Sinus Congestion

[gertie]

I have sinus congestion, or years ago it was called vasomotor rhinitis, both sinuses almost totally blocked, no drainage that I'm aware of, but lymph gland swelled. It's causing my Meniere's to act up so I'm dizzy & off balance to say the least. I can't take antibiotics & if I could the PCP told me just to nasal rinse & I've also been taking Allegra which has not helped. I've lost track of time but I think this is about 3 or 4 weeks & no better. I have 2 questions:

Could this rhinitis be a symptoms of dysautonomia or ANS response? I do have allergies to the world but my environment is clean & I'm watching everything I eat for fear I will make it worse.

Also, does anyone take Claritin & does it help you?

Thanks again, I depend on you all so much since my dr doesn't really understand what I'm going thru.

[worththewords]

Claritin didn't help me but Zyrtec does. It's over the counter now too. I also use saline nasal spray and gel.

This is straight from DINET's website under the "What helps?" section:

Treating allergies might help one to feel better. It has been reported that people with POTS lose their ability to vasoconstrict (Grubb, 2000). This means that many POTS patients have problems with their blood vessels being excessively dilated. Histamine is known to dilate blood vessels, which can further lower blood pressure in POTS patients.

Allergies may also stimulate the sympathetic nervous system. Many POTS patients have overactive sympathetic nervous systems and benefit from avoiding potential sympathetic stimulants.

[erikainorlando]

YES!

I was so confused when I was first sick as my nose was stuffy and had some post-nasal drip. I didn't really care about that so much but I felt awful!! However, as my stuffy nose was my only symptom that I could really verbalize, we focused on that. Many months later after many unsuccessfull treatments with antibiotics and allergy medicines, an ENT told me the extreme BP and HR could easily cause problems with my tiny blood vessels in my nose causing it to run and be stuffy.

I had all the allergy tests done and I am allergic to nothing!!! So I know this is dys related. It is worse for me after I have been up and moving around for a while (like everything else!!). All things considered, this is the least of my problems. But it did confuse things before we knew what was going on.

Good luck!

Erika

[erikainorlando]

I just read the definition of vasomotor rhinitis!! Boy...why do they not ever tell you this stuff!! I went to an allergy specialist, and 4 different ENT's on my quest last fall/winter...What is the deal?? I finally gave up after the realized the hr was my major problem and we have focused on that..altho my nose rune alot still and no allergy meds ever have helped!! Thank God for you all!

[juliegee]

I have sinus congestion, or years ago it was called vasomotor rhinitis, both sinuses almost totally blocked, no drainage that I'm aware of, but lymph gland swelled. It's causing my Meniere's to act up so I'm dizzy & off balance to say the least. I can't take antibiotics & if I could the PCP told me just to nasal rinse & I've also been taking Allegra which has not helped. I've lost track of time but I think this is about 3 or 4 weeks & no better. I have 2 questions:

Could this rhinitis be a symptoms of dysautonomia or ANS response? I do have allergies to the world but my environment is clean & I'm watching everything I eat for fear I will make it worse.

Also, does anyone take Claritin & does it help you?

Thanks again, I depend on you all so much since my dr doesn't really understand what I'm going thru.

If your sinuses are totally blocked (checked by CT?) you are in trouble. It's very important to treat this with antibiotics (I hear that you can't) or some other alternative. Sinus infections are NO JOKE and can be quite serious. My brother was once hospitalized for months. Antihistamines may be a part of long term prevention after this crisis is passed, but decongestants are most important now. They can be hard for us to take, because they can cause tachy. I like plain old sudafed (30mg) as needed, Mucinex DX (60mg of sudaphedrine) or, my allergist prescribes Dallergy PE when my tachy's really bad. Another thing to consider would be steroid nasal sprays during this acute phase. A Neti Pot and saline nasal sprays are really good too.

Treating sinus infections is tricky. Decongestants first to get the goo out & then antihistamines to prevent that uncontrollable drainage. I must take antihistamines every day (for MCAD) so my sinus infections are even harder to treat.

Let us know how you're doing!

Julie

[Tachy Phlegming]

I had bad GI pain when I ate with a stuffed nose. I got relief from oxymetazoline hydrochloride and pseudoephedrine both of which I discovered only years after this bad pain eating.

Most probably would not recommend the oxymetazoline hydrochloride because it is said to increase blood pressure. I've also heard that the effect of the oxymetazoline hydrochloride is on the nasal passages is similar to cocaine.

Nonetheless, I thought and still think that the daily GI pain I had from a stuffed nose was more dangerous than the remedy I found. The fact that I couldn't get an explanation from anyone as to why my nose had to be clear for me not to have GI pain after eating did not enhance my confidence in ridiculous comments about cocaine. These were people who just repeated something someone told them and obviously looked for the easiest explanation for any phenomenon whether or not it was correct.

Although these medicines can by themselves increase heart rate, some of you may find your heart rate increased more by the stuffiness; mostly it would depend on what your worst symptoms are at the time you are trying to figure out what to do.

[gertie]

Thank goodness for all of you. Decongestants & any kind of nasal spray except saline, soda or herbs is out. For some reason ,no one can figure out, all those things cause me to seizure. I'll never have all the answers to my quirky symptoms but getting an answer occ helps. Thanks.

[juliegee]

Thank goodness for all of you. Decongestants & any kind of nasal spray except saline, soda or herbs is out. For some reason ,no one can figure out, all those things cause me to seizure. I'll never have all the answers to my quirky symptoms but getting an answer occ helps. Thanks.

Hey Alicia,

I'm sorry to hear that, but you can tolerate antihistamines? Hmmm. One of our members, Suzy (I think) had a hard time with many meds. She had a test done that proved she was unable to metabolize meds. Many of her doctors were disbelieving of her severe reactions to meds, but she found a tangible reason she was unable to tolerate them. Might want to ask her about that test.

Best of luck & hope you're feeling better soon.

Julie

P.S. Don't forget, steam helps unblock sinuses