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post nasal drip.

Fuzzyhead

Senior Member
Messages
372
I get post nasal drip a lot and feel like i have to swallow a lot especially at night because it feels like mucous in the back of my throat. I bring quite a bit up during the day.I also for the last 2 years can hear a crackling noise sometimes when i inhale in bed at night. Anyone else have this and what helps for post nasal drip?
 

lansbergen

Senior Member
Messages
2,512
I get post nasal drip a lot and feel like i have to swallow a lot especially at night because it feels like mucous in the back of my throat. I bring quite a bit up during the day.I also for the last 2 years can hear a crackling noise sometimes when i inhale in bed at night. Anyone else have this and what helps for post nasal drip?

What colour has the drip?
 

paul80

Senior Member
Messages
298
I have this too. The best way to deal with it is to try not to swallow as much as you can and just try to ignore it.
 

Invisible Woman

Senior Member
Messages
1,267
I am in uk so how do i test for staph?

I guess that would be a trip to your GP.

I had similar problems a few years ago (though mine tended to be clear) and my GP insisted I try Sudafed - being a trusting soul (when will I learn) I did. I nearly went mad with the constant tired but wired and no sleep. She insisted I keep on it even though it didn't seem to be solving the problem and I was climbing the walls. I had a major crash.

I was in an awful state when I next saw my consultant. He immediately pointed out that epinephrine & pseudo-epinephrine act a bit like adrenaline - so unsurprisingly my body just couldn't cope.

As I am an allergic creature, he decided that, in my case, my allergies were not sufficiently controlled and suggested I tried using Flixonase (fluticasone) in addition to my one a day allergy pill. Worked a treat.

Of course, your issues may be down to something else entirely but I hope this helps.
 

me/cfs 27931

Guest
Messages
1,294
Two things cleared up my sinuses roughly 70%, enough for me to be able to sleep without being wakened by drainage. For the first time in 15 years, I can now breathe through both nostrils, and can breathe while sleeping on either side.

1. Valtrex (currently 3g/day).
2. Nasal wash within 1 hour of bedtime (I use NeilMed). Timing is important.

My drip is/was either clear, white, or yellow (in increasing severity). The color hasn't changed, just the quantity.

It's possible low-dose Naltrexone 9mg may have contributed, as I started it roughly the same time as Valtrex.

I do hope you find something that works for you. Being able to sleep without sinus interruption was a dramatic improvement in quality of life for me.
 
Messages
3
I've had post-nasal drip on and off for a number of years, though it's never really been a serious problem for me - more of an irritation, though first thing in a morning when I first get up it does cause me to cough for a short time.

In my late teens I had allergy tests done, as I had mild asthma and allergic perennial rhinitis (i.e. year-round hay-fever symptoms). The tests showed that as well as being allergic to grass pollen, I'm also allergic to various tree pollens, animal dander and fur, house dust, and house dust mites. Over the years I've 'grown out of' the asthma and I'm not so sensitive to the things I'm allergic to.

Over the past year though I've been having a lot of earache in one year, and my hearing's down in that ear (I have some hearing loss in both ears already, but in that ear it's noticeably down). When my GP checked my ears she said she could see there was fluid behind my eardrum in my middle ear. It's because my Eustachian tubes (the narrow passage leading from the middle ear to the back of the throat, permitting equalisation of pressure on each side of the eardrum) are either blocked/narrow, meaning the fluid can't drain away and the pressure on both sides of the eardrum isn't equal, causing the earache.

Along with the earache I've started to suffer from post-nasal drip again. I've tried various devices that are supposed to help open the Eustachian tubes, allowing the fluid to drain away and equalising the pressure (not that they're particularly effective, giving only very short-term relief from the earache), and they're no more effective than the Valsalva manoeuvre. My GP has though prescribed me a low dose of antihistamine tablets and a low dose steroid nasal spray. They seem to have helped a little with the earache, but what they really have helped with is post-nasal drip, which I've developed again.

Over the counter medications for coughs and colds can help with post-nasal drip in the short-term as the epinephrine and pseudo-epinephrine will help to 'dry up' post-nasal drip, but as @Invisible Woman said, they can cause problems as they act like adrenaline, which can cause problems particularly if you also suffer from POTS. @Fuzzyhead - The combination of antihistamine and steroid has really helped me with the post-nasal drip. It might be worth investigating getting allergy tested. Your GP should be able to refer you to an allergy testing clinic. The actual test is fairly simple. It can be a bit uncomfortable if you react to any of the allergens, but it's otherwise fairly painless.
 

taniaaust1

Senior Member
Messages
13,054
Location
Sth Australia
I am in uk so how do i test for staph?

A trip to the dr. They use like a long cottonbud thing on a stick and its used to swap inside of nose and then sent to a lab. Unfortunately though all the labs can deal with testing nasal swab, they cant tell you though if the staph if found is a toxin producing one or not (I think that's only really done in research places). but anyway if staph is found you can then get it treated.


The lab at same time seeing it was found, tested my staph against different antibotics so I also knew which ones it was resistant to so we knew what not to use and what to use to treat. It was in my case resistant to about 7 out of the 9 antibotics it got tested against. (I dont know if that is the standard thing for a lab to do or not if staph is found). I managed then to choose to same drug to also treat a strep B infection at same time.
 

Little Bluestem

All Good Things Must Come to an End
Messages
4,930
They use like a long cottonbud thing on a stick and its used to swap inside of nose and then sent to a lab.
If the infection is way up in your sinuses, the swab will not reach it. So if you get a positive result, you have an infection; but if you get a negative result, it is inconclusive.
 

Hipsman

Senior Member
Messages
542
Location
Ukraine
If the infection is way up in your sinuses, the swab will not reach it. So if you get a positive result, you have an infection; but if you get a negative result, it is inconclusive.
You can send mucus for culture test, it's the same thing as doing it with cotton swab, but more accurate since you are testing mucus directly. You will probably need a commercial lab for this, GP's normally do not give prescription for something like this. You can store mucus in Urine Sample Container, best to collect it in the mourning, before washing teeth. All bacteria should survive in a container for at least 24h, so there is no need to try to get the container to the lab as quickly as possible, thou 4h period is preferred.

Brain MRI or CT scan of sinuses will also show if you have fluid build up in sinuses.

There is also "Nasal Cytology" (nasal smear) test - it's a nasal swab with cotton swab witch shows White blood cells, Neutrophils, Lymphocytes, Eosinophils, Macrophages, Red blood cells and other interesting nasal flora. Unfortunately it is mainly used in Russia and Ukraine, it is not available comercially in English speaking countries for some reason:meh:
 

BeADocToGoTo1

Senior Member
Messages
536
One other area to check is acid reflux or silent reflux, which are in turn symptoms of likely dietary and microbiome dysbiosis issues. This was the cause of my long term post nasal drip.

A dairy sensitivity can also cause this, and is easy to test by doing a 100% dairy free elimination diet for 6-8 weeks.
 

starlily88

Senior Member
Messages
497
Location
Baltimore MD
One other area to check is acid reflux or silent reflux, which are in turn symptoms of likely dietary and microbiome dysbiosis issues. This was the cause of my long term post nasal drip.

A dairy sensitivity can also cause this, and is easy to test by doing a 100% dairy free elimination diet for 6-8 weeks.

Thanks for your response. I am lactate intolerant my whole life so don't do dairy but am aware that eating milk products is not good for mucous.

I have never heard of MICROBIOME Dysbiosis issues. Does an ENT do this diagnosis?
And what did you do to resolve this issue? And can you explain what this disease means?
Thanks Starlily88
 

starlily88

Senior Member
Messages
497
Location
Baltimore MD
I've had post-nasal drip on and off for a number of years, though it's never really been a serious problem for me - more of an irritation, though first thing in a morning when I first get up it does cause me to cough for a short time.

In my late teens I had allergy tests done, as I had mild asthma and allergic perennial rhinitis (i.e. year-round hay-fever symptoms). The tests showed that as well as being allergic to grass pollen, I'm also allergic to various tree pollens, animal dander and fur, house dust, and house dust mites. Over the years I've 'grown out of' the asthma and I'm not so sensitive to the things I'm allergic to.

Over the counter medications for coughs and colds can help with post-nasal drip in the short-term as the epinephrine and pseudo-epinephrine will help to 'dry up' post-nasal drip, but as @Invisible Woman said, they can cause problems as they act like adrenaline, which can cause problems particularly if you also suffer from POTS. @Fuzzyhead - The combination of antihistamine and steroid has really helped me with the post-nasal drip. It might be worth investigating getting allergy tested. Your GP should be able to refer you to an allergy testing clinic. The actual test is fairly simple. It can be a bit uncomfortable if you react to any of the allergens, but it's otherwise fairly painless.

Thanks BlissC - I have had extensive allergy tests. I am highly allergic to iodine and shrimp (altho direct testing of shrimp is not possible but was apparent in my case).
I do use an antihistamine - when I get desperate, same with Claritin-D. With High Blood pressure I will only take one 12 hour Claritin D when I become severe, which is happening weekly now when I don't have enough sleep or have to see a Doctor - and use all my energy up.

My Kleenex boxes have been in my home for a very long time - because I have not had to blow my nose.
I had severe allergies for long time in my '20's and '30's - ENT at Hopkins would find polyp on my vocal chords, I would have no voice, and my sinuses had to be drained (awful experience) - they were horrible green.
So I do have long history of sinus infections.

But this seemed to go away in severity for some years - still getting spring/fall allergies.
Now with CFS/ME - I have this sinus, running nose, sore throat, enlarged lymph nodes year round, which I assume is part of our disease.
Thanks Starlily88
 

BeADocToGoTo1

Senior Member
Messages
536
Thanks for your response. I am lactate intolerant my whole life so don't do dairy but am aware that eating milk products is not good for mucous.

I have never heard of MICROBIOME Dysbiosis issues. Does an ENT do this diagnosis?
And what did you do to resolve this issue? And can you explain what this disease means?
Thanks Starlily88

Milk can thicken the mucous so that you notice it more. Being lactose intolerant (I am as well) does not mean you have to cut out this great food group completely though. Things like full fat plain yoghurt, Kefir, buttermilk are all good items to improve beneficial gut bacteria, and provide vitamins and minerals. I just take a lactose pill with it.

Microbiome dysbiosis is just a fancy term for an imbalance in bacteria and fungus in your body; too much of the disrupting ones and too little of the beneficial ones, and perhaps in the wrong places. Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) or Candida (type of yeast) overgrowth are good examples of this. As a simple example, if you have ever seen what sugar does to yeast you can imagine the bubbling and growth happening in your stomach and small intestines. Certain foods also impact the lower esophageal sphincter muscle so that stomach acid can go from the stomach up into the esophagus. Also, when you are lying down during sleep, and there is some leakage it can go up even into the throat. That is a lot of hours of potential constant irritation. The whole esophagus lining does not do well with pepsins (powerful digestion enzymes) coming up from the stomach acid. This causes irritation and subsequenty more mucous and post nasal drip.