Hey, I tried one of these things at the urging of a friend. I have chronic sinus trouble.
Know what? I HATED it! Stung like I had a hot poker up my nose. Know that feeling you get when you jump in a pool a drive water up your schnoz? Try that for 30+ minutes! My eyes watered for 10 minutes and my sinuses were so jammed shut I became a mouth-breather for the rest of the afternoon.
Does the CIA know about these things?
Your mileage may vary but I'll never use the damned thing again.
I have to say, as someone with defective sinuses (October usually equals hell sick month for me), the neti pot is the only thing I have found that brings consistent relief. It might seem a little weird, and can be uncomfortable the first few times you use it, it has has changed my life for the better.
After suffering for years and even considering surgery on the advice of a doctor, I am pretty much symptom free at this point.
I know this sounds like a paid advertisement, but really, it has worked great for me.
I love them. Only thing that has been more effective than drugging myself into oblivion with allergy medications. That being said, I only use it when I'm having issues.
Jeez I'm SO happy to not be alone in these sinus problems! Throughout law school I had at least two a year, usually ending up in bronchitis and all the attendant medication and other crap. As a result, I am now one of those unfortunate chronic sinus 'people' like these other posters.
Weird as it is, huffing saline (i.e., just warm water in your palm with some salt mixed in) is a great solution to meds. It is not sexy in any way, and after you snort it, you gotta hang over the sink until what is going to drain out - does (yes, gross). Then after a quick blow of the nose, things feel much better. It hurts while you're doing it though! But as I said, so much better than ephedra products!
I have to admit, it's gross, but it works wonders during allergy season. We went high tech in our house and bought large syringes (sans-needles) with rubber stoppers (easy to sterilize) and we buffer the saline with baking soda to make sure the pH is perfect.
Charamba, Douro 2008
Horse Heaven Hills, Cabernet 2010
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills Pinot Grigio 2011
Avignonesi, Montepulciano 2004
Lorelle, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011
Villa Antinori, Toscana 2007
Mercedes Eguren, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Lorelle, Columbia Valley Cabernet 2011
Purple Moon, Merlot 2011
Purple Moon, Chardonnnay 2011
Abacela, Vintner's Blend No. 12
Opula Red Blend 2010
Liberte, Pinot Noir 2010
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Indian Wells Red Blend 2010
Woodbridge, Chardonnay 2011
King Estate, Pinot Noir 2011
Famille Perrin, Cotes du Rhone Villages 2010
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14 Hands, Hot to Trot White Blend
Familia Bianchi, Malbec 2009
Terrapin Cellars, Pinot Gris 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2009
Campo Viejo, Rioja, Termpranillo 2010
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Waterbrook, Reserve Merlot 2009
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills, Pinot Grigio 2011
Tarantas, Rose
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La Vielle Ferme, Rose 2011
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Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir 2009
Lello, Douro Tinto 2009
Quinson Fils, Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Anindor, Pinot Gris 2010
Buenas Ondas, Syrah Rose 2010
Les Fiefs d'Anglars, Malbec 2009
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Conundrum 2012
Condes de Albarei, Albariño 2011
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Penelope Sanchez, Garnacha Syrah 2010
Canoe Ridge, Merlot 2007
Atalaya do Mar, Godello 2010
Vega Montan, Mencia
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Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009
Portuga, Rose 2011
Revelation, Chardonnay, Pays d'Oc 2010
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 2005
Monte Alto, Tinto Reserva 2005
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Cabernet, Indian Wells 2009
Espiral, Vinho Rose
Vin-Koru, Pinot Gris 2011
14 Hands, Hot to Trot Red 2009
Rodney Strong, Cabernet, Sonoma 2009
Abacela, Vintner's Blend #11
Portuga, White 2010
La Bourgeoisie, Red 2009
Januik, Red 2009
Three Rivers, River's Red 2008
Kirkland, Alexander Valley Merlot 2008
Muga, Rioja Rose 2010
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2009
Mauro Molino, Barbera d'Alba 2009
Garda Chiaretto Rose
Columbia Crest, Two Vines Vineyard 10 White
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L'Hortus, Rose de Saignee 2010
Maculan, Pino & Toi 2008
McKinley Springs, Bombing Range Red 2008
Trader Joe's Pinot Gris 2009
Montes Alpha, Cabernet 2007
Gran Sasso, Sangiovese, Terre di Chieti 2009
Garda, Classico Chiaretto Rose
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 1999
Picos del Montgo, Tempranillo 2008
Chateau de Montmirail, Vacqueyras 2008
La Granja 360, Syrah 2009
Montgras, Carmenere Reserva 2009
Lange, Pinot Gris 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet 2008
Kirkland, Pinot Grigio 2010
Trader Joe's Coastal Syrah 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Merlot 2008
Trader Joe's Coastal Chardonnay 2009
Vieux Papes Red
Domaine de l'Aujardiere, Chardonnay 2009
Santa Rita, Cabernet, Medalla Real 2007
Penfold's, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2008
Guild, Red, Lot #02 2008
Dievole, Dievolino Sangiovese 2008
Laforet, Burgogne Chardonnay 2009
Columbia Winery, Merlot 2007
Bonterra, Cabernet 2008
Elk Cove, Pinot Gris 2009
Maquis Lien 2006
Scott Paul, Pinot Noir, Le Paulee 2007
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Neil Young - Waging Heavy Peace
Mark Bego - Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (2012 ed.)
Jenny Lawson - Let's Pretend This Never Happened
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol
Timothy Egan - The Big Burn
Deborah Eisenberg - Transactions in a Foreign Currency
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - Slaughterhouse Five
Kathryn Lance - Pandora's Genes
Cheryl Strayed - Wild
Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Brothers Karamazov
Jack London - The House of Pride, and Other Tales of Hawaii
Jack Walker - The Extraordinary Rendition of Vincent Dellamaria
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus - The Nanny Diaries
Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons
Keith Richards - Life
F. Sionil Jose - Dusk
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Justin Halpern - S#*t My Dad Says
Mark Herrmann - The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law
Barry Glassner - The Gospel of Food
Phil Stanford - The Peyton-Allan Files
Jesse Katz - The Opposite Field
Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice
Donald Miller - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
Mitch Albom - Have a Little Faith
C.S. Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Shakespeare - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ivan Doig - Bucking the Sun
Penda Diakité - I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Grace Lin - The Year of the Rat
Oscar Hijuelos - Mr. Ives' Christmas
Madeline L'Engle - A Wrinkle in Time
Steven Hart - The Last Three Miles
David Sedaris - Me Talk Pretty One Day
Karen Armstrong - The Spiral Staircase
Charles Larson - The Portland Murders
Adrian Wojnarowski - The Miracle of St. Anthony
William H. Colby - Long Goodbye
Steven D. Stark - Meet the Beatles
Phil Stanford - Portland Confidential
Rick Moody - Garden State
Jonathan Schwartz - All in Good Time
David Sedaris - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Anthony Holden - Big Deal
Robert J. Spitzer - The Spirit of Leadership
James McManus - Positively Fifth Street
Jeff Noon - Vurt
Road Work
Miles run year to date: 21
At this date last year: 52
Total run in 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269
Comments (7)
whoa, dude
i thought that was, like, a plastic bong...
...i don't think that would work out, man.
seems tame compared to colonics, though...
Posted by rr | October 10, 2007 12:30 PM
Hey, I tried one of these things at the urging of a friend. I have chronic sinus trouble.
Know what? I HATED it! Stung like I had a hot poker up my nose. Know that feeling you get when you jump in a pool a drive water up your schnoz? Try that for 30+ minutes! My eyes watered for 10 minutes and my sinuses were so jammed shut I became a mouth-breather for the rest of the afternoon.
Does the CIA know about these things?
Your mileage may vary but I'll never use the damned thing again.
Posted by BobM | October 10, 2007 12:53 PM
Sinus irrigation is the only thing I've found that helps chronic sinus infections. The sensation isn't unpleasant, but it is a little odd.
But you don't need a $20 neti pot. A bulb syringe (like a larger version of the ones parents use to clear out babies' noses) works just fine.
As far as the spiritual aspects of it (as stated in the article), I would have no idea.
Posted by Kevin | October 10, 2007 4:11 PM
I have to say, as someone with defective sinuses (October usually equals hell sick month for me), the neti pot is the only thing I have found that brings consistent relief. It might seem a little weird, and can be uncomfortable the first few times you use it, it has has changed my life for the better.
After suffering for years and even considering surgery on the advice of a doctor, I am pretty much symptom free at this point.
I know this sounds like a paid advertisement, but really, it has worked great for me.
Posted by Cuisine Bonne Femme | October 10, 2007 7:48 PM
I love them. Only thing that has been more effective than drugging myself into oblivion with allergy medications. That being said, I only use it when I'm having issues.
Posted by Food Dude | October 10, 2007 8:47 PM
Jeez I'm SO happy to not be alone in these sinus problems! Throughout law school I had at least two a year, usually ending up in bronchitis and all the attendant medication and other crap. As a result, I am now one of those unfortunate chronic sinus 'people' like these other posters.
Weird as it is, huffing saline (i.e., just warm water in your palm with some salt mixed in) is a great solution to meds. It is not sexy in any way, and after you snort it, you gotta hang over the sink until what is going to drain out - does (yes, gross). Then after a quick blow of the nose, things feel much better. It hurts while you're doing it though! But as I said, so much better than ephedra products!
Posted by nancy | October 10, 2007 10:55 PM
I have to admit, it's gross, but it works wonders during allergy season. We went high tech in our house and bought large syringes (sans-needles) with rubber stoppers (easy to sterilize) and we buffer the saline with baking soda to make sure the pH is perfect.
And no burning if the water goes in slowly.
Posted by Shelley | October 11, 2007 11:44 PM