Sinus Headaches

[CNYDisneyFan]

Hi. I'm very prone to sinus headaches. I live in Syracuse, NY where the temperature tends to see-saw about every 5 minutes. In extreme heat or extreme cold, I get sinus headaches. I do get them at WDW. How can I prevent them when I'm at WDW in May of next year? I know I need to stay properly hydrated. I always have Tylenol and Advil with me just in case. Thanks.

 

[bidnow5]

I had sinus headaches for 30 years till this March I had a deviated septum on the left side and a cyst on the right side. Not only did it stop my headaches completely but my asthma is much better and It helped my sense of smell

 

[JennyDrake]

I take Sudafed (the REAL Sudafed that you now have to ask for and show i.d.) at 2x the label dosage, making it the Rx dosage, with LOTS of water. 8-12 ounces per hour. It will thin the mucous and help the pressure drain, but you must drink the water to keep the fluids flowing.

 

[jmartinez1895]

When my sinuses attack, I get awful headaches. On the recommendation of the ENT I take alieve, sudafed and use a neti pot before bed. If the pain gets ver ybad I will use a cold compress and that seem to help as well.

 

[Schmeck]

Hi. I'm very prone to sinus headaches. I live in Syracuse, NY where the temperature tends to see-saw about every 5 minutes. In extreme heat or extreme cold, I get sinus headaches. I do get them at WDW. How can I prevent them when I'm at WDW in May of next year? I know I need to stay properly hydrated. I always have Tylenol and Advil with me just in case. Thanks.

If you have sinus issues, avoid all the spinning rides! Ugh, teacups and astro orbiter can trigger my sinus-linked migraines in about 2 rotations.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

OP, I understand that weather. I'm from Buffalo!! I get the same issues and it happens in Disney too. My suggestion is to start taking over the counter Claratin. You said you're in Syracuse so I think you have a Wegmans there, just get the Topcare brand, its a much better price and works just as well as I've tried both. Take one everyday for at least a week leading up to your trip and every day of your trip. I think you'll notice a big difference.

 

[bedogged]

I take Sudafed (the REAL Sudafed that you now have to ask for and show i.d.) at 2x the label dosage, making it the Rx dosage, with LOTS of water. 8-12 ounces per hour. It will thin the mucous and help the pressure drain, but you must drink the water to keep the fluids flowing.

I agree with the REAL Sudafed sold behind the counter although I have never tried it at that dose. Also, use the Neilmed sinus rinse packets every day as a preventative. I also have to use a steroid nose spray daily prescribed by my doctor.

 

[elphaba91]

What about carrying around something to make sure you keep cool? There are cooling gel pad things that you stick on your forehead (but they would also work on the back of your neck if you prefer) that are used for headaches or lowering fever. You could also put a wet face washer (wash cloth? flannel?) in a ziplock bag and take it with you for a cool compress - you could even freeze it beforehand so it'll stay really cool.

I take Sudafed (the REAL Sudafed that you now have to ask for and show i.d.) at 2x the label dosage, making it the Rx dosage, with LOTS of water. 8-12 ounces per hour. It will thin the mucous and help the pressure drain, but you must drink the water to keep the fluids flowing.

I certainly hope that you're getting one with ONLY pseudoephedrine in it...overdoing it on the paracetamol can kill you! Also, I'm not sure what the process is in the US for buying pseudoephedrine, but in Australia sales are entered into an online database (using your driver's license) so the pharmacist can see exactly when you last bought it. Just warning you that you might want to make sure that you're doctor knows that you're doing this so you don't look dodgy if you want a script later on if the US adopts this system.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

I certainly hope that you're getting one with ONLY pseudoephedrine in it...overdoing it on the paracetamol can kill you! Also, I'm not sure what the process is in the US for buying pseudoephedrine, but in Australia sales are entered into an online database (using your driver's license) so the pharmacist can see exactly when you last bought it. Just warning you that you might want to make sure that you're doctor knows that you're doing this so you don't look dodgy if you want a script later on if the US adopts this system.

Definitely be careful with tylenol/acetaminophen/paracetamol (same thing), but I'm not sure that the Sudafed with pseudephedrine is made with acetaminophen in the US (not all of it is, at least). It is very highly regulated, though. You can only buy it from behind the pharmacy counter with ID and the amount you can buy at once is regulated. Pharmacies must also keep at minimum 2 years of records of who has bought it. Many states have more restrictions on top of that. You can theoretically get more than the number allowed without a prescription if your doctor writes a prescription, but some pharmacies still won't fill them. (I have family who have had problems with this when trying to get enough before traveling for a month or two.) Obviously you have to go through the whole mess with any pseudoephedrine based medication, but I've found most of the ones that are pseudoephedrine based are actually fairly equivalent. My mother happens to prefer AllegraD to Sudafed, though, so you may want to try more than one if the first brand you try doesn't help.

The only non-pseudoephendrine based med I've had luck with for sinus problems is Zyrtec. It may be worth trying if you're wary of dealing with the pseudoephedrine restrictions or can't take it for other reasons.

 

[JennyDrake]

I certainly hope that you're getting one with ONLY pseudoephedrine in it...overdoing it on the paracetamol can kill you! Also, I'm not sure what the process is in the US for buying pseudoephedrine, but in Australia sales are entered into an online database (using your driver's license) so the pharmacist can see exactly when you last bought it. Just warning you that you might want to make sure that you're doctor knows that you're doing this so you don't look dodgy if you want a script later on if the US adopts this system.

Thanks for the insight. I do know what I am doing. My doctor recommended this dosage and buying OTC costs less than Rx of the same.

I am fortunate to not have sinus headaches very often anymore. They were h-ll in my late teens and early 20's. Not only was the sinus part bad, but often the pressure would trigger a migraine. But now as soon as I feel that pressure building, I get the Sudafed and guzzle water.

Most probably know this, but an antihistamine (Zyrtec, Allegra) is not the same thing as a decongestant. An antihistamine dries up the mucous and blocks the allergic (histamine) response. A decongestant makes everything drain. Allegra-D is a combination of the two and there are certainly others as well.

If you have a great deal of pressure--using just an antihistamine could make things worse by thickening the mucous so that it doesn't drain., effectively concentrating any infection.

My allergist noted that every person is different, so experiment w/OTC options and see which provides the best response for you.