PLEASE Help me with my cold!
Copied and pasted from the other sick thread:
When I'm not pregnant (which is almost always) I rarely get sick!!!!
For the last month I've been fighting a head cold.....my nasal passages are completely swollen and I can't breathe. I have to sleep (if i can) with my mouth open and it gets DRY and when I blow my nose 20 times per day its green and greenish yellow so its not allergies. :-\
I had it a month ago and it went away and now its back starting a few days ago.
I am pregnant so can't take anything. what can I do???!!! I know if I go to the doc she/he will want to prescribe something known as "safe" but I don't trust anything!
I'm drinking peppermint tea, using a humidifier, using a heating pad (had an earrache too!). draining my nose like crazy in the shower.....
HELP ME!!!! I can't take it!
Oh, and check out my new giant belly pic....I'm about half way there. Thank fucking god!!!! sorry
If your snot (for lack of better word ::) ) is greenish/greenish yellow, it's probably a sinus infection. You might want to try a neti pot. Here's a thing on Oprah's website about it: http://www.oprah.com/health/oz/oz_20070426_350_106.jhtml, but you can find lots of information on them out there. I've never used one because I don't have sinus problems usually, but apparently they can work wonders just by cleaning out your nasal passages with salt water.
Good luck--sorry you're feeling yucky. I hate that "I can't breathe out of my nose so I have to sleep with my mouth open and wake up with a dry, sore throat" feeling.
yah! definately try the neti pot or nasal lavage...you can find them at drug stores these days. its a miracle product, i must say! ;)b you can also use a saline spray to help breathe at night.
but i have to swear by the neti!!
I had a similar conversation with a friend Saturday. He was talking about his frequent sinus infections and wondering about a neti pot. Luckily, I have only had one sinus infection. My symptoms were very much like what you described though, so maybe that's what it is. I would definitely try to neti pot. When I had my sinus infection, I didn't take anything either, and it was pretty hellish....and it was over winter break, so I didn't have to worry about work...and I don't have a kid...and I wasn't pregnant. I seriously don't know how you're doing it. Totally try the neti pot.
BTW, I'm coming up to Asheville for a visit in the near future..not sure of exact dates. Maybe it would be cool to meet up, if you're feeling better.
Oh, I meant to comment on your photo when I saw it last night. That's so awesome! Noah must be getting excited too! Did you guys decide on a name?
Can you use something like Vicks vapor rub? Or Vicks makes a vapor tablet that you put in the shower with you. They work really well, but having never been pregnant I'm not sure what is safe or not.
if it is a sinus infection, and you're not prone to heartburn (I know some pregnancies are), I'd recommend eating something with a chile garlic sauce....the heat from the chiles will get that nose running 'till there's nothing left in it, and the garlic will help kill off anything that is still trying to hang on. I used to have the most horrendous sinus infections/problems.... I remember coming up to my mom at 10 begging her to give me some wasabi straight just to relieve some of the pressure!!! After some experimenting in college, I found a garlic hot sauce, during a vegan taco night at a friend's house, that was a MIRACLE worker for me! I'd have to use a lot, and then be prepared to go through a few boxes of tissues, but the next day, the infection was gone!!! Keep in mind though, this stuff was pretty spicy!!
just be careful w/ those vapo rub things in the shower...i know someone who used it *or another brand, not sure which* and she fumigated herself! she had major vaporub fumes in her eyes,headache, nausea, etc... so being preggers, you may be even more sensitve to the smell.
but eucalyptus oil or tea tree oil on a washrag and aloud to sit in the warm water while in a shower could def. help!
I am alllllll about garlic. The second I feel like I'm coming down w/ something (it always starts w/ a sore throat for me), I'll take 2 garlic pills w/ every meal, and put a ton of garlic powder or fresh garlic on whatever I'm eating. And I usually spice it up w/ some hot pepper flakes. I also drink yerba mate daily, and I never get sick anymore. It's caffeine free, so it should be pregnancy safe, but always consult your physician first before starting any supplement. And when you're preggers (cutest belly in the WORLD btw!), you should consult w/ any herbal remedies too, in my "professional medical" opinion. There are some herbs that are supposed to be avoided in pregnancy, that can stimulate your uterus to contract. Be careful, and feel better soon!!
. It's caffeine free, so it should be pregnancy safe, but always consult your physician first before starting any supplement.
you are so blatently a medical professional!! :-D
Hot and sour soup!! If you can make it without chicken broth, of course. It always clears my head!
I don't have any cures but you can do a few things to feel better:
Miso in your food, or miso soup
Breathe steam from rosemary and thyme
Gargle with vinegar--spit it out, though! Vinegar is a good disinfectant.Don't swallow as a) you could give yourself mean heartburn and b) it'll be full of germs.
Make sure you clean your nose and upper lip with water after blowing, to avoid chapping and rawness. It's not the tissue that does it, it's the leftover mucus on your skin. Rinsing it with water will stop that.
Rub a drop or two of lavendar oil on the back of your neck or your forehead.
Green tea often helps respiratory problems. Drink about 4 c a day.
Technically, Yerba Mate IS caffeinated!!! It has different form of caffeine than coffee and other teas, but it does have a stimulant... They like to call it "mateine".... Smoother, less jitters, and doesn't make me a mindless drone of energy when compared to regular caffeine!!
Common Mistakes about Yerba Mate
People often call yerba mate an organic herbal tea, but herbal refers only to plants that are not caffeinated. Mate is not a green tea either, as green tea is the camelia sinensis plant which comes from Asia, and mate is Ilex Paraguariensis from South America. They do share some similar qualities in the way the are produced and the way the enhance health in the body. Read More.
The term "mateine" has been used to refer to the stimulant in yerba mate. Some researchers feel that the stimulating compound in yerba mate does differ from caffeine. We have elected to use the phrase "Naturally Caffeinated" to share the most accurate scientific information currently available. Read More.
Yerba Mate is sometimes incorrectly misspelled yerba matte, erba mate, yerbah mate, yerba madte, yerba matr, yerba matt, yerpa matte.
Source:
http://www.guayaki.com/index.php?p=mate&id=85
http://www.traditionalmedicinals.com/?id=28&pid=4
This tea is amazing. The breathe right tea opens up all your stuff...so you can sleep!
Whenever I feel a cold coming on I race to the Chinese restaurant and get hot and sour soup. Then I reheat it at home adding more rice vinegar to it.
Also, I'll have some veggie egg rolls with Chinese hot mustard! By this time, my head is open and junk is pouring out of me, and my forehead is sweating.
For a plesant relief, I also put several thin slices of ginger root in tea.
I don't know how any of these would affect a pregnant woman, I am so not knowledgable there.
Steviedg
I noticed this post, and thought maybe I should mention that my yoga teacher friend who is a neti expert told me that you should never neti when sick, especially with a sinus infection. I am no neti expert, but I thought maybe I should pass this on, in case she is right.
I do know netis can be wonderful in general, but I personally tried doing it with a cold once, and it was fully unpleasant. I asked her about it, and that is when she told me about not doing it under those circumstances. You may want to find out more about it if you are so inclined....
I know that the worst cold I can remember having was while pregnant! Not sure why, but it was a doozy. Have you tried zinc, garlic, ginger, miso, etc.? Also, shiitake mushrooms and kale are my favorite immune boosters that work for me.
Good luck!!! :)>>>
i wonder if the problem of using the neti when you're sick is that if your nose/face is full of nasty, that it won't work well. maybe using it after a hot shower (when you can "blow it all out" if you know what i mean) might work.
its an interesting thought. i wonder if anyone has experiance with this?
I DO I DO!!!
I dreamed of Net's all night (seeing them at the thrift bubbling over with goo) and I went and bought one today-not at the thrift!
The first nostril worked OK, but I couldn't get it through the really stuffed up side at first, but then it worked. A lot of junk came out! Now I am stuffed up again but I am going to try it after my shower (thanks BP) in the morning. I am feelig a little bit better today.
I did check with my NETI fanatic friend and she said she used it stuffed up or not so I gave it a try.
THanks everyone for your concern and great ideas! I'm also buying that tea tomorrow-thanks cyets!!!
IT was awkward at first, but I think this thing could be addictive and I might use it regularly-hopefully to avoid this crap in the future!
oh, and yeah, lotus, lets get together when you come! let me know when and i will be free for ya!!!
I noticed this post, and thought maybe I should mention that my yoga teacher friend who is a neti expert told me that you should never neti when sick, especially with a sinus infection. I am no neti expert, but I thought maybe I should pass this on, in case she is right.
I do know netis can be wonderful in general, but I personally tried doing it with a cold once, and it was fully unpleasant. I asked her about it, and that is when she told me about not doing it under those circumstances. You may want to find out more about it if you are so inclined....
I know that the worst cold I can remember having was while pregnant! Not sure why, but it was a doozy. Have you tried zinc, garlic, ginger, miso, etc.? Also, shiitake mushrooms and kale are my favorite immune boosters that work for me.
Good luck!!! :)>>>
interesting...
is that why i killed my mother's sense of taste when she was sick? whoops! :-\
i have a hard time sometimes, like bp said, if im really congested i cant get the water thru so well. luckily, i usually dont wait until im that badly off.
L2A...youre right it can be addictiing....one day that i did it i thought that same thing! it seriously was like a real high.
i think it was maybe the sudden burst of oxygen to my brain! lol.
Oh gosh, little2ant, as if being pregnant isn't hard enough! I second(or third) the neti pot idea.
Also, for a while I did "garlic therapy" when I was cleansing and it really helps cure what ails ya. Take 1 or 2 cloves of garlic and chop them into small pieces. Place garlic on a spoon, put on the back of your tongue and swallow. Do this after each meal if you can handle it. If you do this several times a day it might help kill whatever is in your system. Garlic is anti-parasitic and anti-microbial.
Since you are preggers....start with small amount....I would hate for you to upset your belly! (cute belly!)
BTW, when are you due?
Oh gosh, little2ant, as if being pregnant isn't hard enough! I second(or third) the neti pot idea.
Also, for a while I did "garlic therapy" when I was cleansing and it really helps cure what ails ya. Take 1 or 2 cloves of garlic and chop them into small pieces. Place garlic on a spoon, put on the back of your tongue and swallow. Do this after each meal if you can handle it. If you do this several times a day it might help kill whatever is in your system. Garlic is anti-parasitic and anti-microbial.
Since you are preggers....start with small amount....I would hate for you to upset your belly! (cute belly!)
BTW, when are you due?
my neti-fanatic friend also told me to do the garlic thing! I will get some today. Thanks!
Im due in mid-July. I cannot wait!
I did the neti again this morning and I loved it. It worked better. It clears me up for a second, but then within a few minutes, I'm stuffed up again. UGH!!
I do feel much better and have more energy though!
We've always put the garlic between our cheek and gum and held it there for a couple of hours before chewing it. Your breath will be horrible so I wouldnt recommend talking to anyone that doesnt love you! :)
Also, for a while I did "garlic therapy" when I was cleansing and it really helps cure what ails ya.
did you know that the french word for garlic is "ail"? I thought this was kind of ironic. I gues it really does cure what "ail"s ya.
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