How To Get Rid Of Blocked Nose In South Africa
What is a Blocked Nose?
Nasal congestion, also called a stuffy nose, is often a symptom of another health problem such as a sinus infection. It may also be caused by the common cold.
Nasal congestion can have causes that aren’t due to underlying disease. Examples include anatomical variation, having an object stuck in the nose or dried mucus.
How To Get Rid Of Blocked Nose In South Africa
Home Treatments
When you’re stuffed up, focus on keeping your nasal passages and sinuses moist. Although people sometimes think that dry air might help clear up a runny nose, it actually has the opposite effect. Drying out the membranes will irritate them further.
To keep your nasal passages moist, you can:
- Use a humidifier or vaporizer.
- Take long showers or breathe in steam from a pot of warm (but not too hot) water.
- Drink lots of fluids. This will thin out your mucus, which could help prevent blocked sinuses.
- Use a nasal saline spray. It’s salt water, and it will help keep your nasal passages from drying out.
- Try a Neti pot, nasal irrigator, or bulb syringe. Use distilled, sterile water or H2O that’s been boiled and cooled to make up the irrigation solution. Rinse the irrigation device after each use and let it air dry.
- Use a micro-current wave device. The device is placed on the face and emits painless vibrations that gives relief.
- Place a warm, wet towel on your face. It may relieve discomfort and open your nasal passages.
- Prop yourself up. At night, lie on a couple of pillows. Keeping your head elevated may make breathing more comfortable.
- Avoid chlorinated pools. They can irritate your nasal passages.
Blow your nose the right way: gently, so you don’t force mucus into your ears or other parts of your sinuses, into a disposable tissue so you don’t spread germs. Wash your hands afterward.
OTC Medicines
These drugs don’t need a prescription and can help tame your symptoms:
Decongestants. These medicines help reduce the swelling in your nasal passages and ease the stuffiness and sinus pressure. They come as nasal sprays, like naphazoline (Privine), oxymetazoline (Afrin, Dristan, Nostrilla, Vicks Sinus Nasal Spray), or phenylephrine (Neo-Synephrine, Sinex, Rhinall). They also come as pills, such as phenylephrine (Sudafed PE, and others) and pseudoephedrine (Sudafed).
Follow the directions for using them. Don’t use a decongestant you take by mouth for more than a week without checking with your doctor. You shouldn’t use a decongestant nasal spray for more than 3 days, or it could make your congestion worse. Also, they can raise your blood pressure, so check with your doctor first if you have any health issues or take other medicines. Never give decongestants or any over-the-counter cold medicine to children under age 4.
Antihistamines. If allergies are behind your nasal congestion and sinus pressure, controlling them will ease your symptoms. Look for allergy medications that have an antihistamine to relieve sniffling and sneezing along with a decongestant for congestion and sinus pressure.
You may also find antihistamines in some multi-symptom cold medicines which can help a runny nose and sneezing. You’ll usually find them in nighttime cold medicine, because they can make you sleepy. Read and follow the label, and talk to your doctor or pharmacist if you have questions.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
How long does a blocked nose last?
How Long Does Nasal Congestion Last? If your nasal congestion is from a cold or flu, it will likely last as long your cold or flu (anywhere from five to 10 days) or even longer. If your nasal congestion is the result of allergies, it may last longer, depending on your exposure to that particular allergen.
Why do I always have 1 blocked nostril?
We might not realise it, but our bodies deliberately direct the airflow more through one nostril than the other, switching between nostrils every few hours. A constant airflow can dry out the nostrils, which damages their lining, so giving one nostril a rest helps prevent this from happening.
What causes nose to block?
Nasal congestion can be caused by anything that irritates or inflames the nasal tissues. Infections — such as colds, flu or sinusitis — and allergies are frequent causes of nasal congestion and runny nose. Sometimes a congested and runny nose can be caused by irritants such as tobacco smoke and car exhaust.
Why does my nose get blocked at night?
Congestion tends to be worse at night because it is harder for the nose and sinuses to drain. This means that mucus pools in the head, making it harder to breathe and potentially causing a sinus headache in the morning. Try elevating the head on a few pillows to help the sinuses drain more easily.
What pressure points get rid of stuffy nose?
How to do acupressure for your sinuses
- Use a mirror to help you find the points on your face.
- Apply firm but gentle pressure on the points for at least 3 minutes each. You can use your fingers, thumbs, or a thin, blunt object, like the eraser tip of a pencil.
- Repeat throughout the day for several days.
How should I sleep with a runny nose?
Elevating your head during the night makes it easier for your nose and sinuses to drain. This is important because at night mucus pools in the head, making it harder to breathe and potentially causing a sinus headache in the morning. Try elevating the head on a few pillows to help the sinuses drain more easily.
How do I know if I got a cold or Covid?
Our data shows that loss of smell (anosmia) or loss of taste is still one of the most important predictors of testing positive for COVID-19 rather than a regular cold, so it’s an important symptom to look out for, whether you’ve been vaccinated or not.
Do you breathe both nostrils?
At any given time, people do about 75% of their breathing from one nostril and 25% from the other, said Dr. Michael Benninger, a head-and-neck doctor at the Cleveland Clinic. The dominant nostril switches throughout the day. This is called the nasal cycle
What side should I sleep on with a stuffy nose?
That makes the nose even more blocked. So, the best way to sleep with a blocked nose is to prop your head up on an extra pillow or two. Also, it’s best to sleep on your side if you can as lying on your back could make things worse.
Is Vicks good for blocked nose?
Vicks VapoRub (VVR) is not a decongestant. In other words, it doesn’t actually relieve nasal or chest congestion. However, it might make you feel less congested. When applied to your skin, VVR releases a strong minty odor due to the menthol that’s included in the ointment.
Can you suffocate from a blocked nose?
But rest assured: Even if you have a stuffy nose and can’t breathe through your nostrils, you almost certainly won’t die in your sleep. While it may make your sinus issues worse, you will be able to breathe through your mouth.
Does massaging your nose unblock it?
Massaging the sinuses is thought to help sinus pain and congestion by relieving pressure and helping the sinus drain out mucus. The gentle pressure and warmth from the hands may also help by increasing blood circulation to the area.
How long does a cold last?
And sometimes that happens. But more often, those pesky symptoms stick around and leave you feeling sneezy and sniffly. Colds usually last 3 to 7 days, but sometimes they hang on as long as 2 weeks. If you’re under the weather for longer than that, one of these things could be to blame.
The relaxation after any intense muscle contraction is pleasurable because it triggers the release of feel-good chemicals called endorphins – try this for yourself by squeezing your stomach muscles really tightly. A sneeze is also a response to an ‘itch’, and scratching an itch always brings relief.