I caught a hell of a cold two weeks ago and it seems to have passed except for this Niagara Falls tier runny nose. I’ve succumbed to desperation and have just been walking around with a nose tampon. Lemmy, how do you treat your runny nose??
Sudafed with Pseudoephedrine
Definitely been taking the good Sudafed.
For me, 24-hour Claritin will usually dry me out for 16-20 hours. Does fuck-all for any other symptoms, but runny nose is the one I hate, so it’s a primary weapon in my arsenal. If my nose is running, I can’t sleep, it makes a mess, and unless I’m religious about fancy kleenex I will end up with a rash on my nose or upper lip. Ending the runny nose makes a cold much more bearable for me.
The rash is real. I look like I’ve been in an industrial accident or something.
Lots of people have been suggesting solutions.
Just keep in mind OP, if it doesn’t get any better perhaps taking a trip to a clinic is in order to make sure nothing else is going on.
I’ve been thinking about that, actually. Just pop into the urgent care like, “Hey doc I just want to make sure my brains aren’t actually leaking from my nose, and if they are can we maybe not”.
Haha, exactly
Spicy food, in soup form if you can get it. Pho or Taiwanese hot pot are my #1 go to.
A spoon of hot horseradish or wasabi work too.
Pho is my go to if I’m getting over being sick. I did that once and asked them to make it hurt, then requested chili oil at the table. Had two waiters watching me eat in wonder but felt so much better when I finished. Cleared everything out.
Neti pot. My nose drips constantly when I’m sick because it’s trying to flush out the thick sticky stuff in my sinuses. A neti pot helps get rid of it, and the dripping. It’s changed my life.
For anyone trying this out, please also take precautions and use boiled/sterile/distilled water
+1
It’s incredibly important to never cut corners here. You can easily get a severe infection you may not come back from.
I could never get the hang of a neti pot. There was a 50% chance I would end up puking.
Sterile nasal saline was my savior. It’s a pressurized mist that comes in a can. No need to tilt my head and no more gagging.
I may have to go get one. The area around my nose looks like it’s been set on fire at this point and I have some reservations about leaving the house sporting my nose tampon.
At night, this sounds silly but it works.
When in bed, put your head way high on your pillow (head facing upwards) so that your head tilts backwards. It doesn’t have to be a huge tilt, but give it some angle. Stay like that for about 15 minutes and watch your nose magically clear up. Then try to get to sleep before it plugs back up. Good luck.
So I tried this and it was an experience of mixed emotions. Relief that my nose was no longer running mixed with an uneasy shiver of disgust as I felt everything draining down the back of my throat. Effective yet disturbing!
You’re welcome! Haha!
Just playing, man. Sorry if it had adverse reactions, but it’s the simplest and cheapest.
I have products prescribed to me with Fluticasone in them. Common trade names are Beconase or Avamys or Pirinase.
Good luck!
In the US Flonase as well
Prescription Flonase was the best. Got some for some reason and had some left and used it whenever I got sick. Barely felt sick every time as long as I used it before my nostril closed up.
Maybe don’t over-do it trying to “stop” it - that stuff drips for a reason? Like, where else is it going to go?
I would actually suggest going the other direction and like drink a bunch of hot drinks to try to let more come out, especially at a time of your choosing (first: inhale the steam, then: drink, repeat as desired). I would guess that once whatever is up in there that is causing the irritation gets flushed out, it may stop?
Whereas I wonder if blocking it could lead to a sinus infection? Your body is trying to help you, so it is generally best to help rather than hinder that process, unless you really truly do know better - though speaking of, I am not a doctor, it’s just thoughts.:-)
Sinus rinse and flonase.
Tie its shoelaces together.
During times when I’m using a nose tampon, if I get tired of changing the tampon I’ve tied a bandana around my head so that it is bundled up right under my nose to soak up that low viscosity drip.
Phenylephrine Hydrochloride, dries me right up after half an hour, as long as I keep taking it every four hours.
Do yourself a favor and get real pseudoephedrine. Phenylephrine dries my sinuses out so much that it actually hurts and I have to use nasal ointments that only seem to help what I can reach with them for like 5 minutes at a time. Pseudo (+mucinex if needed for thicker mucus) honestly feels like going back to baseline in comparison.
Warm to hot water on the face
This is why people eat soups for colds. The soups are a heat source and the steam tends to help the runny nose. Changing heat and humidity helps a lot. Wipe your nose not with kleenex but with small hot towels you wet and put in the microwave for a dozen seconds (absolutely make sure it’s a microwave-safe fabric towel). Get a warm drink too and take it to a warm room.
Warning: None of this work if your allergies are acting up, as I found out.
It’s never crossed my mind to stop a runny nose.
I just carry some tissues and keep blowing it to clear it.
Last time I asked the pharmacist, they recommended Zyrtec, or other allergy medication. It targets the same mechanism, apparently.
It worked for me at any rate.
