Stuffy nose is causing me to have panic attacks
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Anonymous
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Help me please!
I'm 26 weeks pregnant and I'm so miserable with a stuffy nose I can hardly stand it. When I lay down to sleep it gets worse and I end up having a panic attack because I can't breathe well. Right now it's 12:20am and I'm sitting upright on the couch after waking up because I can't breathe and having a massive panic attack. Having the heat on in the house makes it 100,000,000 times worse, so I have mandated that we are a no-heat home. I've tried saline rinses, neti pot, Zyrtec, Vaseline and I don't know what else I can do. I'm going to call my OB first thing in the morning because I cannot live or function another 13 weeks like this. But any advice in the meantime? |
Anonymous
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Just to get through the night...if you have thyme, rosemary, and/or oregano, boil them in a pot of water and then breathe in the steam (like, with a towel over your head and the pot.) Add peppermint to it, too, if you have some. This might help.
Congestion at night really sucks, I know. Hang in there. |
Anonymous
| Ask your doctor if Afrin is OK to use sparingly for a day or two (as in maybe at bedtime only so you don't feel like you're suffocating when you breathe). Different doctors have different opinions on it. It's the only thing that works. I know exactly what you mean, OP - I'm claustrophobic and a blocked nose stresses me out too! |
Anonymous
| I'm up tonight with a stuffed nose too and I know exactly what you mean. You're not alone! |
Anonymous
| OP here: thank you guys - all really helpful suggestions that I haven't heard. It was such a horrible night & then my 4 yr old decides to wake up at 5am. |
Anonymous
| My OB said it was ok to take psuedoephedrine, just make sure us the real stuff (behind the counter) and doesn't have other active ingredients in it. |
Anonymous
| It's normal. Get a humidifier and keep it going in your bedroom. Stay hydrated (yes, then you wake up all the time to pee, but it is what it is). |
Anonymous
| Try breathe right strips, too. I had never tried them until pregnancy but I was amazed at how much they help. |
Anonymous
| Mucinex - regular, not the DM. And lots of water/steam, vicks under the nose. Best of luck OP - it is awful being sick - hard to avoid it at this time of year. It will pass! |
Anonymous
| Ugh, so sorry. I hope you feel better. Something similar happened to me, later in pregnancy, and I literally couldn't breathe at times which was scary. If i had had panic attacks on top of it all I really would have freaked out. are you sure it's "just" a stuffed nose- could it be a sinus infection or something? |
Anonymous
+1 There are limits to what they can do on their own, but in combination with other efforts to relieve congestion, I found them a real difference maker in opening things up. |
Anonymous
| I swear by breathing tea tree oil steam: just boil water, put a few drops of tea tree oil in, and stick your head over the pot with a towel covering your head and try to inhale through your nose (even if you can't really). I once had hoooooorrible congestion - couldn't breathe at all, awful headache and sinus pain, the works - and this completely cleared it up within a day. I've seen mixed advice on whether tea tree oil is safe for pregnancy though, so might want to look into that first. |
Anonymous
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Ask OB (or an allergist) to prescribe you Rhinocort Aqua. It's a class A drug so absolutely safe for pregnancy. It has helped me so much with allergies this fall!
And good call on the no heat. Cool air will help keep mucous down. |
Anonymous
| I've been dousing my bed sheets and pillow with eucalyptus. Helps a lot. I'm 36 weeks. Having the same issue. |
Anonymous
BREATHE RIGHT STRIPS x 1,000,000!!!!!! I have panic disorder even when not pregnant and those things are a lifesaver. When I was pregnant, I had them on subscribe and save. HUGE, HUGE difference! |