Any advice for sinus problems?

[dr.girlfriend]

I've had a headache/pressure off and on for the last few days. Pushing aside my usual hypochondriac diagnosis of a brain tumor, I'm pretty sure it's a sinus headache. Any suggestions? I've never really had sinus problems before, but this feels like it, and every once in awhile (TMI) I am getting drainage-y stuff down my throat. Eek.

So, do those sinus meds do anything special, or are they basically painkillers plus allergy meds or decongestants or whatever? Please don't tell me I have to get a Neti pot, those things freak me out.

ETA: I've always been squeamish about the Neti pot, but that House a few weeks back didn't help. I guess at least I know to use distilled water or whatever now. I am trying to avoid pseudoephedrine, I hate how it makes me feel, I think I have kind of paradoxical reaction to it (spacey, restless), but maybe I'll just have to suck it up. Off to google to see if Afrin is along the same lines.

[keweenawlove]

I was going to say Neti pots have always helped me. Afrin will work wonders for a couple days. For meds, I've had the best luck with Musinx (the kind behind the counter). I'm not sure what the exact medicine is, the pharmacist recommended it to me and it worked.

[Deleted]

sudafed

[bunch]

I came in to say neti pot.

[Mrs.Beagle]

Neti-pot. I get frequent sinus headaches and it helps a lot.

They freaked me out too, but once I figured out how to use it, it made a world of difference.

[cjeanette]

sudafed

[LoveTrains]

So I've had a killer sinus headache for 3+ weeks and then this week my allergies have gotten out of control. I went to the doc this morning b/c I have been suffering for so long and she said I had a raging/out of control sinus infection. She prescribed anti-biotics and told me to continue with my nasal spray (flonase) & OTC allergy meds but also suggested I take some sudafed/pseudoephinedrine or something like advil sinus which combines ibuprofen/pain reliever with decongestent (pseudoephinedrine).

She also suggested I use a saline nasal spray or a neti pot.

ETA: and in the past I have had intracranial hypertension (pseudo-tumor) which can often mimic the symptoms of a brain tumor. She was pretty sure that it wasn't a recurrence of that since the headache was clearly different and in my sinuses.

[doctorsbaby]

I've had good luck with a warm mist humidifier and afrin.

[Nonny]

The whole brain amoeba in the water killing is ridiculously rare, so I'm just going to come out and say get over that fear! I don't even bother with using distilled water, it's too inconvenient to mess around with when I need to fill up my bottle twice.

Also, use a NeilMed bottle instead of a Neti pot. If you are really stuffed up the Neti pot might not even do anything because it can't flush stuff through, but the NeilMed bottles have more force behind them.

You could also try taking Ibuprofen, because a lot of time the pain from sinuses is swelling, and that will help reduce the inflammation better than Tylenol.

[kangaroo11]

Afrin nose spray and Sudafed.

Although, the Sudafed certainly has not helped this headcold I've had for nearly two weeks now...

[mrssavy42112]

I always use the same stuff. Allegra + Sudafed + Motrin + Neti Pot. I like to take the medications separately, rather than doing an AllegraD or Advil Cold & Sinus that has the Advil+Sudafed, that way I can control the amounts. After the 2-3rd day, I can start to get off of the Sudafed which gives me palpitations, but I still need the other two at the same dose. Be careful with nasal sprays like Afrin. You can't use then for more than ~3 days or you'll get rebound congestion & be even worse than before. Rx nasal sprays are good too, but obviously not as easy to access. I do the NetiPot once before I leave for the day.

[kzoomaggie]

Musinx works wonders for me! I would also suggest taking a long steaming hot shower if you can. Sometimes that will loosen up the mucus.

I hope you feel better soon!!!!

[dr.girlfriend]

May 18, 2012 13:10:44 GMT -5 Nonny said:

The whole brain amoeba in the water killing is ridiculously rare, so I'm just going to come out and say get over that fear! I don't even bother with using distilled water, it's too inconvenient to mess around with when I need to fill up my bottle twice.

Yeah, that was a recent addition to my pre-existing Neti pot fear. In all honesty, I know my reason for avoiding it is stupid. I am somehow convinced it will feel like drowning, even though I know it will just be in my nose and not my mouth. My sister swears by it, though, so I should just suck it up and do it once, and then I'm sure I'll be a convert. Never heard of the NeilMed bottle, though...maybe I'll try that one first.

If it's a sinus infection, it is likely I can wait it out and let my immune system take care of it, or do I have to deal with it with antibiotics, etc.? Yeah, I know I should know this stuff. Can I mention again my screenname is a supervillain?

[dr.girlfriend]

May 18, 2012 13:40:54 GMT -5 dr.girlfriend said:

Never heard of the NeilMed bottle, though...maybe I'll try that one first.

Okay, this reviewer for the NeilMed bottle sounds like my twin! I'm sold:

When my allergist told me to use this product, I'll be honest. I had no intentions of using it. It wasn't until all of my coworkers started doing this & my little sister started using it & telling me how awesome she felt afterwards that I finally decided to try it. (Well, that & I had the beginnings of a bad cold.)

The product came with a few packets of the solution as well as a pre-filled bottle. After a few starts & stops, I finally managed to use the product. (I'm a wimp, what can I say?) The relief from this was quite noticeable. I was partially clogged in one nostril, not to mention congested & this helped immensely.

I don't think I'm likely to love the sensation of the solution going through my nasal passages, but my nose was far less clogged afterwards & I was able to ease my congestion a lot. I also liked that this was a squeeze bottle- I don't know if I'd have done this if I had to use the netipot version. (Did I mention that I'm a wimp?)

If you are debating whether or not to use this, get it. It really does help out a lot & as long as you are using it correctly it is very safe! If you are nervous about using it, don't be. This sinus rinse stuff is worth bolstering your courage for.