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DreamDiver wrote:Not a doctor, but also have had sinus problems.
I've been using a product called Xlear. One of our Atlanta CPAP users group members told me about it.
It's a xylitol nasal spray that does a great job of cleaning out sinuses. They also make a nasal neti wash for getting all the way back into the sinuses.

Great product, I've been using it for a long time for my sinus/allergy issues. One of our old-timers here told me about it.

tuzacat wrote:Thank you, Pugsy! I needed that cyber hug! I was up at 5:30 - my little cat had an asthma attack - so with my issues and my sister who is staying with me at present and who has a horrible choking chronic cough - everyone in this household seems to be having breathing issues right now! Hopefully all will resolve soon!

Thanks for your thoughts, Julie, I have played with the humidity - I don't think it is that, though, because I am pretty stuffy even when I'm up and about right now.

I am so grateful to this community - where else can I talk about this kind of stuff where people REALLY understand? Thanks for "listening"!

Have you checked the house for anything that could be causing an allergic reaction?

Last year in June, I had 3 weeks of a horrible cough. The doctor prescribed some cough medication, but had no idea what was wrong. In July, it started up again. This time for 6 weeks. I was taking cough syrup every 4 hours AND sucking on cough drops nonstop. And still coughing. My doctor changed one of my medications, but still had no clue what was causing it. I had more weeks of coughing in September and again in October. THEN, my dad said the right words. "Every time you go out of town, you come back sick." Well no, not every time, and I listed the trips where I did not get sick. And then I realized that those trips were all in other people's vehicles, and the sick trips were all in the family minivan. Hmm. When did we spill that fertilizer in the minivan? End of May. It stunk for months, and some of it went under the passenger seat where it couldn't be cleaned. That explained the allergies going bonkers every time I took a long trip with the minivan. We deep cleaned it again, and I started taking allergy medicine when going on trips. The next time I got that nasty cough (January), I went to the doctor and explained my theory. She prescribed a new cough medicine (blessed pills instead of the nasty cough syrup). AND she prescribed a new asthma inhaler (different from my rescue inhaler). Talk about relief. I have not had that damned cough since January. I used that inhaler twice a day for a few weeks, and now I only use it when my asthma acts up. I have had two times where I coughed a couple times and used my inhaler. No more cough. I wish she had considered asthma as the problem last June. It would saved a lot of hardship.

Since you have 2 people and a cat having breathing issues, there may be something in the environment that is causing a problem.

Well, I had my first dose of the medicine today. Don't really know what to expect. Just waiting to see if anything strange happens. Fingers crossed.

DreamDiver - I am not using any of those things right now in my neti pot. Have tried them in the past, basically, because folks on EarthClinic have found some relief and success with various additions to their saline solutions. But they didn't work for me and I found them irritating. It's a good point about the sensitivity being equivalent to our eyes. Couldn't tell if Papit was kidding or not especially since I have tried all sorts of weird things myself!

Mystydragonfly - Flonase gave me a full blown sinus infection years ago when I tried it. I really wish it would be that easy for me! I will look into the Ocean Gel and a hand held steamer for sure as well as the xclear. Thanks!

Zoocrewphoto - I have been racking my brains about what the cat could be allergic to - it's been driving me a bit crazy.Changed the filters in the AC, use a hepa filter in the vac, don't use insecticides in the house, etc. Changed the cat food to grain free which did not make my little friend happy! I am allergic to dust and dust mites - had the tests and those are the only things I tested positive to. What's going on with me right now is a bacterial infection on top of the allergies. Had this cultured out as well as a CT scan. I am so glad you were able to figure your situation out - great detective work! My sisters issues are food related and she's had them for some time; she's working on determining and eliminating the causes. she's keeping a food diary; when she starts hacking we know she ate something she's allergic to.

I read this quickly so sorry if I missed this, but have you checked the house for mold?