Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
So, after a really bad sinusitis, I've gotten antibiotics for the first time I think ever. At least I can't remember getting any. I've always been quite wary of most medication and doctor visits, and I've been healthy enough to do anything I want.
It felt amazing. On the second day of the antibiotics course I already felt as well as I normally do. But only a few days later, after my nose healed fully and I also was done with the antibiotics itself, it's like I'm a new person. We have a toddler so I get little sleep, but I feel very awake anyway. I normally have significant motivational issues, but now I get things done, and if my wife tries talking me into just going outside to meet with people instead, I tell her I'll get it done ASAP anyway and join up later. My skin is normally very unclean, but I haven't had a single pimple the last two weeks. My nose normally felt moderately clogged pretty much all the time (which I though was unavoidable due to a birth defect), but now it's been completely free.
I strongly suspect now that I've been having a chronic sinusitis - maybe even more generally some kind of bacterial infection - that I didn't notice bc it has been so long, pretty much all my adult life if not longer. I feel borderline manic.
My wife also noticed that I just seem significantly more present, fast & active and told me I need to schedule a meeting with my GP to make sure I don't fall back, which I did. But we're in germany and this isn't acute, so the next open date is in October.
I'll still go anyway, but since we have some doctors here I thought it might make sense to ask here what are my options for things I can do proactively to not get a sinusitis again in the first place. My nose malformation birth defect is real, and I know from MRI that I have absolutely giant sinuses, so I probably have some susceptibility to it. From what I can gather long-term antibiotics are a bad idea, and I'm quite hopeful that it's not necessary anyway. At the moment I'm trying a few things:
Vitamins / Mineral Supplements every day. Probably not super effective, but also pretty much no downsides if dosed moderately.
direct nose cleaning with spray every evening before going to sleep, mostly salt water based but also tried some essential oil based ones. Seems to work well, but also some noticeable irritation up to minor bleeding if I overdo it so I've gotten a bit more careful.
Ultrared light every few evenings. Just generally warms up the face and is pleasant, but doesn't really feel very effective (but also probably little side-effects)
menthol and similar sugar-free drops. Not sure how much they really do, but they feel good.
I generally have had a bad experience with antihistamine- and corticosteroid-based nasal sprays, and they're a bad idea to take long-term anyway. I'm also playing with the idea of getting Lumina Probiotic despite having never struggled with cavities (but I probably won't). I also want to do some sports again to keep healthy, but I'm quite time-constrained due to our small kids at the moment. But I do get some decent amount of activity thanks to them already, so it's not that bad.
If anybody has any recommendations, please tell me. In the worst case I have some weird susceptibility to bacteria that isn't actually nose-specific, in which case I'm at a loss on what to do. Obviously in the best case, I've gotten rid of it for good and am just worrying unnecessarily. But the difference is big enough that it feels worthwhile to think about.
Most sinusitis cases are viral (I tend to get it when a cold takes hold in my sinuses) so antibiotics aren't a general solution. (A chronic bacterial sinusitis that doesn't get cleared until you finally get it tested during a flare-up, determine it's bacterial, and take antibiotics is pefectly plausible though). If the next sinus infection you get is viral (and it probably will be) you are stuck with strong decongestants (you need something more than phenylephrine, which is a fine placebo when all you need is a placebo, but apparently nothing more than that) and old wives' remedies.
The old wives in the UK recommend steam inhalation, which helps a bit for me. (You can just put a towel over a jug of boiling water and stick your nose under it, but steam inhalers of various levels of complexity exist. You can also put a drop of menthol or similar in the water).
A lot of my friends swear by salt water nasal spray, which appears to work for you, and might work well enough for a future viral sinusitis.
The good news is that if your next sinusitis is viral it will be less serious and should clear up on its own after a couple of weeks, and if it is bacterial you are aware of the possibility and will be able to get antibiotics sooner.
You're correct that most sinusitis is viral and I should have been clearer with my language - I suspect, and want to avoid, chronic bacterial sinusitis in particular. Yeah, steam inhalation is something I also had on my mind since my mom swears by it, though it's annoying enough that I don't really want to do it very often.
My understanding was that people who were susceptible to sinusitis were susceptible to both types, but that viral was much more common. (I had bacterial sinusitis once as a child, but I have viral sinusitis about twice a year)
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link