If you've ever suffered from blocked sinuses, you know first-hand what people mean when they say, "it feels like there's a jackhammer inside my head!" Nasal sinuses are a network of passageways situated behind the cheeks and forehead that are normally filled with air.
At the best of times, they facilitate breathing and pronunciation.
At the worst of times, they don't drain properly, which causes pressure, headaches, facial pain, difficulty breathing and a profusion of green or yellow mucus.
In healthy sinuses, little hairs called cilia sweep mucus, dust and other pollutants out of our airways.
Though we often associate mucus with illness, it is actually an essential element of our body's self-cleaning mechanism.
This goes awry when the common cold or allergies spark an over-production of mucus, overwhelming the cilia, inflaming the tissues that line the sinuses and blocking access to the nostrils.
Trapped mucus continues to build, exerting more and more pressure on the cavity and causing the sufferer a great deal of pain.
There are a number steps you can take to treat sinus pressure.
As with any ailment, start by visiting your general practitioner.
If you have an infection or are having an allergic reaction, you'll want to get on antibiotics or antihistamines immediately.
There are a few old-fashioned ways to relieve minor sinus blockage that can be performed in conjunction with a doctor's treatment: 1.
Try taking a steaming hot shower or inhaling deeply over a bowl of hot water to break up any dried mucus.
Adding eucalyptus oil can hep.
2.
Use a saline nasal spray periodically throughout the day to help moisten and alleviate inflamed passageways, particularly after excessive nose blowing has aggravated the tissues.
3.
To help open up the narrow connecting points between sinuses, drape a warm wash cloth over your nasal passageways.
4.
Ask your doctor about nasal washing or water picking.
This involves flushing a saline solution through one nostril and out the other to remove any dried mucus or scar tissue.
It can help with both current blockage and as a daily, preventative approach for long-term sinus health.
5.
If your mucus production is due to seasonal allergies, see if your doctor can prescribe anti-histamine or a nasal steroid spray to reduce swelling and induce draining.
6.
If you get congested after eating or drinking products such as bread or red wine, you might have a food allergy.
Ask your doctor to be tested so you can know which foods to avoid.
If these techniques do not work and you have already tried a few rounds of antibiotics, you might be suffering from chronic or severe sinusitis.
Your doctor may refer you to an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) Specialist, at which point there are two main routes to consider.
1.
In endoscopic surgery, an ENT specialist inserts an endoscope with a tiny camera into the nostril, drains excess mucus and widens the cavities by removing extra bone, tissue or polyps that may be blocking the way.
Endoscopic sinus surgery can be a permanent solution for chronic sufferers of blocked sinuses, but the recovery time can be lengthy and it can require painful nasal packing to stop bleeding.
2.
Balloon Sinuplasty is a newer, less invasive technology in which a catheter is inserted through the nostrils and a balloon is inflated to widen the passages, allowing the mucus to drain.
Recovery time can be shorter than with endoscopic surgery.
It does not allow for biopsies or the removal of any tissue, so this procedure is better for those who suffer from inflamed passageways but not other structural issues.
If left untreated, severe sinusitis can cause brain abscess and bone infections - but this is extremely rare.
Most cases can be treated through the help of a good general practitioner and by trying one or several of the techniques listed above.