I have a question about using a Neti Pot?

Question

I tried using my Neti Pot for the 1st time yesterday & here is what happened...Is this normal?

I felt fine yesterday morning but I wanted to try the Neti Pot for a good nasal wash...it emptied out thru my lower nostril as its supposed to & it didnt sting or anything...I felt great for about an hour or so & then all of a sudden my ears felt clogged up & I felt congested. So I decided later that afternoon to run the course again using my Neti Pot but this time the solution stung so freakin bad & it wouldnt flow thru my other nostril...it wouldnt come out!! Blockage? About 10pm...I got miserably SICK! Sore throat, watery eyes, headache, nasal congestion and flourescent yellow snot...I actually feel worse today...My head fills like its fills gonna POP! I tried running the neti Pot thru again just now and same thing...BLOCKAGE and a horrible stinging sensation...Is this NORMAL to get sick after your 1st time using the Neti Pot? Is it normal to have blockage...why wont the solution empty?

Answer 1

A yoga teacher showed us a breathing exercise to perform after performing neti cleansing. I don't always do it after each neti session, because I haven't had any problems, but here is what she recommended.

After nasal cleansing, you stand in mountain pose (tadasana). Then raise your arms slowly so they are by your ears. Bend your knees and gently swing your arms down, bringing your head to about chest level, simultaneously giving a very strong exhalation, like you're trying to clear your nose. Do this about 5 times. Then lie down on your yoga mat (or bed, I guess) in corpse pose (savasana) for 10 minutes.

She said the reason we need to do this is that neti cleansing sometimes causes disequilibrium in our ear passages. The salt water has cleaned out our nose and our body is adjusting to this new state. Also, be careful not to get the saline water into your ear passages. Try tilting your head at a different, less extreme angle.

My thought is that the connection between your nasal cavity and ear canal is larger or at an unusual angle and water is getting into your ears--that's why some water is getting trapped. Also, your saline solution sounds too strong, too much salt. As a previous responder suggested, use natural untreated sea salt and make sure it is well dissolved in body temperature water (not too hot) before performing neti.

Yes, you were already carrying an infection and that's why you got sick so quickly after doing the neti.

I hope you will continue finding a way to use neti as it is a wonderful and natural way to clean out the start of your respiratory system. I use it when I feel my allergies starting to act up, to prevent irritants from making my nasal membranes swell. It has helped me avoid infections many times.

Answer 2

There are 2 methods to irrigate your sinuses.

1. Nasal irrigation with a plastic syringe. Learn the steps at:

http://www.sinusinfectionhelp.com/nasal_...

2. Nasal irrigation with a neti pot.

http://www.sinusinfectionhelp.com/neti_p...

After nasal irrigation, you must bend your body forward so that the solution trapped in the nasal passages or sinuses can drain out. It is clearly described in the articles above.

The burning feeling you feel is caused by putting too much salt in the solution. Put less and it would not sting as much.

Answer 3

umm i dont like them because they make me throw up.

i dont know why but every time i use it i throw up nasty green stuff.

Answer 4

that has never happened to me or anyone i know.  perhaps your just coming down with something.

Answer 5

my guess would also be that you were already going to get sick and it was a bad coincidence. i am not sure how a small amount of saline water would cause that to happen on it's own (especially that fast). it sounds like you have a flu bug, i would wait and few days and see what happens. if it lasts longer than a week or your snot turns green, then those are both signs that you might need an antibiotic to cure a sinus infection.

the first time i used a neti pot i also got nauseous, this is because i let the saline solution drip down my throat and i swallowed it instead of spitting it out. salt water in your stomach will definitely give you a stomach ache! ;)

the angle that you have to hold your head at to get the water to flow through is tricky to find consistently at first, which might be another reason that you couldn't get it to flow through the second time. (and until you get it to flow through, it does cause a little burning sensation) you just have to move your head around and make sure that you are still breathing through your mouth slow and steady (and being calm also helps), and then it will work. and if you are experiencing it flowing down into your throat, tip your head forward a little to prevent that.

i hope you feel better. i would say maybe try it again when you are not so sick and stuffed up, it might be easier to learn then. for me it has been a godsend- i was getting 3 sinus infections a year but i have not had one since using a neti pot 3-4 times a week this winter. the salt is a natural antibiotic and causes my sinuses to not try out and get irritated anymore.

here is some more info on using a neti pot that helped me:

http://www.jalanetipot.com/common.html

Answer 6

something is wrong, that is NOT normally how it goes.

Maybe you are just getting sick with something and this is not related to the lavage.

Did you blow too hard?