It's okay for me to be in neverending pain

[ShadowBall]

Apparently pacing around at 6 am with an ice pack on my head was enough to get my mom's attention, and she actually seemed to feel sorry. I got taken to the outpatient clinic right when it opened, but I wasn't sure if they'd be able to give me anything too strong or too specific since they aren't specialists. But the nurse who examined me went back into my patient history and gave me three weeks' worth of an antibiotic I was on during my last sinus infection.

And my mom was sympathetic to me pretty much all day - I guess I have a knack for bringing up my ailments when she's in a really bad mood or something. Anyway, I've got a bunch of horse pills and a nasal spray and I've been told if this doesn't clear my head up, I need to call the nurse who saw me and have her refer me to ENT.

Here's hoping these drugs knock this infection out - I have never had sinus pain as bad as I have it right now.

And no worries - my mother isn't physically abusive. Just emotionally and mentally. Also, I hope no one takes this the wrong way, but can I kindly ask that all of my topics not turn into people offering advice on how to escape my living situation? I appreciate everyone wanting to help, but honestly, stuff I deal with on a daily basis at home is normal to me and sometimes I just gotta rant. I will leave when I can, but sometimes I just need to have a good bitch to feel better and I think everyone has that kind of need at least once in their life.

[Sapphire Silk]

I don't know what Alcolol is, when I first read it i thought, Alcohol, and went NO! then realized i read it wrong...

this is NOT something I recommend for regular use, as if you have a clear passage, you can feel the peroxide ALL THE WAY back....

If the neti pot thing is difficult for you, use a simple saline nasal spray - just make sure it is pure saline.

I'm sure Panacea will have much to say about my methods, - I am merely stating what I do, not telling you what you should do.

Well, something to say, at least.

I cannot recommend alkalol as a treatment. In fact, I urge folks to avoid it.

I took some time to do some research on this product, since I am not familiar with it.

It is a combination of essential oils, including camphor, menthol, wintergreen, cinnamon, and a few other things.

Folks, this stuff will burn like a BITCH!

And there is absolutely NO evidence based research to prove that it works. I looked in PubMed and CINAHL, the two go to places to look for medical and nursing research. Not a single article in either database. There's no research on it at all.

The product is described as an alkaloid, which leaves me concerned it would damage healthy tissue as well as infected tissue. Hydrogen peroxide has this problem as well (which has been WELL documented, so don't use peroxide either).

Please do not use this product.

A simple nasal spray IS known to relieve minor sinus inflammation, but should not be used more than twice a day and not for more than a couple of days without seeing a doctor.

Usual treatments for sinusitis include antibiotics (usually amoxicillin to start), prednisone (a steroid), decongestants (like psuedoephedrine) and mucolytics (Mucinex), and of course, pain medications. Sinus infections are tough to treat. Surgery may be the end solution for some patients.

And no worries - my mother isn't physically abusive. Just emotionally and mentally. Also, I hope no one takes this the wrong way, but can I kindly ask that all of my topics not turn into people offering advice on how to escape my living situation? I appreciate everyone wanting to help, but honestly, stuff I deal with on a daily basis at home is normal to me and sometimes I just gotta rant. I will leave when I can, but sometimes I just need to have a good bitch to feel better and I think everyone has that kind of need at least once in their life.

Shadowball, your complaining gets a little hard to take after awhile. I've never met anyone so determined to self destruct. I and others here have given you reams of good advice since you became a member here, and you just won't take it.

We're here to help each other, but there has to be a certain willingness to BE helped in order for it to work.

But suit yourself. I'll just not respond to any of your threads from now on, since that is what you seem to want.

[blas]

Normally, Shadowball, I'd agree with your sentiments, because I feel a lot of people can be, well, overly helpful on here and it does get tiring when you just want to vent but you end up with a lot of pro bono legal "advice" or posters chanting "Sue!" or "Go to HR!" or "Call the police!" or "Woulda coulda shoulda", but in this case, I have to stand with Pan and the others.

Your home situation is extremely alarming, to say the least. I wish you had the means to get out immediately. Your mother sounds like an absolute horror and nightmare. I urge you, myself as someone who gets irritated with the chanting of "Leave leave leave" or "call the police!", to DO SOMETHING, before things get any worse for you and you're stuck at home with your mother until your late adult years.

[42_42_42]

Yeah, the Alkalol does sting a bit when you first use it, but after a while it doesn't anymore. Just about everyone at my church uses it (my ENT happens to attend the same church I do) and has been for years and years. I happen to love the stuff and it's only since I've been using it regularly that I haven't had regular sinus infections (I used to have between 6 and 10 a year). In fact, I have fewer than 1 a year now. So...in my experience it works and is a godsend. If you're interested in checking it out, ask your doctor first, since it's ringing alarm bells for Panacea (I do trust your years of medical expertiece!).

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Considering I sprayed Sinus Buster up my nose, not once but about four different times today, "burning like a bitch" sounds more like a selling point than it does a deterrent.

It burns. It makes my eyes turn red and start watering. It makes me cough. It makes my nose instantly start running.

Just thinking about it makes me want to go in there and do it again.

I'm serious.

A nurse friend of mine was saying "don't use that stuff! It will burn your sinuses and probably works by giving you an endorphin rush from hurting so bad!

I'm like "if you're trying to sell me on the stuff, you're succeeding."

Here's a guy on youtube using the stuff. Yes, folks, this is my idea of a good time. (Yes, I like spicy food and horseradish. )

[Sapphire Silk]

Considering I sprayed Sinus Buster up my nose, not once but about four different times today, "burning like a bitch" sounds more like a selling point than it does a deterrent.

It burns. It makes my eyes turn red and start watering. It makes me cough. It makes my nose instantly start running.

Just thinking about it makes me want to go in there and do it again.

I'm serious.

A nurse friend of mine was saying "don't use that stuff! It will burn your sinuses and probably works by giving you an endorphin rush from hurting so bad!

I'm like "if you're trying to sell me on the stuff, you're succeeding."

Here's a guy on youtube using the stuff. Yes, folks, this is my idea of a good time. (Yes, I like spicy food and horseradish. )

It takes all kinds, I suppose

[georgie]

ShadowBall your mother is giving you very bad advice when she tells you to not tell the doctors all your symptoms

doctors need to know everything, even the stuff you think might not matter.

because quite often small things lead to big things. one small cough might be a symptom of something very serious.

[yeahwhatev]

We don't have Jim Hensen anymore, because he thought it was "Just a cold". Pain is a body's signal that something is wrong. If you can't get it under your mother's insurance, go to the emergency room and let the chips fall where they may. Your health is something VERY hard to get back, once it's gone.

[ShadowBall]

Uhh, I already went to the doctor and am on meds now.

But holy hell, this infection (assuming that's what it is) is kicking my ass. Usually I feel better about 4-6 days into a round of antibiotics (but I finish off the whole thing since I know I have to) and the edge hasn't even been taken off this headache. I've still got about 2 weeks worth of pills, so I'm hoping they do something. I forget how long it took my last sinus infection to go away when I was on the same antibiotic.

I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but a few days following my wisdom teeth extraction is when my headaches began getting worse to the point of keeping me awake at night. Currently it feels like someone's screwing their knuckle into the very front and center of my forehead on top of the previous sinus pain between my eyes, down the bridge of my nose, in my cheeks beside my nose and even down into my upper front teeth. My forehead is just tender right to the touch all over. In other words, owwies. Yeah, I know, I'm acting like the first person to ever get a headache...I'm just not tolerant of pain and being a whiny bitch.

I've been popping Excedrin for migraines too (not taking the Hydrocodone because I worry it will react with the antibiotics) since it's just higher-dose ibuprofen/aspirin and that doesn't do shit either. In my case, OTC painkillers doing nothing for a headache = sinus infection. I'm gonna be pissed if I take three weeks of pills that don't work and have to go back for even more.

I've heard in rare instances, sometimes people experience severe and chronic sinus pain following wisdom teeth extraction. Which would be just my luck - surgery went off without a hitch, I'm healing perfectly, and then I'd end up with lifelong incurable sinus pain.

Ugh, I hate my head sometimes.

[Kiwi]

I have terrible sinus trouble, I get otitus media and sinusitus on a regular basis.

I have found prevention is the better cure. I don't like using a netipot and shouldn't take a decongestiant because of my asthma so I actually use a syringe to get the gunk out. I fill it with saline solution I make at home (my doc gave me a recipie) because with the amount I go through buying it isn't an option and it's messy but very affective. I find I get infections when I don't eat healthy, don't sleep enough or let myself get overly stressed. I also have found an air purifier in my room makes a HUGE difference to my breathing. I got mine for $40 and run it while I'm sleeping.

I also have a gel ice pack that stays in my fridge for really bad headache days. Alternating cold and warm will help with the pain.

You could also ask your doctor about something like prednisone for sinisitus, if my infection lasts over three weeks my family doctor usually gives me 72 hours worth to boost the antibiotic. I also second (third?) the advice of not informing your mother of your health issues, you are an adult, you are entitled to medcial privacy.