Day 37: Live Experiment With A Neti Pot

Ok, so I am going to try something new today. I have been suffering from sinus and allergy symptoms since my early teens, and heard about a remedy that could possibly help me…and it does not involve taking medication. Yay for me!

Now, I had heard about this technique years ago from my mother, who is also a natural healer, however we all know just how much kids like to listen to their parents, right? I was no exception to that rule either. Actually, I didn’t want to be anything like my mom (who is super wonderful and wise by the way)…and well, now I am almost exactly like her. HA! She too is a massage therapist. How ironic eh?

Anyway, I digress. In my earlier years, my mom told me about this technique of snorting water up your nose to clear your sinuses. At the time I thought she went off the deep end and looked at her with furrowed brow, but I tried it anyway out of curiosity. It didn’t go very well. The experience reminded me of my swimming lesson days as a kid where I was always choking on the water that seemed to rush up my nose and down my throat while I try to keep myself from drowning. I am still not keen on swimming.

The real problem though, was that I didn’t do it right. Just like swimming there is good form and bad form, and apparently inhaling and snorting water out of your hand was bad form. So when I heard about this thing called a “Neti Pot” which is specifically designed to irrigate your nose and wash out the sinus passages I was thinking “why hadn’t someone told me about this sooner?”

So I bought one today. I wasn’t even looking for one actually. I was perusing the aisles of Banyen Books looking for items for my office when I just happened to stumble upon it. Here is a picture of what it looks like:

It kinda reminds me of a genie lamp, so I rubbed it. No luck there. Darn it!

And just in case you are wondering what a Neti Pot is and does, here is what the box says:

“Nasal Irrigation, one of the principal purification practices of Aryuvedic medicine has been practiced in eastern cultures for 100’s of years. By simply washing out the sinus passages with a warm saline solution, you can reduce the symptoms of sinusitis, allergies, bacterial infections or clogged nasal passages. Use on a daily basis to ensure sinus health and improved yogic breathing. Reduce tension and anxiety.”

So apparently I am supposed to mix some salt in warm water and basically shove the long white part up one nostril while my head is upside down then pour in the water and have it drain out the other nostril. Sounds pleasant eh? Not exactly a trip to Paris (which is my “happy place” by the way). It is time to suck it up and stop being a wuss about it though. Bare with me now while I go step away from blogging for a few minutes and go test it out. This is a LIVE experiment. Let’s hope I do not drown this time.

*cue Jeopardy music*

Ok, am back. My nose feels a little weird, but totally harmless. Waaaaay better than my first experience. I read on one of the other Neti Pot boxes in the store that it may take up to one month for my symptoms to clear up though, so I will keep you posted.

In the meantime I will have to watch and make sure that I don’t leave it around my roommates. They told me it looks like a Chinese cup to drink alcohol with. Now I don’t know about you, but that is one cup I wouldn’t want to be clinking glasses with.

Ewwww.

HAHAHA!! I am such a cartoon sometimes.  :o)