Getting sinuses clear - without medication?

[FrannyandZooey]

I have had crappy painful gunky sinuses for over a week now and don't know whether it is going to just run its course or whether I need to DO something

am pg so can't take anything exciting

have tried steam a few times and didn't seem to make any difference long term

I am pretty sure it is sinuses - I have pain above my eyes expecially when i put my head down, gunky nose, weird crackling squeaking noises in nose and face from time to time, generally feeling a bit run down, nothing major or worth consulting gp for

any advice?

Olbas oil! One snort and you're away!

sterimar saline solution. follow the directions for irrigating your sinuses. do it 3x/day and then every other day after that.

sinus massage!its great for draining all the gunk.i learnt it at baby massage but i do it on myself when a cold starts now and it rarely amounts to anything.

here

I had repeated sinusitis intermittently for 18 months about 10 years ago, and the only thing that worked at really getting rid of it (more so than antibioitic drops) was going completely vegan for a few days until it cleared. IIRC I started by going cold turkey and pretty much just eating fruit and veg, then probably added in a bit of rice/rice cakes. Absolutely no dairy or wheat for a while.

I did get very hungry, but it works. And I am absolutely not a faddy eater for any other reason.

drink truckloads of water too F+Z

oh thank you

I must admit the idea of either irrigating my sinuses or massaging them in the style described is making me feel REALLY squeamish

I will have to work up to it perhaps

Olbas oil is nice and friendly

ah I have been eating truck loads of cheese

it did occur to me the other day this may not be the best thing, but tbh I am craving it so am probably going to stick with eating what I want

good idea though

it's not too bad Piffle, it comes and goes and I can get on with stuff ok. I just feel constantly below par and I would like to shift it

I'm with expatinscotland I use sterimar as well (you can buy it in Boots) along with a prescription only nasal spray and antihistamine tablets I also have 2 bottles of Olbas oil by my bed. I have had chronic sinusitis for 17 years but so far so good this winter - no antibiotics which is amazing for me I've most probably spoken to soon how. By the way symptoms sound like classic sinusitis to me, good luck hope your feeling better soon.

Wow, congratulations F&Z!!!

Not on the sinusitis, obviously, that sounds horrid (and I had dreadful, stuffy nose/sinuses for months when pg, so imagine the oestrogen isn't helping much). Just haven't been around much recently, didnt' know you were pg - thats great

Thank you Eli

do you all think I need to actually do something then? Because I can put up with it if it will go in a few days

I don't think i can face irrigating it but may try massage tomorrow when i have got used to the idea

I just hate that thing where it kind of moves about and squeaks and pops disgusting

ditch the cheese till its gone

eat lots of 'pure' food

steaming made it worse for me when I had sinusitis, I think the heat exacerbated the swelling, I wanted cool air, olbas was good.

staring at the laptop screen seemed to make it worse too, I don't know why. My eyes ached and it seem to put more pressure on the sinus. Remember your blood vessels are more swollen there too.

yes I did think the pc was making it worse

but when I am tired and a bit miserable MN is such a soothing thing to do

I don't think I can give up cheese and eat pure food unless someone comes to cater for me

sorry I am rubbishing everyone's suggestions so far

can someone tell me if it will go away if I can just stick it out? I can live with doing nothing for a bit more if it will go at some point

many sympathies - I'm currently suffering from sinusitis - one of many bouts. My sinuses were shot by many years of flying too much (on an aeroplane you understand not me personally!).

Major league sinus trouble is, IME, only shifted by drugs. I can;t take sudafed which is generally the most effective so I take Otrivine at night so I can sleep and ride it out during the day and take nurofen for the pain. Otrivine is a nasal spray so you may be able to take it.

Sorry thats not exactly the no-pain method is it? Steaming and olbas oil do help but unless you have a fairly mild case it won;t cure it.

After 17 years I'm still not an expert but I think it depends on whether the infection is viral or bacterial, viral should clear up after a few days but a bacterial infection usually needs antibiotics - I think, well mine normally does. Hopefully somebody else will come along with a more definite answer. Now going to have a nice hot steamy bath to keep mine clear. By the way my downfall is chocolate not cheese.

does beer (bitter) make it worse, anyone know?

oh I think this is fairly mild

it is just annoying because it is going on a while and I can't take painkillers or that mad ephedrine stuff

I'm sure it will go in the end, but I'm sure you can avoid cheese without needing a chef too, Franny.

It took me a few days to notice the computer made it worse. It didn't stop me going on but I tried to limit it, a bit.

I expect you need to rest a bit more too.

See how I tell you to do all these impossible things!

no I am still struggling to prepare food for myself

cheese is quite an important staple atm

I think I start to feel slightly queasy near meal time and preparing food makes me feel blah

I can't be arsed to make anything which requires any effort at all - effort concerning actually fiddling with the food, that is, I will happily walk into town to buy a sandwich rather than have to make one

I won't be on the pc so much this week

just was bit dreary and so on these last few days so have been on loads

Thank you so much for all this info. I've been feeling really poorly, sinusitis makes you feel so miserable. I would die without Olbas Oil, but don't feel that steaming helps at the moment.

I've found my eyes streaming when I go outside over the last few days, I can't have hay-fever in January surely?

My psoriasis is up and running too, and all because I've stared eating bread, cheese and ice-cream again.

I'm off to do the massage and to convince myself that I really don't want any toast for my supper.

you could imagine the sinus being lined with cheese and that is whats making it squeak. That might put you off.

sorry, mean to joke when you are miserable. Sounds like you just have to stick it out then. I'm sure it will pass.

mmmm, squeaky edam sinuses

nah I am not too miserable

thanks everyone, i had my little whinge and will go to bed, squeaking gently

I've had sinusitis about 8 times in the last two years, and haven't been able to take anything other than otrivine because I've been pregnant and breastfeeding all this time. Before this whenever I had it sudafed was great .

Steam inhalation is great but you do need to do it three times a day and persevere with it. Saline is great, but sterimar is expensive. I saw an ENT specialist who said use salty water and an oral syringe and squirt it up your nose. Boiled and cooled water with to be precise 4.5g in 500ml of water that is approximately a teaspoon in a pint.