My Sinus Story

Three years ago life took a marvelous turn when I found permanent relief for my life-long sinus pressure, mucus, phlegm and other related problems. This web site is dedicated to helping you have the same experience. There are 3 steps. They are on one page. This plus other valuable information are found in: Three Steps to Sinus & Mucus Relief. click here

Sinus Pressure Points (Acupressure)

Would you like to have your sinus cavities cleared in a few minutes without taking a pill? How about sinus pressure, would you like to relieve it naturally? Acupressure points for the sinuses (sinus pressure points) have been used in the Orient a long time. It is based on the idea that there are places or points on the skin that are especially sensitive to bioelectric impulses. These points can conduct those impulses readily. Stimulating those points with pressure or heat triggers the release of endorphins neurochemicals that relieve pain--and help dissolve tension. This, in turn, promotes healing. Knowing which pressure points can benefit the sinuses is then what you want. Yet sometimes a simple natural remedy can bring enough relief that it's all you need. For some suggestions click here.

Sinus pressure points are intended primarily to relieve sinus pressure and sinus congestion and by removing stress concentrated around those points. If the sinuses are not cleared, mucus will stagnate, pressure will build up and sinus infection and sinus pain will follow. Ideally the best way to treat those two issues--congestion and pressure--is to go to the cause of the sinus problem. Sinus pressure point procedures, while not going to the cause of the problem, can help the cilia--hairlike organelles in the sinus membranes which move mucus--to drain the sinuses and thereby stem a possible sinus infection; provided the sinus pressure points are done properly and as many times as it is necessary to keep the sinuses clear. Fast sinus pressure relief should be one of the goals for sinus health. There are other methods of dealing with pressure and congestion and some of them will also be mentioned.

External causes of sinus irritation and pressure
Often nasal and sinus membrane irritation is associated with congestion and sinus pressure. This is because the irritation produces extra mucus which the nasal and/or sinus cavities cannot handle fast enough; becoming sometimes sinus drainage. Sometimes there is a blockage of the sinus opening into the nasal cavity due to swollen sinus membranes. The point is that the mucus accumulates and creates sinus pressure and pain. If left that way it will stagnate and cause a sinus infection. Some common items that can cause irritation of the nasal and sinus membranes follow:

• Allergies
• Pollens
• Specific foods
• Smog
• Cold air
• Dry air
• Viral infection or "cold"

Internal causes leading to sinus pressure
Sinus pressure points can be used for sinus pressure requiring relief that is caused by subtle, yet very real internal factors. They include things like:

• Strong emotional factors: Stress, worry, grief, guilt. When unresolved these feelings cause muscular tension which also tends to close the sinus passages. As acupressure releases this tension, the sinuses often clear and the problem is solved
• Constipation, poor diet, lack of exercise: Food has to do more with sinus problems than most people realize. Learn which foods are bad for your sinuses and which ones have healing properties
• Structural: Sometimes the structure of the nasal cavity is such that it impedes the right airflow through the nasal or sinus passages. Although these cases are relatively few, nonetheless they should be considered

Acupressure (sinus pressure points) - how it works
There are places on the skin which are particularly sensitive to the body's natural bioelectric impulses and can easily transmit those impulses. Stimulating these points with acupressure can cause endorphins to be released; which are neurochemicals that relieve pain. Pressing on those points can also release muscular tension which accumulates around them. This tension keeps areas of the body from functioning properly. Thus, by applying pressure on those points we are helping a particular area or organ to function better.

Sinus pressure points application
What you need is to release pressure that has built up in the sinus cavities. Mucus must be encouraged to move to the nasal cavities. Sinus acupressure--sinus pressure points therapy--can do this very effectively. Acupressure is an old oriental therapeutic method of dealing with many common ailments. It is based on massage and pressure to stimulate the circulation of the vital energy that goes to specific areas of the body. To help drain the sinuses one's own fingers are used to apply pressure and massage on very specific bodily points--the sinus pressure points. Some sinus pressure points (acupressure points) follow:

A

• With the tips of the two index fingers, using them at the same time, apply firm pressure on each side of the nostrils, right next to them. The fingers should be at approximately a 90°angle in relation to the face. The pressure should last between 4 - 5 minutes. This acupressure point, if rightly used, will begin to drain the sinuses in a few minutes and relieve congestion and pressure quite rapidly

B

• Feel an indentation of the inner eye socket where the bridge of the nose meets the ridge of the eyebrows. Apply pressure on both eye sockets at the same time with the tip of the thumbs for 4-5 minutes. These two sinus pressure points (A and B) can be worked one right after the other. If properly executed they should bring relief to pressure and mucus congestion within minutes.

Not everyone responds the same way to a given sinus acupressure points. There are two other very effective pressure points for sinus congestion, pain and sinus pressure explained and illustrated in: "Three Steps to Sinus Relief " plus a host of other valuable information with respect to sinus ailments. Sometimes sinus disorders have been successfully tackled with fasting. While on occasions and temporarily an OTC remedy can supplement the pressure points therapy to relieve sinus pressure. For example, Sudafed, Mucinex.

Excessive sinus or nasal drainage
Sinus pressure points therapy is primarily designed to relieve pressure. We could reason that the opposite of sinus pressure would be excessive sinus drainage. But of course, this is a problem, too. Because it could be a symptom of a sinus infection. The truth is that normal, healthy people produce between 1 - 2 pints of mucus a day; and we don't even realize it! We actually don't notice "excessive mucus" until it becomes thick and we feel it sliding down the back of the throat. Quantity, therefore, is not so much an issue as it is the quality of mucus. Air dryness, for example can produce a thick yellow mucus, so does not drinking enough water.

Therefore, don't be alarmed if after your sinus pressure is relieved there is for a while a copious amount of mucus going through or coming out your nasal cavity. It should be noted that the difference between mucus and phlegm is that the latter is produced by the lungs--the nasal cavities don't produce it--it is very sticky and it functions in a different way than mucus. Phlegm is the immune system's way of handling an overload. Post-nasal drip, on the other hand, is caused by irritation and inflammation of the nasal or sinus cavity membranes. The mucus produced by those membranes flows from the posterior portion of the nasal cavity directly to the throat area. Often a natural remedy can alleviate the problem enough that it's all ytou need.

Rhinitis and acupressure
Rhinitis is a persisting inflammation of the nasal membranes which produces a constant "runny nose" disorder. The healing promotion of sinus pressure points therapy (acupressure) principles are not limited to sinus pressure. They can be extended to include excessive phlegm or mucus; viewed from the standpoint of boosting the immune system to prevent respiratory infections. Anytime there is unchecked excessive mucus draining through the respiratory system, irritation of those membranes, followed by infection, is a common sequence. Acupressure sharpens the immune system to prevent that infection.

Steam inhalations
Another effective and quick way to drain the sinuses and relieve sinus pressure is by using steam inhalations. The following items should be remembered to avoid hurting oneself: The face should be far enough away from the source of the steam so that the heat entering the nostrils are not above 102° F. Heat above this temperature would harm the cilia, very important tiny hair like organelles, that keep the mucus moving in the right direction in the upper respiratory area. To the boiling water can be added a couple of drops of eucalyptus oil, this would have an anti-microbial effect in the airway areas being treated by the inhalation. One should not go and expose the sinus area to cold air immediately after an inhalation treatment.

Water
A common, inexpensive and very healthy way to ward off sinus problems is the use of plain, pure, room temperature water in the order of 6 -8 glasses a day. This would also help to deal with other health issues and to prevent others. This simple item together with acupressure on the sinus pressure points gives the sinus sufferer an inexpensive way to begin to treat sinus ailments, and if done regularly, a way to prevent them.

Foods and drink
Often a significant root cause of many sinus problems is what we eat and drink. Some of them are plainly bad for people, period, with or without sinus ailments, since they are not good for health in general. One should know what those foods are and make some important decisions regarding them. On the other hand, there are foods and drinks which have healing properties that one should also become acquainted with. To the extent that one is willing to face this important aspect one may be dealing with a possible core cause of sinus problems. Two types of foods are significantly more responsible for sinus ailments such as sinus pressure and drainage, than most people realize. Knowing what they are could make the difference between a set of healthy sinuses or ailing ones.

Some common ailments such as sinus pressure and congestion could be very easily relieved in most cases or prevented if the right kind of: information and determination are present to go to the root cause of the problem to act on it. Acupressure or sinus pressure points can play a vital role in this.