Thread:Pamster315/@comment-26424426-20160430201222/@comment-32738051-20160530184452

Ugh! Make sure he/she gives you prescriptions for some good meds. Though it kind of depends on what kind of sinus infection you have: bacterial or viral. If it's viral, the doc isn't likely to give you an antibiotic - for fear of drug resistance issues - but you can still get prescription decongestants and, if your sinuses are bad enough, a steroid shot (did wonders for me one time when mine were 95% blocked; the doc can do x-rays to determine). And if your infection was caused by allergies, a good prescription antihistamine is a good idea too. Beware of nasal sprays though...they're great initially but bad for you and your sinuses in the long run. If you can stand it, saline flushes are supposed to be really good but I can't bring myself to do them. It sounds disgusting and counter-intuitive, since excessive sneezing can cause sinusitis, but what I sometimes do is forced sneezing. I take the two ends of a facial tissue and twist them into narrowly pointed probes that I then carefully insert into each nostril. Once in both nostrils, it should cause you to sneeze both deeply and multiple times rapidly (if you're badly stopped up, it can take a couple of tries). Once the sneezing starts, quickly remove the tissue and blow your nose until the sneezing stops and/or you can't get any more of the yellow-green snot (as opposed to clear snot) to come out. Consider it a jump start to allow free (or freer) breathing so only do it when you really can't breathe and you've done everything else, including taking your latest doses of medicine and allowing them to kick in. I got the idea from when I was in the hospital for an appendectomy and they had to insert nasal tubes so I could breathe. Obviously, nasal tubes would be better than tissues but they're probably more dangerous to self-administer. That plus they bypass the nose's bacterial and viral fighting capabilities, allowing unfiltered air into the lungs. Tissues don't.

Of course, I still say the best thing of all is taking vitamin C supplements. I take 500 mg chewable every day and it has really helped me avoid doctors for my sinus infections, which I get all the time. That plus OTC decongestants and ibuprofen and medicinal teas, chicken soup, etc. I can't even remember how long ago the last time was that I saw a doctor for sinusitis...it's been years.

Best wishes with the doc and the sinuses. 🙏😍