Best decongestant?

[LisaR]

I've been taking an antihistamine for some serious sinus drainage and it hasn't gotten any better. After doing a little reading, it seems like a decongestant is a better option. It looks like there are multiple ones on the market including the coveted ones behind the counter. Anyone have one they feel works best? If I send my husband to the store without a name brand, he'll buy six different boxes of stuff because he just wasn't sure!

 

[luvmy3]

I've been taking an antihistamine for some serious sinus drainage and it hasn't gotten any better. After doing a little reading, it seems like a decongestant is a better option. It looks like there are multiple ones on the market including the coveted ones behind the counter. Anyone have one they feel works best? If I send my husband to the store without a name brand, he'll buy six different boxes of stuff because he just wasn't sure!

The only thing that works for me is Advil Cold & Sinus (behind the counter), and I don't play around by taking one, I always take 2.
It doesn't help the drainage, if I have it, but it works on the stuffiness, pressure and pain.

 

[shortbun]

Have you tried lots of water and Mucinex? A neti pot would be another good thing to try as it rinses the nasal cavity and you can use it twice a day.

 

[stargazer2892]

I like plain ol Sudafed. The stuff you have to buy behind the counter. Works like a charm for me, but only during the day it's one of the few decongestants that do not put me to sleep. Hope you feel better

 

[LisaR]

I have Mucinex for a cough in the cupboard but I haven't taken it. I am coughing but it is just the crap draining in my throat that is making me cough.

I've done the neti pot a bunch of times. I don't feel sick at all and I am not the slightest bit stuffy. I just have non-stop crud in my throat that is driving me crazy. I'm tired and dragging but that is because it is so much worse at night that I am not sleeping well.

 

[Mermaid02]

Sudafed- behind the counter- store brand is fine.

 

[HelenePA]

Advil Cold and Sinus behind the counter at rite aid 7.99$ awesome stuff!

 

[LisaR]

It looks like the main ingredients in the Advil Cold & Sinus and the Sudafed is pseudophedrine 30mg. So I sent DH up to CVS with that ingredient in mind. He asked the pharmacist and she gave him the CVS version with the pseudophedrine plus two things for a cough plus acetaminophen (I can't take Advil). I just took two. Hope it works!

 

[mrodgers]

Psuedophederine works the best for me for a decongestant. I use to buy the Walmart generic, but found the name brand Sudafed does work better. I take the 12 hour and take it religiously twice a day from March through about October.

Pseudophederine doesn't do a thing for my sneezing though. I had a rough day on Thursday, basically couldn't do a lick of work from sneezing continuously. I stopped to get Claritin, it's the last one I haven't tried for a non-drowsey antihistamine. Problem is, you can't tell if it's working or if the next days just aren't too bad. I bought the regular Claritin, not Claritin-D. Claritin-D was the same price for half the tablets and the only difference is, it has psuedophederine in it. Figured I could take regular Sudafed if I needed to instead of paying twice the price.

Psuedophederine will work in short time for a decongestant, unlike the antihistomines which have to build up over days.

 

[Micca]

Sushi with a healthy dollop of wasabi. It'll clear you up in no time, and it tastes good

 

[low-key]

A neti pot would be another good thing to try as it rinses the nasal cavity and you can use it twice a day.

I just watched a House episode (so it must be true) where using a neti pot almost killed someone

 

[Coconut36]

I think there are at most 2 types of decongestants. True pseudoephedrine (what you have to present ID for and get behind the counter) and phenylephrine (usually know as PE in a brand name..Sudafed PE is phenylephrine) and available on the shelves.

I find that true pseudoephedrine works best when my congestion is at it's worst. If I am just battling some minor allergy related runny nose the PE works fine.

Now if you are talking about a certain brand of "cold remedy" like Advil Cold and Sinus or Tylenol Cold or something I couldn't say. I do NOT like to take those types of products and prefer to treat my issues independently. Advil or Tylenol for aches or pressure. Pseudoephedrine (whatever name it is under..store brand or name brand all work the same) for congestion. If I need an expectorant or allergy med I take that on it's own as well. I find it works better if I treat what is bothering me that way. (just a word of caution..be sure to read all your medications carefully so you don't run the risk of double dosing yourself by taking Claritin D with Sudafed (the D = decongestant) for example.

 

[JessicaR]

I like plain ol Sudafed. The stuff you have to buy behind the counter. Works like a charm for me, but only during the day it's one of the few decongestants that do not put me to sleep. Hope you feel better

This is what I was going to say. However, this is absolutely not a medication to take at bedtime, its a stimulant. Sure does work wonders though! Unlike antihistamines that do make me sleepy.

 

[Grimley]

Psuedoephedrine is the only thing that works for me.

 

[deegack]

Musinex D - the behind the counter stuff.

 

[Pixiedust34]

Sudafed is good, but it can raise your blood pressure. If you have blood pressure concerns, ask your doctor before using it.

 

[AlwaysMoving]

Sudafed is good, but it can raise your blood pressure. If you have blood pressure concerns, ask your doctor before using it.

I can't stress this enough. I took it for years with no problems, then one day it hit me like a ton of bricks and caused my heart to race dangerously fast. That is how I found out Sudafed and anything with a "D" is a no no for high bloodpressure, even if it is under control with medication. There is not a lot of over the counter allergy stuff that helps me, since it is the decongestant that gives relief.

 

[LisaR]

Thanks everyone! The CVS stuff with the psuedoephedrine worked great! I would say the drainage is at least 75% better this morning and I slept great for the first time in a week. Unfortunately, I feel like a drug head. I don't know why something that clearly states "Non Drowsy" on the front makes me feel stoned? The antihistamine I was taking last week didn't bother me at all. Too bad it didn't work. Hopefully today will be the last day I'll need to take these so I can function during the week.