How To Help Soothe A Sinus Infection
It’s that time of year when we need to know how to soothe a sinus infection, right? I know there is a lot of Influenza, coughs, bronchitis, and the dreaded sinus infections going around our neighborhoods right now.
I am not a doctor, nurse, or anyone in the medical field, just so you know that upfront. Obviously, if your gut tells you that you should go to the doctor or your child needs to go to the doctor, just do it.
I am sharing my tips today to soothe a sinus infection. I used to have sinus infections for years and I have only learned the last ten years what I can do to try and ward off the infection.
You know how they start, you have that scratchy throat and post-nasal drip down the back of your throat. You have a headache or pressure where your eyebrows are, or you may have pain in your facial cheekbones.
After a few days, you may even get a fever. The fever shows your body is trying to fight the infection. If you are sick for more than a week more than likely the cold, sneezing, cough, or allergies may be a bacterial infection.
If you have tried over-the-counter items or certain natural remedies and the pain and fever are getting worse your gut is probably telling you to go to the doctor.
Complications from sinus infections are meningitis and cellulitis, to name just a few, but they can become quite serious if not treated. I’m not trying to scare you, but sometimes we have to ward off the infection before it gets that bad.
Sinus Infection Tips:
- Stay hydrated, water is key to our bodies staying healthy. When I was very young I had bad migraines, or at least, that’s what the doctor said. Looking back I bet I had sinus infections all the time. I lived in a very hot humid climate and you needed to drink more water than other areas of the country because of the heat and dry humidity. If you think about it, when you wake up in the morning your body needs water because it has not had any water in most cases for eight hours. WebMD Water How Much Water
- Eat fruits and vegetables, in other words, eat healthy meals.
- I like to place a warm compress on my closed eyes to help loosen the drainage in my sinuses, (my grandkids love this when they have a headache or sinus issues).
- Get a Neti-pot. If you use one of these when you first feel the allergy or post-nasal drip, these do work, I promise. Please use good water in them because you may have heard someone got sick using poor quality water in one. Well, I have used one for over 8 years and I swear by these Neti-pots. Just be smart when filling them with clean water. SinuCleanse Nasal Wash System
- Use a cool humidifier to let some moisture in the room where you are to help keep your sinuses moist and open. I actually went back to a cheap warm vaporizer from Walmart for about $15.00. I use it every night, 365 days a year. This is what it looks like Vicks 1.5 Gallon Vaporizer
- I always store Vicks VapoRub for my feet if I have a cough. You coat your feet with a lot of Vicks VapoRub and put socks on and you will sleep a lot better.
- Chicken soup really does work, it loosens the phlegm in our throats. Add some garlic to that chicken soup with lots of onions and you are set!
- I’m big on essential oils to soothe my sinus infections.
- Wash your sheets and replace those pillows if you need to! Bacteria are hiding in them.
- Replace your toothbrushes, they are filled with bacteria after you have had the flu or sinus infection.
- Wash your hands a lot, and I mean a lot.
- Don’t touch your nose and then spread the germs by shaking hands. Again, wash your hands often when sick.
- Cover your mouth with a tissue if you sneeze, discard it, and wash your hands.
- Stay away from crowds if Influenza is going around.
- Exercise helps build up your immunity.
- Pure raw honey soothes your throat for sure (not for small children, but you know that).
- You may want to invest in some disposable face masks to stop spreading the germs in your home. Discard after using.
- Stock some Clorox wipes for those doorknobs, light switches, and phones. I can’t even think of the bacteria that are on those items!
- Open the windows to let the germs out and let some fresh air inside your home.
Let me know your sinus or cold tips and I will add them to my list. Remember to listen to your head, your heart, and your gut because they will tell you what you need to do. May God bless you for being prepared for the unexpected.
Copyright Images: AdobeStock_113458621by Jarun011
Good Morning Linda.
I have recently joined your group and appreciate the time and effort you’ve put into all the information you provide. Thank you.
I downloaded the “How To Make A First-aid Kit for Survival” and have been checking off items I presently have, or need to order. While thinking about all of this, I’ve noted a few items that are absent from the kit. Please keep in mind, I live in an area of Alaska that is accessed only by boat or plane, so the things I mention may not necessarily be needed for a late night call in the lower 48, as you described, but for actual “survival” these items can be very necessary.
1. A suture kit. This will, hopefully, never be needed and you may think you have no experience using one, but what do you do when you’ve used a clotting pack on someone and there isn’t medical personnel close by to stitch up a gaping hole?
2. A product such as Tempanol, which is temporary filling material for lost fillings & crowns. Anbesol is also high on my list for temporary toothaches. Where I live, there isn’t a local dentist and the health clinic is not open on a 24-hour, 7 day-a-week basis. I understand whole cloves may help, but just in case they don’t…..
3. Earache medication. This would include products used for eliminating water in the ears as well.
I would like to ask if you know of an over-the-counter product that can be used to temporarily de-sensitize skin if you have to use the suture kit?
One other question is how would you suggest to best store medical items that will expire in the event something were to happen and those items were not readily available in unexpired form? While I am fortunate in not having to take a lot of medication, how do you “stock up” for an emergency? I’ve read dozens of articles on prepping, but no one addresses this question except to suggest homeopathic substitutes. Homeopathic items are very limited in their properties to replace the medication I take.
Thanks for your answers.
Sandi Marchbanks
Hi Sandi, I’m so glad you joined our group. I did take a class on how to do sutures. I learned how to suture inside the inner layers and the outer layers of skin. You have brought a lot of questions I would like to know! I know we would need a prescription of 1 to 2% Lidocaine solution for numbing, it is difficult to procure. When I wrote that list I wanted to be a bit careful because sometimes it’s overwhelming to people to even stockpile bandaids. I have a stethoscope and several suture sets (all different sizes). I highly recommend the book The Survival Medicine Handbook by Dr. Joseph Alton. Thanks for these tips, I am going right now to update my list. Some medications are good 8-10 years after the expiration date. They may be less potent. One exception to this is Tetracycline (kidney damage-still disputed) but I don’t have any of that stored anyway. I have to be careful what I say because I am not a doctor, nurse or anyone in the medical field. I research more than you can probably even imagine. I love to learn stuff, lots of stuff. I’m so glad to hear you are wanting to learn to be more prepared. I love it! Hugs! Linda
Hi, Linda!
I diffuse a combination of eucalyptus and lavender essential oils to help with sinusitis. If it’s really bad, I’ll add peppermint essential oil to the mix.
So, what are you and Mark doing for Christmas this year? Are any of the kids coming to spend the holidays with you? Whatever you’re doing, have a very Merry Christmas, my dear friend.
Big hugs, Mare
OH, Mare, how are you??? I love all the essential oils you mentioned! We are up in Salt Lake City visiting some of the kids. Are you going anywhere for Christmas? Merry Christmas!!! Big hugs!!! Linda
Been busy. Things pick up at Thanksgiving, then again from before Christmas through New Years.
I’m glad you got up to Salt Lake. It’s nice to get away once in a while. I worked until 06:30 this morning, so I didn’t go anywhere. I made Christmas lunch (02:30 this morning *G*) for the two other people that worked last night. So, we had a nice little get together. When I got home, I opened the gifts from my brothers. Now, I’m just finishing a few things up, then I’m going to get some sleep.
Oh, we are having a white Christmas! It was snowing pretty heavily south of 12 when I came home. It’s lighter now, but still snowing.
I hope you and Mark are enjoying your visit with the kids and that you are all having a wonderful Christmas! Big hugs, Mare
Hi Mare, you are always so nice to take lunch for your workers, what a great idea! Please be safe on the roads, we will head home when the weather looks okay. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Big Hugs! Linda
Linda ~
I make a sinus concoction: in a small jar (small jelly jar, baby food jar or other small container) place 2-3 cotton balls, add 15 Drops Peppermint Essential Oil, 15 Drops Oregano Essential Oil, 15 Drops Tea Tree (Melaleuca) Essential Oil, 15 Drops Lemon Essential Oil. I keep a jar of this by my bedside and one by my favorite reading chair. I also found some really tiny jars that hold 1 cotton ball and made a purse sized jar to carry with me.
I also made the EO blend above and keep it in the bathroom in a dropper bottle. If my sinuses are really bad, I draw a sink full of really hot water and add several drops to the water and cover my head over the steam to really breathe it in! Helps a lot.
I also diffuse EOs year round!
I keep a bottle of good old Listerine for the cold/flu season. I cannot replace my toothbrush as often as I would like when the bugs hit me. So, I brush, rinse and then pour enough Listerine in a glass and soak the brush. When I brush the next time, I discard the Listerine. When I am well, I get a new toothbrush.
I also make up “Illness Kits”. I have a Cold/Flu Kit which contains my sinus jar/EO blend dropper bottle; cough drop/throat lozenges; a homemade vapor rub (found on pinterest); a muscle rub (I have found that when I have a cold/flu or sinus thing going on, I have sore muscles, especially in the neck area; a rice pack that I can heat in the microwave to put over my sinuses.
For earaches, I have a blend of mineral oil and tea tree oil in a dropper, cotton balls and a thick wash cloth that I heat up either in the microwave or dryer. Years ago when my daughter was a toddler, she had a persistent ear infection. I had just been introduced to tea tree oil (anti-bacterial, anti-fungal properties). She had been on antibiotics for a couple of months and the dr. was planning to insert tubes in her ears. I mixed 1/2 teaspoon of mineral oil and 1 or 2 drops of tea tree oil and placed a drop on a cotton ball and placed in her ears 3X a day with a warm washcloth over the ears. Took care of the problem and no tubes!! Not saying this cured anything but it certainly worked in her case. So, I keep that on hand for the occasional earache.
Thanks for the post.
Hi Leanne, oh my gosh, I love love love these tips! I’m printing this out for my first aid kit! Thank you!! Linda
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Hi Sinusinfectionhelp, yes, I’m honored you asked. Let’s teach the world, Linda