This May Be The Answer To My Sinus Problems

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about my terrible sinus problems and how Down Dog and other inverted poses just makes them worse. I received a comment from a reader suggesting the use of a neti pot. I read about nasal irrigation in my yoga textbooks and have been intrigued by the idea. I've been meaning to buy one and that comment was just the kick in the pants I needed to actually get one. I jumped online and bought one. I was a little disappointed that it took nearly 2 weeks to arrive, but then again the shipping was free so I really shouldn't complain. And the timing of its arrival was perfect.

Today was another dreary, rainy, stormy low pressure day here in CT. It's getting to be the norm around here and I'm getting so used to feeling terrible that I almost forget what it feels like to not have a headache and an all over 'icky' feeling. I start off feeling pretty good in the morning, but as the day goes on I feel worse and worse. The 30 minute commute home from work always makes me feel even worse. By the time I get home all I want to do is sleep and today was one of those days. What a great time to test out this new neti pot.

I have to admit the thought of sticking this thing up my nose was a bit scary. I had no idea what to expect and I knew the first time was going to be the hardest. I survived it OK. During my first go of it I did have that moment of wanting to gag when the salty water touched my throat. But I quickly realized that I was holding my breath; exactly what the directions said not to do. So for the next side of my nose I made a better effort to breathe. Actually exhaling seem to do the trick.

The whole process only took about a minute and I have to say . . . I felt so . . . different. I am having a hard time trying to describe the experience. I really and truly felt 'cleaned out' and lighter. It was amazing and I can't wait to do it again tomorrow. What have I been waiting for all this time without one?

Yoga and Allergies - Not a Good Mix

Why does yoga make my allergies worse? Living in New England during this time of year is a big challenge. The pollen is out in full force and the rainy, low pressure days do very bad things to my sinuses. I started off this dreary day thankful that my usual sinus headache wasn't rearing its ugly head yet. But, just like I suspected, my afternoon yoga caused my sinus headache to appear. I think it has something to do with bending over. My head doesn't seem to like being upside down as that seems to make the pressure in my sinuses build. This really stinks. I find myself avoiding yoga for fear of either getting a headache or making the headache that I already have even worse. I wish I knew how to combat this issue. And on that note, I'm going to find some Sudafed . . .

Week 12 Completed

What a wonderful feeling to be done with the last real week of P90X. And it couldn’t have come soon enough. This afternoon, out of nowhere, my seasonal allergies hit me over the head like a ton of bricks. Almost instantly, I went from feeling perfectly fine to feeling like I was going to pass out. The sinus pressure in my head was causing my entire face to hurt, my teeth and jaw to ache, and gave me an all-over nauseous feeling. Yucko

Coming home and changing into my workout attire was the last thing I wanted to do. The couch was looking so very alluring. But it was my LAST day of week 12 and to date, I haven’t missed one single day. There was no way I was wimping out. So I fired up that Kenpo X video and off I went. I got through it better than I imagined I would. The worst, or funniest, part was during cool down. I stood with my legs far apart, reached my arms up high and proceeded to completely lose my balance, in one of the more ungraceful episodes of my life, and nearly ended up on my behind (with an embarrassing little yelp to boot). Thank God it’s over

I will reflect more on the ending of Phase 3 later. Right now I can’t resist that couch any longer.