Alternative Methods for Clearing for Sinus Swelling

Hi Nicole,

I used to get repeated sinus infections - get a cold, use a cold med/decongestant, get a sinus infection. I started using Homeopathic remedies about 5 years ago and haven't had an infection since. The remedy I've been using is Mezmerum 30c by Boiron. (no food or drink 20 min before or after a remedy so you can get the full affect.)

Best wishes!
-A.

Nicole,
I uderstand your situation. My husband suffers that way only on certain nights, and I used to suffer in the spring/summer. I grew up in California and my seasonal allergies were so bad that mere radiographs couldn't pinpoint the problem because my sinuses were so inflamed.

Here in the Northwest, we have different culprits. What I have found is that there is pollen and mold. You may have noticed on your local news cast that they may or may not talk about the pollen & mold count. These can be contributing to your sinus issues.

For me, my husband and I found out that my allergies were caused by foods that weakened my immune system and made the seasons worse.

Also most doctors don't tell you that constant use of nasal sprays irritate the sinus cavities and lining and can actually cause more problems than relief.

Here's my pitch to you. Find a naturopathic physician in your area and have them run some food allergy tests. Not scratch tests but blood tests. Typically there is one particular food that is causing major problems. You avoid those foods for a few months and then repeat the test. Most likely after the second test you will find out the main source. For me it was eggs and gluten. My allergies to these foods caused my system to reject other foods that don't bother me now. For my husband it was beef and he doesn't have the sinus problems. Once being off of these foods we don't get symptoms in the summer. The only time I do is if I am cleaning in the barn or chicken coop because of the enclosed area. But It's not severe.

The other thing that has helped many of our friends is to purchase LOCALLY harvested honey from your area. (Purchase it from a farmers market or farm store who supplies locally harvested honey. Make sure you ask.) Sue Bee honey will not do. Take about 1-2 tsp each day. After about 1 week they have told me that all of their sinus symptoms are gone. (I put it in my tea)

I know what you are going through and I wish you relief very soon.

Nicole~

I'm so sorry that you are dealing with this. I know how frustrating and uncomfortable it is.
I was not certain in your post...Are you taking Antigens (allergy shots)? Plus the Claritan, and Nazonex?
I have dealt with allergies all my life, was on shots for years growing up and was able to stop as my allergies seemed to be less and just needed seasonal help. Now, things are progressing towards shots again. However, I went 13 years with out them. Anyhow, this is what I've found to help...
Find a shop that sells honey that is locally harvested honey. That honey will have pollens from your area and as you use it your body will build up a tolerance. 1 tsp everyday...use it in tea, on toast whatever. Local honey is a bit more expensive, but I think that it is worth it. It takes a bit to get it in your system, but just keep at it. Plus, whatever your doctor/naturalpath has you doing. I hope that you find relief soon.
T. S.

Hi Nicole. From one sinus sufferer to another saline spray saved my life. I use it every morning in the shower to clean out my sinuses. There are not any chemicals in saline spray, just salt, the spray cleans out the sinuses and moisturizes them cutting down on the irritation. I went from having 3 or 4 horrible sinus infections to a couple of sinus headaches a year (when my allergies are at their worst). I have tried the Neti pot but it makes me feel like I am drowning and makes my eyes all blood shot. If I am having a particularly bad sinus day I clean them out several times throughout the day. I hope this helps.

hi there! have you been to an allergist to see what exactly you are allergic to? I kno wthis question seems silly but we were having sooo many problems with our youngest son and they finally tested him for all food allergies and we discovered he's allergic to cow's milk! he must've drank half a gallon of that stuff a day no wonder he wouldn't get better!

if you can find out EXACTLY what it is that's irritating your sinuses, it would be easier to treat your self... good luck!

You might give Sinus Buster a try. www.sinusbuster.com It powerful hurts the first second or so, but really helps clear out the sinuses. They have neti pots as well, and formulas for allergies, headaches, etc. I'm always on the lookout for a bargain, and have bought it off ebay with free shipping... http://cgi.ebay.com/Sinus-Buster-All-Natural-Nasal-Spray-...

I go to Kelley Reis, an ND in Hillsboro, and she is wonderful, but I'm sure you can look in a directory and find one closer to you. The first thing any naturopath will likely do is have you do an elimination diet or food sensitivity screen to see if certain foods are triggering your issues (like milk, or wheat or whatever).

My five-year-old son had terrible congestion all the time and constant ear infections. We finally had his tonsils and adenoids out, which were both huge, and now he breathes noiselessly, and sleeps soundly, and isn't sickly. Before it sounded like he was snoring day and night, and he mouth breathed. It does take a bit of recovery, but he is so much better now!

Using my neti pot daily has helped me a lot. Have you tried a naturopath? You might also want to see if you are allergic to mold which is much more prevalent here than in S.B.
-T.

I suggest that you try licorice root, goldenseal and echinacea to build up your total body so that you can tackle a general low grade vascular inflammation, which you most likely have. I would suggest that you try zinc supplements for awhile too. A rotation diet is a must along with lots of water.

And you are totally correct when you attribute your condition to this area. If you didn't grow up here, you will suffer some physiological effect from the environment for awhile.

If you are having chronic sinus problems, I recommend an ENT. I don't have a specific Dr. in Vancouver to recommend as I'm in Coeur d'Alene. I've also had troubles with a chronic cough, and know from my experience that there can be other things beside the common inflammation going on when a problem continues to return like that. :)

Dr Pliska (owns the urgency care clinic on Mill Plain near Joes and Safeway in Cascade park is a family friend, and good general practitioner. :)

My husband suffers year round. When he had the allergy test, he came up allergic to everything except 3 things. We go through a lot of kleenex in our house. He has a neti pot, but prefers to use NeilMed Sinus Rinse bottle that shoots it up the nose. When he doesn't use it, he feels a lot worse. He also uses Veramyst (expensive) because the others don't work.

I had killer sinus trouble (since moving to the NW 12 years ago) until about 1 1/2 years ago. My regular doctor prescribed a steriod spray to use for a week or so, because I was so impacted that the other alternative was surgery to clear. She also told me to start using Ocean Spray saline mist morning and night. I did that solid for a few months. Now I find I can tell something is coming and start that and get past. I think the key is to get real clear and then stay on top of it.

Like someone else below, I switched from Claritin to Zyrtec when it went over the counter.

Aaargh! Aren't sinuses frustrating?

My mum's family is from here, but I didn't grow up here...and it's guaranteed that as long as I'm in Western Washington (the past 8 years), my sinuses are a mess. I suspect it's in the air (mold + climate)...because whenever I leave -even just across the mountains to E.Washington, they clear up almost immediately.

I don't have other allergy issues so I don't use claritin (it has virtually no effect on my sinuses anyway), & I avoid nasal sprays in general because so many of them are addictive, and some of the ones that weren't supposed to be 5 years ago they found out are...so I ignore the lot of them. Couldn't tell you if Nasonex is w/out looking it up. I can tell you what also hasn't worked for me, but the list would get too long. Neti pots are also on that list! :P Drats!!

What I DO do is this:
- Massage
- Sudafed + Tylenol or Advil (Pseudoephedrine...not the new PE)

My sinuses trigger Migraines, and I found out on accident that getting regular massage treatments not only keeps the migraines @ bay but ALSO gets rid of the dull nagging ache from my sinuses. It only lasts a week or two though, at least for me. Most insurance companies cover therapeutic massage, if you're lucky enough to have insurance, you can give 'em a call to find out the details. The three different companies we've had over the past 5 years have had the following range: 12 visits per year - 48 visits per year, and a copay that had ranged between $10 & $20.

Sudafed (Pseudoephedrine)is also addictive, so I'm careful with it and don't use it much. Typically a 1/2 dose (one pill of the 4hour type) both nips the headache and drains everything (Hip Hip Hurray! ... a clear head!!). If everything is normal (& I'm seeing my MP) I might resort to a half dose of sudafed once or twice in a month. If I am without insurance then I try to use it as little as possible, but it can creep up to as often as two times in a day, once a week or two days in a row. :P Schtupid head.

I'll be avidly watching to see if anyone posts anything here that I haven't tried yet. Obviously, while I have found a couple ways around this thing (without taking pills all the time, which I HATE)...I haven't beat it, and am still hopeful there might be a way to. My brother actually had his sinuses scraped (same problem), but it only lasted for about a year and then it was back to 'normal'. Bleck. On the upside, whenever I leave the state my sinuses DO revert to happy pain free things, so I DO know that (for me at least) its environmental.

To pain free heads!
~Z.

Have you tried acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine? My acupuncturist, Laurieanne Nabinger of Enerqi, is fantastic. Helped clear up a sinus infection I had this past winter. Her web site is: http://www.enerqi.us.

Good luck!

Well, I was going to sing the praises of the neti pot, but it looks like you're using it. I'm not sure how you use it, so I'll tell you how I do (it really helps me). I use 1 cup of really warm water, mix in 1/4 teaspoon of table salt and usually that's enough for both nostrils. Sometimes I need to make two batches. The neti pot continues to work better the more you use it. I would start with twice a day and when you're better, just do it once a day to keep your sinuses from swelling up and getting inflamed.

Otherwise, it sounds like you're having bad allergies. I've had allergies since I was a kid and they've changed depending on where I've lived. I grew up in the Mojave desert and my senior year was sinus infection after sinus infection. When I was pregnant (here in Seattle), I could barely breathe and my doctor prescribed Zyrtec - it's FANTASTIC! Now it's available over the counter and it works WAY better than any other allergy medicine. It does work best if you take 1 (tiny) pill a day around the same time. But, you can use it occasionally too.

One other suggestion is to get tested for allergies. I haven't had that done since 8th grade, but you might find that you have some severe allergies of items you could avoid. It's a big test, but worth it if you're suffering so much. I hope you're feeling better soon!! :-)

Try Hot Yoga (Bikram Yoga) if you can, my sinuses have never felt so good after getting into this on a regular basis! (I used to have a nagging minor sinus problem most of the time.)
Good Luck!
K.
K. Koitzsch
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My daughter is a massage therapist and she treats alot of her clients for chronic sinus problems with great success. You might look into that. She has a massage that drains the sinuses. I am not really familiar with it but it must work...she sure s alot of repeat clients. She does 5-6 massages a day.L.

i found using nasonex and other sprays increased my sinus infections. You might want to see a specialist. They'll probably order a ct scan of your sinuses. I chickened out of the ct scan because of money but cutting back on dairy and sprays helped a ton. If you have the money, the best doctor (rated as top 100 physicians in US) and specializes in ear/eyes/nose/throat is Dr. Craig Hertler. The man rocks! He also works with kids too.

I've learned that one way to beat allergies is to eat locally harvested honey. It's not a quick fix and I'm not sure how much you have to ingest, but the theory is that ingesting the honey made from local bees/local pollen creates immunities and prevents allergies.
The trick is it must be honey from your area, as close as possible.
I hope you are able to find more immediate relief, but it might not hurt to start the "honey therapy" soon.

I have had a sinus infection since May. It comes and goes. It is mostly annoying and draining. I always feel pressure in my face. It sucks. I don't know what to tell you. Hopefully someone will have an idea I can use too. ;)

I think my next step is a MRI. Just to see where all the infection is.

Best of luck to you.

D.

Inhaling warm salt water alway's works for m - but that might be the same at the neti pot for you. Have you tried acpuncture? I'd check out Seattle magazine - best doctors issue - and get a good accupuncturist...reflexology might help too. My guess is...is that it is a reaction to a food or chemical your coming in contact with..do you know what your allergic too -= sorry if you said so, I may not have read carefully.

I had sinus and allergy problems since I was really young. I even had to give up sports because of having to stop to blow my nose all the time. They could never figure out what my allergies were and only offered antibiotics and sprays that never worked. It got so bad that my adenoids swelled up so bad that they had to take them out when I was 21. I got so sick of being on antibiotic at least five times per year.
I finally found a doctor who helped me. An ENT. They figured out that my sinuses were too small due to a deviated septum. They fixed it and I have been better ever since. I only occasionally get sinues infections now and that is due to the common cold or flu and goes away with antibiotics just like normal people. It changed my life!

Hi Nicole,

for a couple low-cost harmless solutions, try:
Hyland's Sinus homeopathic pills http://organicpharmacy.org/products/Sinus/SKU:HY29592 (you can usually find them at a RiteAid or Bartell's Drug Store) - just make sure to take a lot of them (as described on the box) for the first couple of days, then you should start draining.

Another thing to try is "Colloidal silver spray" - again, you'll have to use it quite a bit for a couple days, but then the swelling should go down and you should start to drain.

I've fought sinus issues for many years, and these two things helped without side effects (if I take sudafed, I don't sleep...). Also, I finally caved in and had sinus surgery, after which my condition improved. If the short term solutions don't keep it at bay, the surgery might be something to consider. I had mine in 1997, but heard that now they are much less invasive with less side effects.

Good luck!!
S.

You're probably going to hate to hear this, but I have had ongoing allergies/sinus troubles my entire adult life. This year I had to give up milk because my baby has a cow-milk protein allergy. No dairy - cheese, butter, margarine, milk, yogurt, anything. I even look for milk in the bread I eat, etc. But the crazy thing is, my allergies have virtually gone away. No sinus troubles, even during the height of allergy season this year.

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