So I’ve finally had enough. Time to admit defeat & get the recommended sinus surgery.
I’ve tried all the treatments. Allergy shots, steroid sprays, sinus rinses, antihistamines.
Beyond that, the troubles are physical, and only corrective surgery will alleviate.
So as annoying as it’ll be to take two weeks off at this point in the season, I’ve had enough of the recurring sinus infections that get worse & worse every time, not being able to breathe or sleep, etc. Imagine swimming, biking, & running and only being able to breathe through your mouth. Not fun.
Anyhow, I’m wondering if anybody else has gone through this, and what their experiences have been.
I need septum alignment (don’t think they’ll have to go so far as breaking the nose), turbinate reduction or removal, & balloon sinuplasty.
I haven’t. But, I’m in the same situation as you. I can’t wait to get it looked at. I have a severely deviated septum, and it’s annoying as all hell. Maybe it’s just in my head, but it seems like it’s gotten worse recently, and it’s driving me crazy not being able to breathe through my nose!
Right there with you. I’ve been putting it off for two years, however 2 sinus infections in the last 3 months has me on the edge. All I need to do is just suck it up and find the time. Believe I know all too well about mouth breathing, in fact my sinuses even when not sick are so bad I’ve always said that if I was ever the victim of a robbery and the robber duct tapped my mouth shut I’d probably pass out from lack of oxygen in about 5 minutes.
I had sinus surgery, but not for a deviated septum. When I was 36, I had surgery to remove growth that had completely engulfed my left sinus – the the point where it was visible in my nostril. I’d been unable to breathe out of that side of my nose since I was a kid.
My experience was that I was able to run again in a week. The toughest thing was the moment they removed the bandage from my nose, a few days after the surgery. Ever seen that Arnold Schwarzenegger movie where they take the probe out through his nose (I think it was “Total Recall”)? It was like that. Only worse.
In the years since I have been very, very happy to be able to breathe out of both sides of my nose. It doesn’t affect my running that I can tell as I only breathe through my mouth when I run anyway. But it’s still great. And I don’t get a sinus headache with every cold I have.
I personally did not have it done, but my wife did a few years ago–she had a deviated septum which had to be corrected and they also had to drill through part of her skull to open up the sinus passages (the holes were either too small or non-existent). She’d had the same experience as you it sounds like–could only breathe through her mouth since she was a kid…always sniffing…snoring like crazy, constant sinus infections, horrible stuff to deal with.
And it has been a night and day difference. Night. And. Day. Her cardio ability shot up afterwards, especially training in the cold as she could breathe through her nose. There was a couple of weeks of downtime, and when they remove the packs in your nose after the surgery…it’s like a demented circus act: an endless blood-soaked rag being yanked out of your skull like a trick handkerchief. Who knew you had so much room inside there? Brrrrrr…
So I think it’s a good move. You’ll forget about suffering the downtime the first deep breath you take through your nose.
I had surgery after a wreak. They had to re-break my nose. That being said, it was the most painful thing I have ever had done. I could not take enough drugs to dull the pain for a solid week afterwards. Felt like someone stuck a blow torch up my nose. Because of the swelling, they could only do part of the procedure, they were going to complete the surgery at a later date. 15 years later I still have not had the rest of the surgery. Unless I am completely unable to breath I will never have it completed. Good Luck!
man you’re talkin my language.
i know what she went through. can’t breathe in cold. always feel more tired cuz can’t breathe plus the mouth is so dry.
glad it went well for her, i’ll hope the same for me.
I had it last November, needed it for a long time & kept putting it off, 2-3 sinus infections a season. Down time was about a weekend back to training w/in a month. Yes it was worth it, I can breathe a hell of a lot better!
Hey, I am 8 days post op after having a septoplasty procedure completed. I had almost a 100% blockage on the right side of my nose and close to 70% on the left. For what it is worth, the ability to feel air coming through both sides of my nose FAR outweighs any discomfort from the surgery. The first 2 day post op were not that pleasant, but I was not in any severe pain. The biggest pain was having to sit on my ass this past week!! I am clear to resume my normal training this weekend and I cannot wait!!
I had planned to have the surgery following IMLOU last year but chickend out… I had heard all these horrific stories from friends and decided that was NOT for me. Well after enduring another tri season without the ability to breath, I said screw it and set up the appointment. After meeting with my doc I realized it was not this violent procedure I had envisioned. I was out for about 1hr 30min and in recovery for maybe an hour.
I would say go for it!! 10 days of down time will go by pretty fast… another season not being able to breath will suck!
yep…twice…once for the left Maxillary and once for the left Frontal (I think they went in through my eye!)
I did everything wrong…got hooked on Afrin for a year before getting it done…it sucked so bad, I had to take a blast right before a 2 hour race to make it through before it rebounded…probably prematurely ended my pro career (maybe getting my ass kicked once too often had something to do with that too…I don’t know.)
Get it done…You won’t feel completely cured…but you won’t get sick as much and you will sleep somewhat better…
Hi, I had sinus surgery about 15 years ago here in California by Dr Marios Yco as all my young days I was fighting allergies, sinus infections and was on antibiotics and allergy meds it seems all the time. It was the best thing I ever did, but you need some major time off after the surgery. The most important info I learnt from the doctor was to not take meds like allergy meds like Antihistamines to dry up the sinuses and to just allow the nose to run naturally. To not blow the nose hard or sniff back/suck back hard. During allergy or cold seasons, a little neosporin just inside the nasal cavity helps keep sinus infections and viruses away. Anyway, a good ENT, and those little tricks have done wonders.
Good luck
Yes, three separate times over the course of three or four years.
I began experiencing constant sinus infections soon after the birth of our first child. Oral antibiotics would push them back but not eliminate them. I was treating with my family doctor and in hindsight we were not fighting the infection(s) with nearly enough vigor to truly knock it out for good - instead it became more and more entrenched.
First surgeon was old school. He did not numb me when he removed scab/clot following surgery and I had a flash of the worst pain I have ever experienced. He also did not give me contraceptive antibiotics following surgery so I was back to fighting an infection within a week or so.
Second and then a third surgery with a better surgeon along with treatment with an infectious disease doctor did the trick.
The infectious disease doctor told me that GPs and even surgeon did not use enough antibiotics for a long enough time to really get at the problem. I ultimately underwent weeks and weeks of beyond maximum recommended doses of Cleocin along with Levequin before it got better.
So, yes, it was worth it. I strongly suggest you ask to take antibiotics after surgery. Also, do not hesitate to see an infectious disease specialist.
Wow what a great influence you guys are on me, I just scheduled my appointment for allergy testing, which my dr. wanted me to do prior to the surgury. So almost 2 years later, taking the next step. After that all I will have to do is schedule the surgury, unfortunately it will probably not happen until March due to the doctors limited availability (supposedly he is very good).
Same deal here. Started out with awful chronic sinus infections.
Went the acute treatment route, regular saline rinsing, also began an allergy shot regimen.
Didn’t feel like doing the surgery because this was during last training season.
Felt better, eventually laid off the allergy shots, a mistake I know, b/c now I have to start from scratch.
Anyhow, now that back into training, I’m just tired of not being able to breathe. Now I can’t sleep, & currently have one hell of a sinus infection.
Taking a trip to the doc this afternoon to treat the current infection & schedule surgery. Hope he can get me in soon.
So I’ve finally had enough. Time to admit defeat & get the recommended sinus surgery.
I’ve tried all the treatments. Allergy shots, steroid sprays, sinus rinses, antihistamines.
Beyond that, the troubles are physical, and only corrective surgery will alleviate.
So as annoying as it’ll be to take two weeks off at this point in the season, I’ve had enough of the recurring sinus infections that get worse & worse every time, not being able to breathe or sleep, etc. Imagine swimming, biking, & running and only being able to breathe through your mouth. Not fun.
Anyhow, I’m wondering if anybody else has gone through this, and what their experiences have been.
I need septum alignment (don’t think they’ll have to go so far as breaking the nose), turbinate reduction or removal, & balloon sinuplasty.
Thanks.
Ed
My wife did and while I know she does feel better it took 2x as long to heal as was expected. Might have been an anomaly, but at 8 weeks she finally felt better. Her septum was a mess, but by and large she is happy with the results. Just be ready for some pain b/c my girl is TOUGH as nails and she was reduced to a puddle of jello the first 5 days.