Dealing with phlegm in the airways

Hey everyone... I've been dealing with this excessive secretion from my mouth and nose for three years now. About a year back, I ran a massive fever—hit 106 degrees for three days straight. Ever since then, I’ve lost some hearing in my left ear, deal with constant tinnitus, and the drainage just ramped up. My throat hurts almost every single day, and my tonsils get inflamed every month without any relief. I've cycled through about 15 different antibiotics, antihistamines, anti-candida meds, and various diets—tried everything from Pepcid to various supplements. I've been poked and prodded through it all: gastroscopies, bronchoscopies, MRIs of my head, AST, blood work, urine tests, stool samples, allergy panels, hepatitis and HIV testing, candida checks, endoscopies, ultrasounds of my salivary glands, abdomen, lung X-rays, and sinus scans. Everything comes back "normal," except for a tiny bit of swelling in my ethmoid sinuses and some inflamed, pitted tonsils. The specialists tell me that the sinus swelling is negligible and nothing to worry about—certainly not worth surgery—yet they're telling me to have my tonsils out, suggesting they might be the culprit behind this massive secretion issue. The discharge is clear, white, and thick; it comes from both my nose and mouth, and overnight it just drains into my stomach, which makes eating a total nightmare. I'm talking maybe 4 or 5 ounces of this stuff a day. They found a dust mite allergy that's likely wrecking my mucous membranes, but even with antihistamines and Flonase, nothing changes. I've visited the top-tier medical centers in the US, but it feels like nobody can actually help; they just push surgery on me hoping something sticks. My blood counts are always perfect and my immunology tests look fine. They found candida twice, though I suspect that's just a side effect of the antibiotics, but even after six rounds of Diflucan, the symptoms haven't budged. I also have a bit of reflux. I don't smoke, I don't touch alcohol or drugs, and I don't even drink coffee. My bronchoscopy results were spotless (no fungi, bacteria, or issues with cytology). I don't get headaches, I sneeze normally, and I don't cough. I had mono about six years ago. When I open my mouth, doctors can actually see the secretion constantly dripping down. If anyone has an idea of what's going on, please let me know... Thanks in advance.

Getting your tonsils out 🤷 usually helps clear up sinus issues for most people, and honestly, dealing with constant inflammation just isn't something you should have to live with. I remember going through something similar back in the day where nothing seemed to work. Have you actually gone out and done a test for H. pylori? I've heard from a few folks that it can mess with your sinuses too.

To be perfectly honest, I find myself waking up every single morning with my sinuses completely congested, dealing with an excessive amount of mucus—or, if we’re being blunt, just a constant stream of snot and whatever else. It's quite a change, really, because I don't recall ever experiencing anything this intense in the past.

Hahaha, honestly, it’s not even that bad... I mean, you just breathe through your nose and all those impurities get filtered out naturally before they even reach you!
It beats accidentally swallowing them while you're fast asleep, right?
lol

Keith Lee74 said:Honestly, I wake up every single morning with my nose completely stuffed up—just full of gunk, mucus, and whatever else you want to call it. This never used to be such a massive thing for me before.

Look, you’ll just get used to it. Might as well find a job in coal mining, otherwise your nose is gonna stay gross forever.

stormyheron4 said:Maybe you should just get a job in coal mining, otherwise you’re just gonna spend your whole life wading through crap.

Yeah, go work in a coal mine, then at least his "crap" will actually be black. 😬

Keith Lee74 said:Look, every single morning I wake up with my nose completely stuffed—just full of mucus and whatever else you want to call it. It’s gross. This kind of intense congestion never used to hit me this hard before.

Have you dealt with a bout of sinusitis lately?
It’s entirely possible there’s still a lingering infection sitting in your sinuses—and as long as that hotspot stays active, the drainage isn't going anywhere.

Keep an eye on how it progresses. If this keeps dragging on, you should probably get some imaging done on your sinuses—maybe a CT scan—and talk to a doctor about antibiotics to actually kill the infection at the source.

There’s also that sinus rinse method using those little neti pots: you pour saline into one nostril, let it flow through the sinus cavity, and have it drain out the other side. It cleans everything out. Pretty straightforward—I saw it online, and you can pick them up at any CVS or Walgreens.

So, I'm looking for a Neti Pot. Where can I pick one up here in the States?
I've been dealing with both vasomotor and allergic rhinitis for years now. Based on what I've read online, using a saline rinse seems like it could provide some serious relief from the symptoms.

Anyway, does anyone know where I can find a Neti Pot?

Ryan Evans63 said:Yeah, exactly—that Neti Pot thing. Where can you actually pick one of those up here in the States?
I’ve been dealing with vasomotor issues and allergic rhinitis for years now—total nightmare. Based on what I've read online, sinus rinsing with saline sounds like it could be a massive relief.

So, does anyone know where I can find a Neti Pot?

I honestly have no clue, I forgot. I'll have to ask my boyfriend—he bought one recently and swears by it. 😁

Well, you might as well just ask him yourself and see what happens.

Look, just grab the kettle and fill it up with saline. What kind of Oprah Winfrey containers are you even looking for now?

Hey... I'm 18. Never really been a sickly guy, but back when I had the flu two months ago, I started hearing this wheezing sound whenever I breathed in or out. Went to see my doctor and my bloodwork came back perfect (thank God). Took some meds and it cleared up after a few days... but then 3 or 4 days ago I caught a cold. Didn't feel the wheezing at first, but yesterday and today it's back. My nose is constantly running, too—is it possible all that mucus is getting down into my lungs? If anyone else has dealt with this, hit me up. Looking for anything that actually clears the gunk out of the lungs 🙂 peace