Fighting Sinusitis - Day 23

I feel like I must start every post about health in the same manner. Everyone is different and I am not a health professional. Please see your doctor if you have any health concerns.

With that out of the way, I can now, with confidence, say that I managed to avoid a sinus infection! It's the first time in fifteen years that I have managed to just have a cold, so I'm pretty excited about it.

There were quite a few things that were different from my last cold, both in my environment and the in the at-home treatments I tried.

1. There was no cat in the house. Unfortunately, our cat went AWOL back in April just before Easter. He managed to get out of the house while my husband was grilling some fish on Good Friday. He was spotted a week and a half later, but ran off. We haven't seen him since. We've had at least one cat in the house ever since I started getting these sinus issues and I believe that may have been a factor in my issues. We didn't want to get rid of them, but we've also concluded that we shouldn't bring home any more.

2. I used a sinus rinse twice a day. This was an uncomfortable process, especially at first, but I stuck with it because I've heard how great they are and I ran into a WebMD slideshow that did a great job of explaining to me how they work.  I just had to make sure I was using the Neti Pot in a safe way as they can cause more problems if used incorrectly. I'm sold on the process and will continue using it on a daily basis now that I'm feeling better.

3. I slept with my head raised. The Sleep Number bed we purchased a few months ago came in really handy here. During my first and worst week of the cold when I was feeling a lot of fatigue, I slept better than I have in months.

4. I changed my allergy medication. I've been using Zyrtec for years now on my doctor's recommendation. It's my understanding, though, that different products work differently for each person. If my allergies are so out of control that I'm getting sick three times a year, I figured it was time to switch. I made the switch to Clariton.

5. My resolution had been made. I hadn't been doing a great job with it, but something is better than nothing. I was exercising more and eating healthier prior to getting sick and I think that really helped boost my immune system.

These are the steps I took along with the usual plenty of rest and water. I took a pain reliever only once and that was during the first week when the sinus pressure had given me a massive headache.

I'll take these steps again the next time I start to see cold symptoms. My hope is that I've figured a way to reduce both the severity and duration of my symptoms and that it wasn't just a fluke!