7 Comments

As luck would have it, my idea that the bubbles in Diet Coke might have some powerful cleaning effect were, in fact, tragically misguided. I mean, it can eat rust off battery terminals, why wouldn't it really clean out the old sinus cavity? (Obviously, I'm joking. I'd never waste a good Diet Coke by shooting it up my nose.) Seriously though, my better half swears by the neti pot. I just swear at it.

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Neti pots are extremely polarizing. They’re like the American political system of sinus hygiene.

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Bev- This is so true about the neti pot! I’ve only ever used it once or twice but remembered it being slightly traumatic from a mental standpoint. So your whole piece resonates here.

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It's like riding a bike. That first time takes some mental fortitude, and then after that it's a breeze.

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I used to use a Neti Pot but I have chronic sinusitis and a neti pot isn't recommended for my condition. I love my positive force squeeze bottle, that the doctor recommended I use instead. Its' super helpful if I have a cold, too.

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I love my neti pot and have been using it for decades! And I say that as someone with a real phobia of putting anything in my nose (childhood trauma I'll save for another time). But, it turned out I had a deviated septum and for the first 6 years that I owned a neti pot, it never quite worked right (water everywhere, you know what I mean). Once that got fixed, the neti pot became my best friend. Of course, I'm also a person who generally generates a lot of snot so a good warm cleanse once or twice a day is basically a bidet for my bum. :)

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The only quibble I have with this is: I use the squeeze bottle instead. I'm not sure it makes a difference, but putting some force behind the stream of water has to be good.

You're right: it's nothing like getting water in your nose when you're swimming. And the packet is not just salt; it has bicarb as well, so the pH balance is correct.

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