With cold and flu season in full swing, your sinus infection could be hanging around longer than you’d like, causing headaches and low energy levels. Before heading to your doctor, we suggest trying a few holistic remedies listed below.
Hypertonic Rinse
A hypertonic rinse is a great way to ease inflammation and liquefy mucous. To create this solution, simply double the amount of salt you are using in your neti pot; 1 heaping teaspoon to 10 oz. of water. For more information on this see our blog titled Reduce Nasal Inflammation.
Water Retention
This suggestion is for expert neti pot users, as beginners could find it confusing. Use a hypertonic rinse- begin rinsing from one nostril to the other as usual. When you have the water flowing out one nostril (or dripping in some cases if you are extremely congested), block that nostril to prevent the water from exiting. I plug that nostril by pressing my finger against the outside; much like when you are blowing your nose. Do this for about 15-45 seconds depending on your level of comfort. This will give the hypertonic solution time to sit against the cell walls to reduce inflammation while loosening thick and often infected mucous. I find this particularly effective if I rinse once every hour for 3 hours. You might try this more or less frequently but I wouldn’t recommend doing it day after day. You should see positive results within 3 rinses.
Steaming
Steaming is an obvious but often overlooked method of decongesting the sinuses, particularly if you have a cough. I like to put fresh eucalyptus or rosemary in a large pot with hot, steaming water and place a towel over my head for 15-20 minutes, breathing deeply. If you don’t have fresh eucalyptus or rosemary available, then one or two drops of these essential oils will do. Make sure to close your eyes as the oils could burn or irritate.
When it comes to our health, we aren’t often encouraged to experiment. Somehow that feels dangerous, and in some cases it may be. However, in other situations- common sense can lead you to the right answers. I would urge you to empower yourself and examine other options of healing before rushing off to your doctor.
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[…] can benefit from nasal rinsing. Experiment with a hypertonic rinse or a method of rinsing called water retention. Experiment how often to rinse – one person may do it 2-3 times a day while another person […]