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Carol Perkins: Sinus! Weaker ones would have headed to the ER, but Carol Perkins survived a night of sinus agony relying on proven home remedies, chocolate chip cookies, and the Metcalfe County ultimate health potion, a Hot Toddy. And survived. Next previous Carol Perkins column: The Furniture Truck By Carol Perkins: Sinus Spring was once my favorite season, but she has turned against me. With every new bloom or blossom, my sinus cavities scream, "Oh, no, here we go again!" Then they swell shut. Having just healed from a month of bronchitis and the "crud" as I call it, a mammoth sinus infection attacked me. Having allergies for a few years, I was accustomed to the enemy of nature, but nothing compares to a full-blown sinus infection. For two nights, just around dark, I "stopped up". That's what we call it around here. The first night I was visiting my aunt in Louisville who promptly offered me a nasal spray and a host of allergy relief, over-the-counter medications. I took the spray and one pill, but still couldn't breathe except through my mouth. Finally, I heated a pan of water and stuck my head over it, careful not to singe my eyebrows. Then I dipped a cloth into the boiling water, squeezed out the excess, and put it over my nose. Mother warned of bursting eardrum "Your face is beet red," my mother said, frightened that I might be having a stroke. " I think it's swollen!" She didn't know about the boiling hot cloth. Then she said, "Don't blow your nose too much, you'll burst your eardrum." I wanted that stuff out! Finally, with enough medicine in me to kill a horse, I fell asleep. The next morning I was well enough to go out and about Louisville, but on my drive home, I was struck again. By the time I was to Elizabethtown, I had to roll down the windows hoping the cold air would loosen my sinuses. If that didn't work, I would surely end up with pneumonia. Neti pot can solve the worst problems - I thought When I arrived home, I passed Guy up with a "hello" and ran to my Neti pot. That pot can solve the worst problems, so I thought. With hot water and a sinus rinse, I began to pour. NOTHING. No water could penetrate whatever was in my nose. I was afraid the water was going to shoot right out my ears! Now I knew I was in trouble. Of course, Guy started. You know what "started" means. "You need medical attention." I wanted to be hateful and say, "Do you think?" Instead I nodded. I wasn't going to ER and sit for hours unable to breathe. "Let's go one of those walk-in clinics." "Give me a little while." Finally, disgusted with my lack of cooperation, he went to bed. I, on the other hand, could not lie down without oxygen, which I didn't have. By midnight, I dragged out the vaporizer and pointed it toward the recliner, which was going to be my bed. Then I located a frozen package of chocolate chips in the freezer that was flexible enough to shape over my nose. I lay in the chair with the chocolate chips over my nose and waited for the aroma of Vick's. NOTHING. Waited with chocolate chips for vaporizer to work After enough time, I decided the vaporizer wasn't working, so I replaced it with a humidifier. My chocolate chips and I waited until the mist began, hoping for relief. I still couldn't breathe. By now it was around one o'clock. The computer! I typed in home remedies for sinus infections and up popped a wealth of information. Most of what was recommended I didn't have in the house, but I did have the ingredients for a suggested potion. When all else fails, a hot toddy is needed In a half a cup of hot water, I mixed ginger, cinnamon, lemon juice and cayenne pepper! In addition to the drink, I read to chop an onion into small pieces, make a poultice, and sleep with it around my neck. I was so desperate, I chopped the onion, wrapped it in a dishtowel, which wouldn't tie around my neck. I tore off boxing tape I spied on a shelf and tapped the sides together. I went back to the recliner, a frozen bag of chocolate chips over my nose, the humidifier shooting cool air, a hot toddy of unbearable tasting spices, and a poultice of chopped onions around my neck. I could not smell the onions; that's how badly I was congested. As I sipped the potion, my lips tingled. The pepper! As a matter of fact, this drink took the skin off the right side of my lower lip! Reluctantly, I finished it and waited for the results. If this mixture killed me, Guy would never know the cause of death. I don't know whether the potion, the onion around my neck, the chocolate chips on my nose, or the humidifier did the trick, but soon I could breathe well enough to fall asleep. By four o'clock, I went to bed. 'Well, I see you didn't die,' Guy said The next morning when I finally woke up and stumbled into the den, Guy said, "Well, I see you didn't die." That was his way of saying that I should have listened to him and gone to the ER. He was probably right, but sometimes a person is too sick to leave home. I longed to be in a hospital bed with an IV and oxygen about three o'clock that morning. That is REALLY desperate. I now have great sympathy and empathy for sinus sufferers. Can a person really blow his nose so much his brains fall out? (email Carol at cperkins@scrtc.com. Her book, Let's Talk About, is available at Ivy Bookstore, 402 Rogers RD, Glasgow, KY) This story was posted on 2010-05-09 07:45:11
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Have comments or corrections for this story? Use our contact form and let us know. More articles from topic Carol Perkins:
Carol Perkins: In a hurry Carol Perkins: The Furniture Truck Carol Perkins: Color Me Beautiful Carol Perkins: Willie Carol Perkins: I witnessed the Civil Rights Movement Carol Perkins, Perfect Vision Carol Perkins: Affairs to Remember Carol Perkins: The Teepee Carol Perkins: Addicted to the Soaps Carol Perkins: The Money Line View even more articles in topic Carol Perkins |
 
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