Addicted to Nasal Spray

[klaus_schnell]

Is anyone here addicted to nasal spray? I am.

I have been using it for about 5 years now and I have to use it every day otherwise I get completely congested.

[Spoo]

I feel like that might be a little dangerous...

[Stimuli]

I am, well, I kinda am lol I know a few people who are 0,o

[Chanel_no5]

I got addicted from using it one week. I was going to try if the weird feeling behind my eye had something to do with a chronic sinus infection, so I decided to use nasal spray every day for the maximum of ten days.

Seven days into this, I noticed that I had to use the nasal spray at least three times a day to be able to breathe! And I wasn't even congested to begin with! When I got to this point, I quit using it at all. It was a bit scary, how quickly you can get addicted to it. I definitely understand those who find themselves caught up in it.

[haeeshoo]

Is anyone here addicted to nasal spray? I am.

I have been using it for about 5 years now and I have to use it every day otherwise I get completely congested.

It's not the first time I hear this, and I've experienced it myself after being prescribed a nose spray to help with my frequent ear aches.

If you quit using it you will indeed be uncomfortable for a few days (in my case only 2 days, but your mileage may vary).

[klaus_schnell]

I only use it once a day before I go to work so that I sound ok on the phone

im not too worried :3

[Kiwifruit]

Geez Chanel, 10 days? o.O Here the limit for decongestant nasal sprays is generally recommended at 3-5 days. When I sell it, I personally recommend people use it for no more than 3, up to 5 if it's really bad, due to the rebound congestion - as you noticed, it can happen very quickly! Same effect happens with a fair few medications - eye drops that help with redness tend to cause a rebound effect if you stop taking them after using them long term as well. Sticking to the recommended length of use is really important, and less if you can help it!

One option is that while you wean yourself off the nasal spray, you can alternate with a non-medicated saline spray. That helps to relieve congestion a little as well but doesn't have the same rebound congestion side effect, and can be used safely long term. Abuse of nasal sprays can lead to permanent damage to your nasal lining and sinuses as well, eventually it can even cause structural damage to your nose requiring surgery to fix. I'd recommend you should definitely talk to your doctor or pharmacist about getting help with weaning yourself off it.

[Trillium]

^^ What Kiwi said. It is something to be concerned about.

A physician typically will prescribe prednisone (an oral steroid) to take down the rebound swelling that will occur after stopping long-term use of a nasal decongestant. Then, the cause of the chronic congestion needs to be determined and addressed -- if it's from allergies, then a nasal steroid spray is useful and nonaddictive.

ETA: A nonmedicated saline sinus rinse is also helpful and can be used as frequently as necessary. Seems gross, but you get used to it. . . .

Edited September 8, 2011 by Trillium

[Chanel_no5]

Geez Chanel, 10 days? o.O Here the limit for decongestant nasal sprays is generally recommended at 3-5 days. When I sell it, I personally recommend people use it for no more than 3, up to 5 if it's really bad, due to the rebound congestion - as you noticed, it can happen very quickly! Same effect happens with a fair few medications - eye drops that help with redness tend to cause a rebound effect if you stop taking them after using them long term as well. Sticking to the recommended length of use is really important, and less if you can help it!

Yep, it says 10 days on the bottle. Now, I didn't really need it; I haven't been congested, I just wanted to try something for the pressure behind my eye, as I've been told it could be a sinus infection. If I go to the health care centre for it, I want to be able to say I've already tried decongestant, so they can prescribe the real stuff rightaway if needed. But I was shocked to see how quickly I GOT congested unless I used it, once I started! Luckily, I knew the story so I just quit cold turkey after seven days, when the actual problem didn't get any better. It's been two weeks since, and I've just started to NOT feel congested. Seriously, those things should be on as controlled prescription as sleeping pills, from my experience!!

[Kiwifruit]

Yeah, they're pretty potent. If used for only 3-5 days during a cold or if allergies are really bad they can be awesome, but a lot of people don't see the warning or decide it doesn't apply to them Or in your case, when the recommended time is long enough that it gets you hooked...that's so bad! Really irresponsible of the company and/or drug control regulations

Medication is wonderful stuff but can be very scary...

[allergyboy2001]

I would also speak up in favor of saline sprays, which can be found at any drugstore. Or there's even neti pots, if you want to go that far.

We love everyone's sneezy noses but we don't want you to be taking things that might be messing them up/making them worse in the long run.

I'm not sure if Klaus' original question was about a prescription spray or not. That might affect whether the "addiction" is a serious matter or not. But from a little Google-ing, it appears if someone in the U.S. wants a steroid spray to help with matters, like Flonase or Rhinocort, we do require a prescription. So you might want to check with your doctor, Klaus, if that's affordable for you (i.e., if you're one of the lucky Americans who actually has health insurance!). By the way, Klaus, I don't think we can direct-message you yet if your board membership is pending, do you have a throw-away email address that you can put in your profile if we wanted to talk about this or other matters offline? We can't post email addresses in the open forum, it has to be in the person's profile, to protect everyone's privacy. Best of luck to you, man.

Edited September 10, 2011 by allergyboy2001

[SweaterWeather]

I must admit, I am slightly addicted to using nasal spray. I used it a lot as a kid, due to allergies. But in 2009, I just stopped taking it (other matters made my life complicated, so I just forgot to take my daily spray). I recently started using it again because my allergies this spring had been acting up. But what scares me a little is that my nose has become a lot more sensitive since I started taking nasal sprays again, like more prone to bleeding. Not gushing, but I have to be careful when blowing/rubbing my nose, else it might bleed slightly. But that doesnt happen as often as it used to a couple of months ago.

Also, I've heard that when you have a cold/flu blowing your nose brings bacteria into your sinuses and increases your chance of a sinus infection. So is it alright to use nasal sprays when your sick?

[klaus_schnell]

Im not too worried about it actually

[sneezes]

im having to use nasal spray for this cold i have, plus i use beconase for my bad hayfever, and all it does is make me sneeze lol.

[walrus]

I used to be addicted to it, not because i couldn't stop using it, but more like that i was so paranoid that I would become congested in the night and die. I only use it now before i go to bed, when a have a cold.

Does anyone else find that no matter what brand the nasal spray is, it will clear you up, but make you a lot sneezier?

It happened to me today...

[sneezes]

vicks does that, helps clear your nose, but you sneeze like crazy.

[Giant Steps]

Well, I have one that I use daily, but it's just a placebo really. I'm conjested most days with no real trend to do with whether or not I use the spray. I've been using it for years with no ill effects, too, so I keep using it because it - sort of? - keeps me in the mindset that it actually helps.