3 replies to this topic

[tamalak]

OK.. six months ago I got what appeared to be an ordinary cold. And it cleared up in a week. But ever since I have had two persistent symptoms.

The first is that I can only comfortably breathe through one nostril. Which nostril this is switches frequently. If I block the "good" nostril I can wheeze air through the other, but only at like 1/4 rate. There seems to be no mucus blockage, it's just like the passage is constricted. I have NOT smashed my nose into anything from what I can remember so I don't see how I could have gotten a deviated septum.

Secondly, a section of the inner lining of my left nostril - near the back and on the side towards the center of my nose - is.. wrong. Sometimes it feels fine, but sometimes it's scabbed over. If I remove the scabbing carelessly, it bleeds like crazy. If I let the scabbing sluff off naturally it does not bleed. This is not very bothersome, but it never gets lastingly better, even if I leave it alone for weeks.

The fun part is that I'm laid off right now, and I don't have health insurance. I have considerable savings but I don't want to drain them unnecessarily. So my question is, could this be something that needs to be taken care of soon, like a form of cancer? Or can I wait until I'm employed again?

Edited by tamalak, 07 July 2009 - 05:14 PM.

[ArgusEritaramis]

You may have used too much nose-spray and caused damage to the mucus membranes in the nose.
In other words, the skin inside your nose has become so very thin that it doesnt take much for it to become irritated and swollen, causing restriction of airflow.
Also, this may be the cause of the scabs inside your nose. When blood leaks through the fragile and thin skin, it forms a scab. When you remove the scab, you also tear the already fragile skin, which ofcourse causes the bleeding.
If im right, it isnt serious as such, and should fix itself in time.
Just dont use any more nose spray, and leave the scabs alone.

[TheFountain]

I wouldn't use zinc based nasal sprays, I would use sinucleanse. It works for me and I have had bad sinus congestion since I was little.

[tamalak]

I've never used a nasal spray, ever. Nor snorted drugs, nor really do anything with my nose except smell and breathe!

And leaving the thing alone doesn't help.. I've forgotten about it for weeks, touched the area occasionally and it feels normal, then one day it's lightly scabbed over again. It's really not a huge bother, it's just sores that don't heal are supposed to indicate another problem...