What makes a blocked nose go away

Liberatore, in favor of OTC decongestants, which help drain the sinuses instead. Caution: decongestants can raise blood pressure, so if you have hypertension , talk to your doctor before taking them. Nasal sprays containing steroids may also help. Once the congestion and stuffy nose of acute sinusitis have eased, flush away the mucus with a saline rinse, says Dr.

When inflamed or infected sinuses don't get better, you might have chronic sinusitis, which is when the swelling of the sinuses persists for more than three months, says NLM. If decongestants, nasal sprays, and self-care routines like rinsing don't help, you may need to see a specialist who can recommend other medications or may even suggest surgery. Traditional sinus surgery involves taking out infected bone, tissue, or polyps to open up the passages, making more room for mucus to drain, per the Cleveland Clinic.

Sinusplasty is another option, says Mount Sinai Health System. The doctor inserts a balloon into the sinuses, inflates it to stretch the area, then removes it. Or, you might benefit from a stent-like device, which keeps the drainage holes in the sinuses open and releases medicine to help prevent the opening from scarring over.

Sometimes a stuffy nose is caused not by outside invaders but by internal structural problems. That's when the cartilage-and-bone divider between the nostrils warps out of shape, usually because of an injury such as a broken nose. One sign of a deviated septum is only being able to breathe out of one side of your nose. Treatment depends on how badly your breathing is affected. If you can still breathe fairly easily, allergy medications to open up the breathing passages might help, but many people need surgery to widen the passages permanently.

Certain things you expect with pregnancy : a protruding belly, morning sickness , swollen feet. So a stuffy nose when you're expecting may take you by surprise. It's called rhinitis of pregnancy and is due to more blood flowing into the soft tissue of the nose, says Dr. Some women escape the problem, but if you do develop a blocked nose, it can last the entire nine months. The condition isn't life-threatening, but treating it with medicines can be risky. Instead, most women have to rely on saline rinses.

That will help prevent a secondary bacterial infection and can relieve the pressure you might be feeling. If you have a deviated septum, talk to your doctor about correcting it before getting pregnant, as surgery isn't an option once you're expecting, she says. Enlarged adenoids are a common problem in children that can make it hard to breathe, according to the NLM. The adenoids are folds of tissue at the back of the throat, which, in a child under 5, help stave off infections.

After age 5, the adenoids shrink and aren't as involved in fighting off bugs. Sometimes, though, infections cause swelling in the adenoids. This can leave your child with not just a congested nose but blocked ears and chapped lips from breathing through his or her mouth.

Nasal spray or antibiotics may make the symptoms manageable, says NLM. Some children will have to have their adenoids removed though, especially if they have trouble sleeping. Nasal polyps are little bits of tissue that grow in your nose.

Chronic inflammation causes the lining of the nose to blister. While scientists don't know exactly why this happens, they're associated with asthma, recurrent infections, and allergies, according to the Mayo Clinic. Feeling stuffy? If you have the common cold or flu, the uncomfortable stuffed-up feeling you are experiencing is called nasal congestion, also known as a stuffy nose. On top of that, you might feel tired and just plain dreary. But what is nasal congestion, exactly?

Therefore, rhinitis is the inflammation of the linings of the nasal cavity. When your nose feels stuffy, you may find it hard to breathe. The inflammation leads to swollen nasal passages that constrict air flow, making it harder to breathe through your nose. The inflammation and swelling also makes it harder to get mucus out of your nose, so you may also have a build-up of mucus, as well. The congested feeling may also be accompanied by other cold symptoms, like runny nose or headache.

These symptoms can make it hard for you to perform your routine activities, and overall make you feel tired. You may think your stuffy nose is the result of too much thick mucus. However, nasal congestion usually occurs because of a swelling of the tissues that line your nose.

This swelling happens when blood vessels in your nasal tissues become dilated, to get the immune response cells to the nose to fight the virus that has entered the body. If your nasal congestion is from a cold or flu, it will likely last as long your cold or flu anywhere from five to 10 days or even longer.

If your nasal congestion is the result of allergies, it may last longer, depending on your exposure to that particular allergen. When you have nasal congestion, it can stop you in your tracks. Constant sniffling or mouth breathing may make it more difficult to focus on the day ahead of you.

Many over-the-counter cold and flu medicines treat multiple symptoms. Since nasal congestion is the result of swollen nasal passages, so medicines that shrink the swollen tissues may help. Shrinking these tissues opens the airways, reducing resistance and improving airflow. Sinex nasal sprays, like Sinex SEVERE Moisturizing Ultra Fine Mist , contain topical oxymetazoline that works in minutes to shrink swollen nasal membranes so you can breathe more freely, plus soothing aloe.

It lasts for up to 12 hours to relieve nasal congestion from cold or upper respiratory allergies. These soft, painless, noncancerous growths arise from the lining of the sinuses and nasal cavity. They swell and contribute to nasal congestion, often to the point of total nasal obstruction. Appropriately treating allergies can prevent nasal polyps and lessen your nasal congestion so you can breathe better through your nose.

Nasal rinses with salt water and baking soda as well as steroid or antihistamine nose sprays might give you relief. Newer and very effective treatments for nasal polyps are biologics, such as Dupixent and Xolair, often preventing invasive surgeries. Consult Dr. Ziegner who is very experienced in treating allergic conditions with biologics. Proper diagnosis is the first step toward managing a chronic stuffy nose. Ziegner will rule out other causes such as a deviated septum. To diagnose allergies, Dr.

Ziegner uses insight gleaned from your symptoms, medical history, and relevant tests and then makes a customized treatment plan for you. To get started, call our Redondo Beach, California, office at to schedule a visit with Dr.

You can also send a message to Dr. Ziegner and the team here on our website. Asthma affects your airways, making it difficult to breathe.