Hi there
Any help or comments would be really appreciated.
Ive got a cold but after 3 days of blowing my nose solid my nose is really sore on the inside - it hurts to blow it, it hurts if I don't blow it. I can't just sniff.

About 3 weeks ago I had a sinus infection and got antibiotics from the doc. It seemed to do the trick while I was taking them but then once the course was finished it came back. So the dr examined me and said that my sinuses were really gunked up and I should do lots of steaming and blowing my nose tp get the gunk out. (The dr saw catarrah behind my ear drums and my throat was really sore and glands up and hurt as well as sinus pain.) I am also on nasonex and he told me to up that to twice a day.

So thats what I have been doing, and its working, my nose is running like crazy, Ive never blown so much stuff out of my nose -really. But now its all very painful, I am getting sinus headache and don't seem to be feeling better - I feel like I have a bad cold and I do. Im off work.

So Im going to continue to steam and blow until its all gone. Does anyone have any suggestions to make me feel better or to get all this gunk out - its yellow and white and cloudy. Has anyone been through the same and come out the other side? Id love some inspiration!

Cheers everyone
Tesss

I have, I usually get one or two nastys infections a year :P ... are you sure the first anti-biotic cleaed up the infection? If so, maybe it's just taking a while for everything to drain still. Make sure you drinking a lot of fluids...hot tea is very soothing, I'd try that, to help loosen stuff up more, and get it all out. :) How long have you had these symptoms for? Maybe you need to call your doctor and get put back on another anti-biotic?

Get yourself a product call SinuCleanse. It can usually be found for $15 at Long's, Walmart, DVD, that type of drug store. I know I'm going to sound like a commercial but, truly, it is so refreshing (though the process itself sounds gross, it really isn't).

SinuCleanse is a nasal lavage where you pour a light saline water into one nostril, the water travels through your sinus cavaties, then out the other nostril. It sluices out all the icky crap. You can do a search on "neti pot" on the internet. That's essentially what SinuCleanse is - and neti pots have been used for centuries.

Hi Both
Thanks for the replies, I have been doing what you said, drinking lots of hot drinks, and I do have a neti pot which I used yesterday. The drainage isn't so bad now, its definately eased up a bit, and its mainly white. And I slept better last night, which is a first in a few weeks! However now I have a terrible chesty cough, and rattling in my chest. I am coughing up some chunks of stuff which is really horrible. And when I woke this morning I felt quite sinusy - headache, nose hurt. Im just fed up of this. I am hoping that I am managing to clear whatever is in my chest by coughing up these chunks, and the sinus pain is just everything settling down. But I do have an appointment for monday at the dr just in case.
Thanks
Tesss

Hey just a quick question - my sinuses feel worse today than they did yesterday after using the neti pot. Doing nasal irrigation can't make this worse can it? I don't want to use it again.

You need to be sure you are using a saline solution in your lavage to maintain the ph (I think) balance in your nose/sinuses. Plain water may dry things out and you may be worse off.

Hi Jimmie
I am using saline. It didn't hurt when I did the nasal washing, but when I woke up this morning my sinuses/top of nose was hurting, and during the day it has stayed. A lot of gunk did come out last night though, that was good.

maybe time to see an ENT.

i've been constantly stuffed up as well.....with head pressure down to the base of my neck. lightheaded off and on as well with occasional coughing. have been on two rounds of antibiotics, zyrtec and flonase and today is the only day i haven't really had a headache or lightheaded in about 2 full months! i wake up too very clogged up...and when i blow, my ears close and nothing comes out......dr did say he saw some fluid in my ears both visitis....recommended me to have a catscan on my sinuses and head. did that this week...waiting on results. then he's sending me to see an ent once he looks over the results and discusses the finidngs.

have you ever had your wisdom teeth pulled? i'm thinking there may be a connection with my teeth and my issues as described above. going to have xrays tomorrow am and am tentatively scheduled for their extraction next friday...day after turkey day!

let's hope we both get over this...it IS draining isn't it...no pun intended...really! :rolleyes:

Hi Both
Thanks for the comments. Jimmie, I decided to stick with it and did a wash last night and again this morning! (Im in UK - 8.30am). Last night I got even more junk out which felt amasing, my nose felt really clear. I checked the salinity - measured it all out and I am using the right amount of salt. Although thanks for the tips, I do blow my nose quite vigourously which I will try not to. Do you add anything to your wash - Ive read about baking soda, herbs etc?

My dr did say that my sinuses would hurt anyway as I got rid of the infection, and I think that as I am clearing even more with the neti pot its just a sign of that. Since I have been using the neti pot I have been sleeping mostly through the night, which I wasn't before, so thats a big improvement. I was also reading on the net last night, and I couldn't find anything negative at all about nasal lavage. It seems to be a really good thing to do.

Im going to give it a few days and if I am not getting relief I will go back to my dr. Boxgirl, I haven't had my wisdom teeth pulled, although I keep getting food stuck in one of them and was thinking about getting it removed. Do you think there could be a link? You do sound like youve had a really terrible time, and I hope you get some relief.
However, I have been told numerous times that I shouldn't be using zyrtec as it can make the mucus more sticky and won't help the draining. It not be helping you. Do you do nasal lavage?

Best wishes
Tesss

no, nasal irrigation does not make it worse. you just have a nasty cold and it is good that you are coughing things up. it can take a few weeks to get rid of it!

Hi Both
Thanks for the comments. Jimmie, I decided to stick with it and did a wash last night and again this morning! (Im in UK - 8.30am). Last night I got even more junk out which felt amasing, my nose felt really clear. I checked the salinity - measured it all out and I am using the right amount of salt. Although thanks for the tips, I do blow my nose quite vigourously which I will try not to. Do you add anything to your wash - Ive read about baking soda, herbs etc?

My dr did say that my sinuses would hurt anyway as I got rid of the infection, and I think that as I am clearing even more with the neti pot its just a sign of that. Since I have been using the neti pot I have been sleeping mostly through the night, which I wasn't before, so thats a big improvement. I was also reading on the net last night, and I couldn't find anything negative at all about nasal lavage. It seems to be a really good thing to do.

Im going to give it a few days and if I am not getting relief I will go back to my dr. Boxgirl, I haven't had my wisdom teeth pulled, although I keep getting food stuck in one of them and was thinking about getting it removed. Do you think there could be a link? You do sound like youve had a really terrible time, and I hope you get some relief.
However, I have been told numerous times that I shouldn't be using zyrtec as it can make the mucus more sticky and won't help the draining. It not be helping you. Do you do nasal lavage?

Best wishes
Tesss

Nope, I don't add anything like herbs and such to the solution I use. I am sooooo glad you are getting rid on so much junk from your sinuses. And, I'm with you on not taking anything that will dry you up or thicken your mucus. In fact, my dr. recommended drinking increased amounts of water to thin the mucus. Again, you don't want mucus pooling or stagnating in your sinuses since that can lead to infection.

oh, before I forget, even when you don't have a sinus infection, you should not blow your nose vigorously. Vigorous blowing can force mucus into your sinus cavaties causing, you guessed it, stagnating mucus that can lead to infection.

Agree in not finding anything negative on the web about nasal lavage. Yogas have been using this for centuries. I love western medicine, but never tire of what we can learn from eastern medicine as well.

You may want to consider a stronger antibiotic.

Take it from someone who has sinus problems year round, if you have had amoxicillin in the past, then say a year later had Keflex (cephalexin), then say six months later you were placed on amoxicillin, the amoxicillin won't work because the Keflex is stronger and has made your system immune to anything weaker like amoxicillin.

That was the problem I had a year ago where a doctor did the same and I wound up having a worse sinus infection and a 105 fever, almost landed me in the hospital.

also go to a ear nose and throat doctor and have them look inside your nose to check your adenoids. If they find that your adenoids are inflatted, they may have to do a cocktail of predinose and antibiotics. It sounds horrible but it got me over the worse part of my sinus infection. I had to take Levaquin, which didn’t work and made me feel sick, so I was placed on Keflex, which worked. Now this year I have sinus problems again and I was given Zithromax, which cleared the infection, but im still having problems with congestion and mucus so im going to have to go back to the ear nose and throat doctor.

After everything is done, like someone said, use a neti pot. It works wonders in the final phase of cleaning your sinuses. Drink lots of warm decaffeinated teas because what will happen is the warmth with bring this nasty gunk out of your sinuses out in the back of your throat, once that happens you know its clear. Its not a pretty sight either because its mixed with blood, green and yellow mucus, but once that happens you will feel better.

Hey thanks Jimmie and Seagoddess,
I am still coughing up a lot of stuff but it is more copable now - ie I don't scare everyone silly when I have a coughing fit in the office!!
Jimmie, I am still getting lots of crap from the lavage, but it is definately helping a massive amount. I have stopped steaming and just doing the nasal lavage and I think its making a huge difference. Still amazed by the amount of junk coming out but it feels really good. I am trying not to blow my nose too hard, I don't hold onto my nose with the tissue and just blow. It does feel great.
Jimmie, I am using a nasal spray and wonder if you do too? I am hoping to stop using it soon though.

Best regards
Tesss

Hi it sounds like you have a bad infection. i have one but it has gotten so much better after I have been on antibiotics. get to a doc quick. thick/colored discharge means infection

by the way nasal irrigation for me made it much worst because it gave me pressure in my ears from the water and i was getting horrible ear aches, so dont do that while you have an infection.

HI Jenny
Thanks for the replies. I do totally hear what you are saying, but I had strong antibiotics to cure the sinus infection and it didn't quite work. I then went back to the dr and he said that I need to get all the gunk out so I started steaming to loosen it all up. So it has been draining like mad (I also had a bad cold) and finally I started to use the neti pot. Like you I was cautious about using it with an infection. However using the neti pot has really helped me, and the amount of stuff coming out is still slightly yellow, but it is much less and I feel much better. I am continuing to use it to clear the remaining stuff.

Its funny as I had just read your post on the other board. I am sorry that it caused pain for you, but I am glad that you are feeling better now.
Best wishes
Tesss

Tesss,

How are you doing these days? Any improvement, or still suffering from the British weather?

GeorgiaChoker

HI Georgia
Well Im washing nose everyday, and still have some sinus stuff going on, I think I have got another cold, but not too bad I guess. How are you doing these days - any relief from the pnd? I'll say, at the moment I have a big thick wadge at the back of my throat but Im trying to drink loads, but it doesn't go!

It's a little better - the Mucinex helps a little, but I still have the stringy feeling in my throat in the mornings. And just yesterday it was more like the egg yolk lump like you have - it just hung there and kept making me gag.

Is your gagging situation better?

Yes the gagging situation is better! I haven't had that badly for a while. Just the egg yolk lump the last few days. Im feeling rotten actually, just fed up of continuing illness and sinuses. Have a really bad sinus headache today and not sleeping so well, no energy. Going back to the dr next Tues to have a moan.

Take care
Tesss

i get bad sinuses all the time nothing realy helps me why i dont know but with it feels like a brick in my head pushing down do u get that i have tryed an ice bag on my head that helps a bit but drives me crazy..

Take a Drixoral tablet twice a day

Mix 3/4 tsp of salt, and 1/4 tsp of bicarbonate of soda, in a cup of warm water, place your nose into the cup, and breath in

Hold the water in your nose for a few seconds, and then blow vigerously several times, this will bring out any junk, and stimulate the cillia