Sinus Hell - What is the best over-the-counter med?

day quill

 

I LOVE Afrin

 

Claritin! there really isn't anything better. Within 15 minutes you feel the difference.

 

I've mostly got sinus drainage these days, so I take Sudafed Pe for that. It works most of the time.

 

Combine Claratin and Sutafed. Get the real sutafed behind the counter. You also might want to look into nasal irrigation.

Whatever you do, don't get hooked on nose spray (like Afrin). You cannot use that stuff more than a couple days in a row or you will get addicted. It's just not worth it.

 

Allergies can cause sinus problems. It does for my wife, big time.

Zyrtec is over the counter now. Used to be prescription only til about 4 months ago. I'd go with that. They even have generic knock-offs to make it even cheaper.

 

I like Motrin.

 

Claritin and buy this nasal wash system (neti pot).

 

this helps me more than anything

 

Zyrtec every night. 45 pills for $17 at walmart.

 

If your sinus problems are caused by allergies then zyrtec is great. I liked it a lot better than claritin.

 

try Vicks' Sinex nasal spray. works like a champ for short term.
then use a neti pot to clear out the gunk...
and then any of the claritin/sudafed (phenylepherine sub)/allegra

 

my sinus problems are caused by allergies and I feel your hell. Nothing works for me other than nasonex or it's generic and prescription equivalents. If getting to a doctor is too time demanding given a work schedule, stop into an HEB rediclinic. They are cheap quick and can write prescriptions which you can fill at the inhouse pharmacy.

My allergies were ridiculous this year and zyrtec or claritin d weren't helping in the least. Picked up a new nasonex and within an hour I was noticeably better. Two days later and I'm as close to 100% as I get in allergy season.

 

I'm not sure if they sell it over the counter yet but I use flo-nase, it works great for me.

 

im in pharmacy school and based on those symptoms i would recommend drixoral. it has an anithistamine and decongestant, then take ibuprofen for the headache if you need to.

claritin-d is another option if you want non-drowsy.

you'll need to get both of them behind-the-counter.

 

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and I can tell you that this really is one of the best things to keep Sinus problems from occuring. My ENT swears by it and told me to do it 4x a day which is crazy IMO. Once or twice a day does pretty good.

 

Which pharmacy school do you go to? I'm a P4 at Tech.

Drewdog, I would get something that's behind the pharmacy counter with pseudoephedrine. The OTC products you buy outside of the counter has "phenylephrine", which is not as effective as the pseudoephedrine. Claritin is a really WEAK antihistamine, so I don't think it would help you that much. From your symptoms, I would go with something that contains diphenhydramine or chlorphenramine, AND pseudoephedrine. Make sure you have your ID when you buy it.

 

Also, take some tylenol/aspirin/ibuprofen for headaches.