Why You May Feel Worse After Blowing Your Nose

I've had sinus congestion for a few months now. I don't have allergies and the only time I ever have sinus congestion is when I have a cold, so it's a bit unusual. My wellness doctor recommended using a navage, neti pot or saline spray. I started off with the easy option of saline spray. The ingredients were water, salt and baking soda, no strange chemicals. It seemed to help the first few days I used it, but by the fourth day, my sinuses seemed to be worse and have been since even though I stopped using it. I finally did some research and discovered I've probably been blowing my nose too much and the wrong way. Instead of breathing easier after blowing, it was harder to breathe. Apparently, the stuffiness I was still feeling could be due to swelling and inflammation of the nasal passages, not clogged mucous that wouldn't come out like I had thought. This may especially be true when blowing and nothing comes out. I worked through the anxiety of not blowing my nose and was actually able to breathe easier. The correct way to blow your nose is very gently, one nostril at a time. Some of the things recommended to loosen up the mucous include: - Use a vaporizer with a drop of eucalyptus oil. - Take a hot shower or boil water, put a towel over your head while you lean over it and breathe in the steam. This was helpful in draining the mucous. - Breathe in eucalyptus oil in a diffuser, vaporizer or on a paper towel set close to you. It could also be added to a bowl of water. - Eat spicy foods and cayenne pepper. - Flush the nasal passages with saline spray, a neti pot or a navage. This is supposed to flush out allergens in the sinuses. Neti pots come in pot form or a bottle that you fill with salt water and pour in the nose. A navage is a saline nasal irrigation machine that pushes salt water through the nasal passages and sucks out the mucous. They are about $100. I haven't used one, but may at some point. For both of those, use distilled water, so additional bacteria/contaminants aren't added to the sinuses. The nasal sprays I've been using are these: https://amzn.to/3RXSK9v https://amzn.to/46thKKe - Drink lots of water. That is supposed to help keep the mucous thinned out. - Load up on Vitamin C, which helps the immune system and healing. - Raw, local honey. Hasn't really helped, but is always good for the immune system. - Magnesium. It probably won't help clear the sinuses, but it will help you relax. - Try massaging the areas of the forehead and face where the sinuses are located. There are videos on YouTube demonstrating how to massage areas of the face where the sinuses are located. - Reflexology uses massage and pressure points on areas of the body, such as the foot, to drain the sinuses. - Sound therapy. I've been using a couple of YouTube videos that play sound at different frequencies to unblock the sinuses. Surprisingly, this has been one of the most effective things I've tried. Here are links to a couple of the videos I've been using: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsrlJY4ZBF8&list=PLhixqzuNeZTWpTk0cF4QhLff1rwoj4xOR&index=1&pp=gAQBiAQB8AUB - I like this one, but it has a couple of ads that are annoying https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqaoeQZEixI&list=PLhixqzuNeZTWpTk0cF4QhLff1rwoj4xOR&index=3&t=628s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9gtJwEDxcc&list=PLhixqzuNeZTWpTk0cF4QhLff1rwoj4xOR&index=4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YFgAkyAWjY&t=20683s - Clean the home to remove any potential allergens like dust, pet dander and mold. Challenge: Try the sound frequency videos. They have really helped me. There are also sound frequency videos for other ailments that could be helpful with other issues. Resources: https://www.menshealth.com/health/a19547951/stuffy-nose/ https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321322#saline-irrigation #ads More Sinus Resources