where snot would otherwise escape.
Either way, the medical solution (not saying the best solution) is a steroid. Nasacort or some similar OTC spray will do the trick. I'm not a fan of jumping to the strongest solution, but it sounds like you're there.
Saline and neti pots are primarily intended to flush snot out. They may have the added benefit of removing something that is irritating your sinuses and therefore reducing your body's defense... but that is somewhat of a long shot.
If you can gain access to a sauna, at least try it a few times. The dry heat from a sauna worked better for me than a steam room. To each their own though. The heat from a sauna has really helped me especially in the winter time.
Are you having any unexplained nose bleeds? If so that warrants an immediate trip to the doctor imo given your circumstances.
Thanks for the tips everyone. Doing ok at the moment, we'll see what tonight brings.
Pseudoephedrine used to work well for me back in the day, but now its hard to find. I'd better look harder it seems.....
kazoospec wrote:
I've had sinus issues for years. When they are really bad, the only thing that will cut it is Afrin nasal spray. Just don't overuse it or use it too long or things will actually get worse.
Be careful with the Afrin. Nothing is faster, but it leads to rebound congestion and can become hugely addictive.
In reply to Gearheadotaku:
In SC, you have to go to the pharmacy and ask for it. They no longer stock it on the shelves. It's behind the counter. We have to show ID and sign for it as well.
Everything on the shelves is the fake crap that doesn't work.
In reply to Toyman01:
Mucinex works, it's not pleasant, especially for the first 12 hours, but it gets the job done.
M2Pilot
HalfDork
10/27/16 9:33 p.m.
The OTC Sudafed that you can buy without a hassel is phenylephrine, a not very good decongestant. You have to go to the pharmacy to set pseudoephedrine, you'll have to show ID & sign for it. That should work. The Neilmed Sinus Rinse also works well to get all that snot outta your nose. I'm a pharmacist, so I probably know what I'm talking about.
PS Be careful of any oral decongestant if you have high blood pressure or heart issues. If you use the Sinus Rinse or Netipot, be sure your water has been boiled. The potential,but rare, problem with unboiled tap water in either of these is that you may be infected with some rare bacteria that eats your brain. Having said that, you have more risk of exposure from swimming than using Sinus Rinse or Netipot.
