Chronic nasal congestion

Hey all.  about 3 years ago, I came down with a nasty mono-like illness (but def. not mono, most likely CMV) that had me out of commission for about 5 weeks.  Unfortunately, it coincided with a trip to Europe, but I eventually got over the fatigue.  Accompanying this sickness, however, was a typical nasal infection, where one side of my nose would be blocked at all times.  This part, unfortunately, has never gone away.  It is SUPREMELY annoying.  I feel fine in all other respects, and I dont have a runny nose or anything, but there's this fluid way up in my sinuses that's always stopping me from breathing normally.  It's better when Im sitting up, as I guess some of the fluid drains, but when Im lying down 1 side of my nose is almost completely blocked.  If I turn over, the fliud will drain to the other side and then that side of my nose will be blocked.  about 6 months after I got over my initial sickness, I was fed up and finally went to a hospital to get myself checked out.  I had a CAT scan done (which turned up nothing), and was told to take Claritin and Flonase for 60 days, and that I should see some marked improvement.  These things did exactly nothing to improve my condition.  After that, I pretty much gave up, not knowing what else to do.  I tried 1 more spray, something called "Oxy Nasal Wash" with "xylitol" as its active ingredient, but that didnt do much either.  I've searched around on the web looking for recommendations for this kind of chronic sinusitis, and havent turned up anything.  Just to be clear, I dont believe this is allergy related or something that antibiotics will help.  I've been on several different antibiotics over the past few years for other things and have never noticed any improvement in my congestion, and I never had any known allergies growing up and the fact that this originally accompanied another illness makes me believe further that that's not it.  ANY help or suggestions on this would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks for taking the time to  read. 

Sorry your feeling bad!
My question to you would be is have you seen an ENT (Ears, Nose, Throat Speialist)?
Is there anything specific which you think could be causing this?
Allergies can occur at anytime in your life!
Take care and good luck
Keep us posted

   No, I haven't seen a specialist.  I don't have medical insurance, and I know there is no guarantee that if I go through alot of time and expense, that my congestion will improve at all. 

Nate, I am wondering. Do you have dairy on a daily basis? Or any other food that you eat consistantly? One of my nephews had a dairy allergy (not intolerance which is different) and one of his complaints was a constant stuffy nose. His allergy was more severe though which included his throat closing on him. But it started as a stuffy nose. Luckily they found out what was causing his allergies. I'm not saying that you have a food allergy, just shooting some ideas your way to see what you think. Have you tried Benedryl and if so, does it help with the congestion? If you do have any allergies, Benedryl works as a antihistamine and will stop the allergic reaction. What about steam? Steam is a great way to open nasal passages. Another possibility is nasal polyps. Have you been checked for these?

It's horrible to be constantly plugged and hope you find relief soon. Take care :)

---

^{@--->--Sherry--<---@}

"Red_34"

I am having lots of allergy problems and I am now thinking that dairy products are causing them, if though I don't drink milk, I eat it's products like cheese. I don't feel good today and I think eating cheese on pizza last night as well as in a friends salads my have contributed to it. I had allergy testing done in the spring and I am not allergic to dust, mold, nor grasses which I though were the culprits.

Also, I have been eating chicken 5-6 times a week for over a year now, and I think that my stomach problems and nasal allergies may be attributed to it after reading another post. I am eliminating chicken and dairy products startiing today to see if my condition improves.

Aarondawg

Hi Aaron, welcome to Healingwell! There is a difference between food allergies and food intolerances. Food allergies present themselves in a more dramatic way such as rashes, hives, welts, throat/nose constriction, mucous production etc. While food intolerances usually involves the digestive tract like having diarrhea, bloating, constipation, headaches, mouth sores, watery/itchy eyes etc. If you feel that a food is causing you grief, then by all means try to eliminate them but do so only one at a time. That way you will know for sure if it's that particular food that is causing you grief. If you're not sure if its dairy or the chicken, try eliminating the chicken for a week or two and slowly introduce it back into your diet and see how you react. The same with dairy.

I have lactose intolerance and certain dairies cause me great harm. Luckily cheddar cheese isn't among them because I soooo love my cheddar cheeses!

Good luck and let us know the outcome.

---

^{@--->--Sherry--<---@}