Blocked sinus...so miserable

[Miserable1]

Anyone sympathise?

I used to get chronic sinusitis and pressure headaches but take daily steroid nasal spray which has mostly helped.

However, as soon as I get some minor congestion it goes straight to my sinuses for long periods of time. I feel heavy, tired, sore and loose all sense of taste.

I currently haven't been able to taste for 6 weeks. I thought I was getting better as I could slightly taste 2 days ago and my smell came back 2 weeks ago. However I feel worse today; more congested, sore, tired, no smell or taste at all. I'm utterly depressed.

So far I've tried nasal washes, daily steroid spray, cold and flu meds, sinus massage, drinking plenty of fluids, steak inhalation. I don't think there's much else that can be done? The last time I had this I went to the GP. I got an appointment with the nurse who said "what do you want me to do?". The Dr sent a referral to ENT but because it's so long, they gave me new steroid nasal drops. Once the last illness past, these seemed to help day to day but again, any minor cold and I'm ill for weeks/months.

So far this year I've spent 4 months out of the 10 with no taste and pain/pressure. However, is there any point in going to the GP again? Or nothing they can do? I feel I've exhausted all treatment options and they won't consider me bad enough for intervention.

I was referred September 24. Saw ent in March. Listed for surgery and have been told my date will be booked any time within next 4 weeks with roughly 6 weeks notice so all in about 14/15 months from initial referral. I'd go to gp. No harm in getting the referral done

Demand a nasal examination to determine whether or not you have polyps.

I used a nasal netti pot at night to do a warm saline rinse in each nostril. This usually dislodges the most horrific mucus plugs from my sinuses. I have also found being out in the cold air helps clear and chewing airways gum.

I use a saline spray in the mornings.

but it wasn’t until I got my polyps removed that things improved. However a good goes straight to my sinuses and it’s not great!

It was polyps, the surgery removed the vast majority of them and I didn’t even realise how swollen they were making my face until afterwards and I could feel my cheekbones again and breathe properly.

my GP diagnosed the polyps, a specialist ENT (NHS) also put a torch up my nose and down my throat and saw the same thing. I had constant post nasal drip and always sounded like I had a cold. People always thought I was ill and I was miserable with it.

Deffo ask for the oral steroids, they were the only thing that provided relief for me, they were a bit like a head start then you keep on top of it with the nasal drops, it helps, for a bit.

Don’t minimise its impact on you either (I was guilty of the same!), there is always someone worse off but not being able to taste and smell is debilitating. I had left a pot on the stove that started smoking and filling my house with fumes but I was non the wiser until it started to affect visibility. My DC was upstairs asleep. That was the last straw for me.

and yes you are right about the decongestants. Sudafed is a miracle worker but to be used sparingly. My daily steroid is a low dose one which is recommended for daily usage. 1.5 years after surgery, I’m faring well and have smell/taste 99% of the time.

Well I did an online e consult and they've booked me a GP appointment for 2 days time. I was hoping I could just get a prescription as I now have to get time off work. I don't really know why they want to see me face to face anyway. They've never once physically examined me.

Sounds like they want to look up your nose for polyps.

There’s a link between dairy and mucous. Stop all dairy for a couple of weeks and see if your sinuses are any less bunged up.

Id go for acupuncture if you can afford it. They can shift mucous there and then. It’ll come back though. But it’s nice to get it away for a while.

If they actually look up my nose, it's be a miracle 🤣
I never thought of acupuncture and have never tried it but it's definitely something I can look into. Thank you for the suggestion.

Im in a similar position. Had sinus issues for about 4 years. My main symptoms are pain in the top of my nose and eyebrow on the right.

I've seen a private ENT and had MRI, tube down nose etc and they can't see anything wrong other than a deviated septum.

Im currently in a bad flare of eyebrow pain. What I find weird is that I have no mucus at all. I take dymista everyday which is an antihistamine and steroid spray. It helps with daily pain but not a flare.

Last time it was this bad I got antibiotics and that cleared the pain fast. Still no mucus though! Its all very strange.

I find a daily sinus rinse helps make things a bit more comfortable as my nose and sinuses feel very dry but it never makes a huge difference.

Sorry to hear you're suffering too. It must be so frustrating when they can't find what's wrong. I don't get mucus either. I do daily rinses that are perfectly clear. I've looked into it and it's because the rinse doesn't reach the other sinuses (so I have been told/read). So for me, I feel it's pretty pointless. Nothing much happens when I blow my nose either.

Oh that's interesting I thought it was just me! The only thing that has worked today is ibuprofen. I don't understand what is causing pain if there is no mucus, and if there is mucus why doesnt it get dislodged with a sinus rinse or a nose blow?!

It gets stuck in the sinuses. There are several sinuses. The Ethmoid- around the top of the nose, frontal sinuses- front of the forehead+ I get headaches when these are blocked. Maxillary sinus- under your eyes, around your cheeks- this causes cheek pain and toothache. There's more I think but can't remember the name without looking. So it depends which of these is blocked. For me it's the frontal and ethmoid sinuses, occasionally the maxillary.
If mucus is stuck in these sinuses it's not as easy to remove and the nasal washes don't reach that area.
You've reminded me to try some ibuprofen!

@Bluemin have you lost your taste and/or smell?

No thankfully I've never had that - just the pain. I do sound very nasal/robotic today though so there is obviously something stuck somewhere it shouldn't be! My main pain is the right eyebrow, never the left!

Did you take any ibuprofen? If so, were you ok afterwards?

I ask because nasal polyps (if indeed you have those) are often accompanied by NSAIDS intolerance and also asthma. It's an condition called Samter's Triad or AERD, which I've had for many years.

Regardless of whether you have this too, my advice is to go to any ENT referral armed with as much research and information as possible. There is a lack of awareness of ST/AERD and (sometimes) a reluctance to prescribe strong enough steroid treatments. I suspect it's much the same with other chronic sinus conditions. Don't despair. Just be prepared and advocate hard for yourself.

In particular, don't let anybody dismiss you or underestimate the impact of a chronic sinus condition on your quality of life. How would they like to be in pain and not to be able to breathe, sleep, smell or taste properly on an ongoing basis? Yes, in the grand scheme of all possible disorders, of course it 'could be worse'. But it also 'could be better' and surely that's what you deserve!

I didn't take ibuprofen in the end as I hadn't eaten and didn't want an upset stomach. I forgot to take it later. However, I haven't had any issues in the past. Sorry to hear you've struggled too, sinus issues are awful. You're right about needing to advocate for myself and I always think "it could be worse". However, the chronic pain, pressure, headaches, nasal drip and no taste or smell is painful and depressing. Plus my eyes feel constantly exhausted and heavy.

I'm going to beg the doctor tomorrow for some oral steroids although I've been told it's unlikely they will prescribe. I don't know what else they can do with me though. I've exhausted every other treatment and self care option and am on the waiting list for ENT. I know the oral steroids won't cure the underlying issue but I need some relief as I'm truly fed up. I've spent around 3.5 months our of 10 this year with no smell or taste and painful, blocked sinuses.

The daily nasal spray is usually the problem. It can cause all kinds of problems. You need it to be properly drained and go cold turkey on sprays

But I've been prescribed the steroids nasal spray to use long term. I have been told to use it for months. In fact, ENT wrote to my GP and prescribed new steroids nasal drops for me to take for the last 6 months.
I don't use decongestants as they usually cause issues. I have only used them sparingly.

Hello, I’m usually a lurker but have massive sympathy so wanted to post! I thought I’d been having migraines for years but it turned out it was (also?) chronic sinusitis which recently flared into an antibiotic resistant infection. I had urgent FESS surgery to resolve it (one side only due to other factors) and will do a second surgery ASAP to make me less susceptible to acute attacks (hopefully it will stop them altogether). There are mixed reviews on Reddit etc about FESS surgery but in severe cases done by a good ENT it really is life changing. CT and MRI clearly showed the damage done by ongoing acute sinusitis for me and structural issues so definitely stay on the list for ENT if you can as you may be slowly getting worse. I’m not in the UK so could go privately through insurance which isn’t as costly here. Prednisone (oral) is the only drug that provided any pain relief during an acute attack, plus nasal rinses and the steroid spray you mentioned.

Have you tried a few brands of nasal rinse? I moved from FESS to NeilMed, do two a day in the shower and that does help when it’s mild - once it’s an established acute attack it’s less helpful/not helpful at all as the fluid just falls back out rather than flushing.

A previous poster mentioned ENT privately being more affordable than expected, maybe it is worth looking into? (Again I’m not familiar with the systems in the UK). Or could a private GP referral for scans at least be an option so you can get an idea of any structural issues? Best of luck getting treatment, it’s a miserable condition.

I’ve replied in more detail as a main post but specifically - no one examined my nose until I saw an ENT (in hospital initially but later in rooms). They used a special tiny camera on the spot and also relied on CT and MRI. In my experience GPs generally only treat basic sinusitis, chronic is a different thing altogether and first line treatment like rinses is unlikely to be enough.

I feel you OP, the second I get any kind of sniffle it’s straight to my sinuses. Bad headaches in my face and upper jaw, death all hurt at the top, pressure behind my eyes and god forbid I lean over at any point 😖 a hot water bottle on my face helps a little, aswell as staying extremely hydrated. I chug more water than ever when I have a sinus infection and it does help. Sinus massages can help when done right, sometimes I get lucky with them and other times they’re useless.

I'm going to beg the doctor tomorrow for some oral steroids

That's exactly what to do @Miserable1. Ask/beg/plead/cry/whatever it takes for a short course of prednisolone to reduce the inflammation and 'reset' everything.

It makes no sense for them to tell you to keep using sprays and drops when they're obviously not working. Which is likely because they can't physically get to the source of the problem.

Good luck for tomorrow. I hope you get what you need x

I was referred to an ENT for sinus issues and the first thing he did was stick a camera up my nose to check for polyps but I doubt the GP would have that equipment. The wait was two years 🤦‍♀️

Have you tried an otovent balloon? That helped with the pressure and pain for me. What also helped was massage. There are tutorials online.

For all this posting about prolonged use of nasal sprays causing rebound congestion that does not apply to the steroid nasal spays being used by OP.

I got fed up this evening and had a large whiskey 🤣 I feel a lot better! Probably feel worse in the morning though 😆

Thank you again for all the replies. I feel a bit better with the solidarity but sorry so many of you have suffered!

@PleaseBeGentleVipers I initially discovered I had sinusitis due to my awful headaches. If struggle to get out of bed with the pain and pressure in my head. However since being on the steroid nasal spray, it seems my frontal sinuses aren't generally affected as much as the ethmoid. Are you fully cured of your pain and headaches now? You're right that the rinses are not enough, they do nothing for me and don't reach high enough. I literally just have the clear water run out.

@Flipitnreverseit your pain sounds very similar to mine. I've tried sinus massage in the last but it didn't do much. From the last flare up, I mostly concluded that both helps and it just takes time. However this time it's just not shifting.

@NoIDontHaveABloodyCold thank you. I have planned out exactly what I will say 🤣 I'll be so sad if I don't get the steroids because I honestly don't see what else they will give me. I am really hoping they don't advise antibiotics. I know I don't have an infection or any signs of one. Plus I tried antibiotics in the past and it does nothing.

@secureyourbook it's a shame they don't have the ability to do it. It's such a long wait for ENT.

@GargoylesofBeelzebub I've not heard of that but will definitely take a look. Thank you for the recommendation.

@Bluemin I don't blame you! Anything that helps in the short term is a bonus. My partner heated a mint Bailey's for me earlier but I couldn't taste it, alcohol the alcohol made me feel like I was drinking nail varnish remover!

Yep the headaches on the “fixed” are gone, anticipating a similar outcome when the other side is done. Generally both would be done in the same op but that wasn’t possible for me.

Re antibiotics, I was prescribed antibiotics six times this year alone with absolutely no effect, however a much stronger and more unusual antibiotic helped (initially administered via IV then oral), prescribed by ENT. It wasn’t a complete fix due to the structural issues but it’s possibly there is an antibiotic that could help you as part of an overall plan. Best wishes!!!