And if so, do you have any pointers on how to do so sucessfully? I’ve read the SDMB column on it but it hasn’t helped, and I’d really love to be able to do this.
When I was in my teens we used to do it with dental floss. We just created a small ball at the end and put it up our noses, then we’d inhale really hard (while pinching the other nostril shut) and you could feel it at the top of your throat. Then it’s a matter of getting it out of your mouth. It’s been lots of years since I did it though… 
I did it once with a piece of spaghetti. Cooked, of course. It was quite easy witha slippery piece of pasta. I imagine a string might hurt.
Well, we can’t all achieve world peace.
See if you can google up a vid of sideshow artist Todd Robbins doing that with a long balloon. . . then inflating it.