I don’t use my neti pot much any more. I’ve never gotten a blob, not sure how to feel about that. My doctor uses one and she uses it every day as part of grooming, along with tooth brushing, etc. Think ‘tears’ when you mix the salt and water, about that temp and about that salty. I use kosher salt and warm tap water (city, not well water - that’s what I have, just fyi).
When I bought my neti pot it had an instruction sheet in it that said how much water/salt to use and pictures of how to hold pot/tip your head. I think I bought mine at a health food store.
Once when I was a kid my mom took me to a doctor for a sinus infection and that prick made me lay on my back and he stuck a pair of those really long cotton swabs soaked in iodine up my nose. Geez that burned. I was like 8, we were on vacation, it was a strange doctor, I’ll never forget it. Iodine up yer nose is awful. (I think it worked though)
I went looking for one. Geez Louise do they want a lot of money for a tiny plastic pot! CVS wanted $12.95 and Target wanted $14.99! Sorry, but I don’t pay that kind of money for anything that I don’t know will work for me, and the whole idea of spending more than $10 for a little plastic teapot was offensive.
So, instead, I got a Rubbermaid squeeze bottle for $1.69 that has a flip out spout. It also has a little valve to let air in. So I pulled the little valve out, and the water flows out of the bottle with no squeezing at all. Tried it and it worked OK. But I decided to customize it a little and built a custom nostril fitting out of plumber’s epoxy (I had it out because I had taken apart my video camera earlier tonight to repair the broken microphone isolation mount.)
I used mine last Monday and it flowed really well, it stopped the sinus pain that had been coming on and I continued to have drainage from my nose for days after. I had a few days where I think I had a better sense of taste and smell. I tried it again today as I was starting to get sinus pain again but this time I had trouble getting it to flow even with my mouth open. I could feel some of it going down the back of my throat. I guess everything is more clogged up now and I need to use it more often.
Persistence definitely gets you somewhere. I’m still getting water trapped in various places, then after a couple of hours of sitting there, a bunch of gunk comes out. Last night, it was out the back and down my throat when I climbed into bed and lay on my back. Snarfed a bunch of stuff back and swallowed, because I’m positive there is no way in hell it was coming out the front.
Really nasty, thick, bitter stuff, and gosh–now I have a lot of my other symptoms. Stomach upset. Achy. Eyeballs hurting. Tired. Damn grouchy and not wanting to go to work. And all I can say is cool. Because to me that’s a sign that my sinuses are, at a minimum, complicating a lot of other problems. Or maybe they are a lot of my other problems? And I can do something about my sinuses now.
Yesterday was awful. In fact it may have been the worst day ever for my sinuses in recorded history. I went through half a box of Puffs Ultra by 3 PM and never got clear. I was miserable.
Last night, I was fairly clear but that’s typical for me. I’m sure all the evil snot just collects in the back of my head leaving the face side sinuses relatively clear, waiting for morning to ooze back around and make me hurt. (I also tend to stay clear when I’m doing aerobics. Odd, huh?)
This morning, I experienced extreme jealously when my husband (a reluctant neti pot user who only started when I suggested he use the neti pot or sleep on the couch, given the volume and quantities of his snores) GLEEFULLY reported that he’d gotten an entire pot of water through his nose. NO FAIR.
I gritted my teeth, mixed up about 2/3 of a pot with a full packet (keeping in mind QM’s suggestion that a higher concentration might assist in the shrinking of my evil sinus tissues) and started with the left side, instead of the right side. Water POURED out of my right nostril! Hurrah! Then I switched. Water POURED down my throat. Bah humbug. Back to the left side, trickling ensued. Over to the right side, some trickles emerged. Then I blew snot rockets into the sink. runner pat would be so proud of me.
Anyway, I am seeing a bit of progress, enough to keep on doing this crazy ritual because whatever the cause is, Boston and my nose are not on speaking terms yet.
I’m not really noticing the improved smell, but I’m able to get a whole pot to run through both nostrils and I’m not plagued with boogeritis anymore. I really do enjoy taking very deep breaths, though.
Huh. A year ago, I was smoking, sedentary and congested as all hell. Today, I’m smoke-free, spending more time outside in better quality air, and breathing freely. Life is good.
You’ve got a very peculiar sense of humor, Doc! Almost identical to my regular physician, actually.
For all of the people who aren’t seeing much effect - hang in there! I’ve been in the throes of a sinus infection lately, and what I’ve been doing is a double-strength rinse, letting things soak for a few minutes, then finishing off with a normal-strength rinse. Doing this produced reasonable results, but last night, I unloaded something big enough to deserve its own Social Security Number. :eek: The shift in skull density made me feel a bit dizzy for a moment.
I know I’m late in joining in, but I love my neti pot. I was converted about a year ago, and it has been a godsend, especially this week, as I’ve been home sick with early pneumonia and a hell of a head cold. I’ve been doing the rinse every 3-4 hours, and it’s so productive and helpful. Getting a huge wad of snot out of my sinuses NEVER gets old.
I made a blog post last winter about having problems with a Neti pot. Someone dropped in and left a comment saying they were having fun using the Neti–just like the time in middle school when they strung a noodle through their nose. So I’m not sure we’re having half as much fun as they were, but I’m not about to go trying any noodles.
Not a fan at all of people who post “LOL!”, but I honestly laughed out loud reading this. Thanks!
I’ve used mine twice so far and no real breakthroughs yet. I did discover that even when you think all the water is out, all the water is not out. I was back at my computer, leaned over to get a CD and…oops!..a stream of water comes out. So now I do it before getting in the shower, so the various twists and turns of washing my hair and body will tend to work all the random water out.
This thread inspired me to go out and get a neti pot. I have a lifelong history of sinus problems (including minor surgery several years ago now), and constant sinus infections during my Peace Corps service have left my nose full of the most amazing crud. I am dying to get rid of it all.
Anyway, I just tried the thing for the first time, and most of the water came out down my throat instead of my other nostril. Am I doing it wrong, or is it just a sign of how stuffed up my sinuses really are?
