I have used pretty much every remedy in the wikiHow website: 4 Ways to Clear a Stuffy Nose - wikiHow
I tried holding my breath and pinching my nose shut, and it works! But only for a few seconds. Then my stuffy nose came back again. 
How can I concentrate on work AND get rid of this HORRIBLE stuffy nose? :smack:
Here is a copy of a previous post of mine. Many people complain of a more stuffy nose when they lay down and more on one side than the other.
IANADoctor, but I am a mini-expert on this.
[SIZE=2]Your problem is either deviated septum, or congestion because of swollen nasal tissue, or (most likely) a combination of both. [/SIZE]
These areas of nasal tissue, called turbinates, fill with blood and swell up. For some people there is too much tissue there so that it swells up too much when they lay down.
When you are standing, your head has lower blood pressure because of its height over the rest of your body. As your head gets lower with respect to the rest of your body the blood pressure in your nasal tissues increases and swell, which cause congestion.
If your congestion is always one sided, then a deviated septum is likely also in play. This means that the bone that goes down the center of your nose sticks out too far on one side, causing it to be too cloggy.
There are surgeries to fix both of these, turbinate reduction and septoplasty, but look at other options first.
[SIZE=2]Seasonal allergies can make things worse, so see an ENT or allergist. They may be able to fix it with some prescription nose sprays.
On the non-prescription side, there are pills with pseudaphedrine (Sudafed and others that you have to buy from behind the pharmacy counter). These are non-addictive, and work well, but they keep some people up at night (they are a stimulant).
There are also non-prescription nose sprays that work really well, but these can only be used for a few days as they are very addictive. After the spray wears off, you get what is called “rebound,” where you will get congested again because of the nose spray use. This makes you want to use the spray again, and after that you get rebound, and….around and around you go until you get addicted. If you get addicted to them, then your nose will always be stopped up. Bad Stuff.
As always, see a doctor (ENT) and he/she will be able to help you with treatment options.
PS. [SIZE=2]Some people also [SIZE=2]use [SIZE=2]Neti pots and claim that they help. They [SIZE=2]never did much for me, but YMMV. [/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]
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Well don’t stick any Q-tips up there.
That was so much help.
P.S. Thanks Hermitian!
Medical advice is best suited to IMHO.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
I rinse my sinuses in a neti pot type way but my problem are sinuses, once they flood I can be half deaf for months and have the fear my eyeballs are about to explode. Roaming severe tooth pain as well. If any of that is going with the blocked feeling I would look into a sinus wash. I see it is recommended on the site you linked to, have you tried it? If I wait until I am blocked up it can take a few days to see any results, started at first sign of problems it tends to stop them developing.
I read something about taking your tongue and pressing against the roof of your mouth and alternating that with pressing the spot right between your eyebrows. Something about rocking certain bones back and forth which clears the junk out of your sinuses. I wasn’t stuffed up when I tried it but I did feel it working.
Try as I might, my tongue falls just short of the spot between my eyebrows.
mmm
I read something about taking your tongue and pressing against the roof of your mouth and alternating that with pressing the spot right between your eyebrows with your finger. Something about rocking certain bones back and forth which clears the junk out of your sinuses. I wasn’t stuffed up when I tried it but I did feel it working.
Yeah I accidentally double-posted while I was editing.
Save your money, accumulate lots of money, and go to the MD and demand a Caldwell-Luc.
If you’re mostly just worried about this when you’re sleeping, I’ve recently had good experiences with the little strips you stick onto your nose (The particular flavor I’ve been using is Breathe-right Advanced.). I got a free sample off their website, and they impressed me enough to buy a box. I’m only in the middle of my first week of actually using them, but they seem to help a lot.
On the other hand, they’re kinda expensive (a box of 26 lists at at like $13) and they’re only for use when you’re sleeping, I believe, so obviously not for everyone.
If you’re careful, you can actually reuse the same one for a second or third night.
Neti Pot. From personal experience this seriously works. My sinuses were stuffed up off and on for years, I mean chronically - like I would have to live with it forever. Finally I decided to shove the neti pot up there and three applications later I have not had anything but a very mild case in over a year. Use distilled water and you might want to nuke it for 20-30 seconds so it isn’t too cold. Additionally I replaced all the carpeting with wood floors… you’d be amazed how much dust is created by carpets.
I have a deviated septum and Breath Right nasal strips are basically the only thing that provide me with even a modicum of relief at night.
Counterpoint: I used a neti pot style solution (This one: http://www.neilmed.com/usa/sinusrinse_isotonic.php) and it did exactly nothing for me. If anything, it made me more congested because my nose didn’t appreciate having water flowing through it.
Clearly, there are different causes for stuffy noses, and they require different solutions.
You should really see a dr, of course. I’ve had surgery for really bad sinus, and the surgeon taught me a couple of things that I wish I’d learned years earlier, it would have saved me a lot of money and a lot of pain.
Neti pots don’t always work for people with misshappened sinus(s), but you can buy aerosal saline spray which is brilliant. It’s what you use after surgery to promote healing, but it can totally be used to clear stuffed sinus. The surgeon told me to avoid decongestants, as they counterproductively dry everything out (relieving pain, of course) and gum up what’s blocking your sinus, making it actually much harder to drain away. Saline spray, which you can use 3 or 4 times an hour as needed, keeps everything moist, and thins things and makes it easier for them to drain. It is important that you sterilize the nozzle after every use, as reinfection is a risk otherwise.
The second thing is Apple Cider Vinegar. Yes, I know there are people who think it’s capable of curing cancer and bringing peace to the middle east. Those people are wrong. The surgeon did point out that because it’s made from apples fermented with the skins on, it concentrates something in the skins that actually thins mucus. You shoot it back like tequila at the bar (it’s no worse!). It’s important that you brush your teeth afterward as it’s hard on the enamel. Be prepared that it will clear your sinus within a couple of minutes. I take 1/2 ounce twice a day, not on a empty stomach, when stuffed up. So much cheaper, more effective and safer than OTC cold meds.
If I knew of this 20 yrs ago, I could have saved enough money to buy a car, I swear!
I have chronic nasal congestion. I have a slightly deviated septum; not enough to do anything about. I use Flonase (generic: fluticasone propionate). It has saved my sanity. I do supplement with Afrin but you do not want to take that on a regular basis; it will addict you and it’s not pretty. I was addicted once and had to use it every 20 minutes per nostril. Flonase does give me the occasional nosebleed but it’s well worth it.
That vinegar suggestion sounds interesting. How does it taste?
It completely depends on the cause. I too use Flonase, because I’m allergic to dust mites and I’m just not a good enough housekeeper to do all the stuff that keeps them largely absent from my environment. Flonase works so well (and not using it results in such bad sinus headaches) that I decided to go back to using it while I was pregnant, despite it being category C. I just couldn’t live life without it. On the other hand, if I had seasonal allergies, I’d only need it at certain times of year. If I had a deviated septum or wonkily formed sinuses, it might do nothing for me. If my home was just really dry, I could use the much safer and cheaper solutions of saline rinses and humidifiers.
Figure out what’s causing the stuffy nose, and you can implement a much more targeted solution.
Vinegary, of course, you’re welcome to mix it with grenadine, maple syrup, or honey, if it helps. It is akin to doing a shooter at the bar! I’m always amazed that something you take orally can work so quickly, it’s impressive.