staying healthy in the fast laneIf you clean the bedroom as described and you still wake up in
the morning congested, look outside your window for some kind
of pollen. Also, try to remember the last time you spilled some-
thing on the floor. Look for mold. Just pull up the carpet and peek.
The other thing to consider is what you ate the night before or
every evening. That nightly bowl of ice cream, glass of milk, hunk
of cheese, grilled-cheese sandwich, piece of pie or cookies, or alco-
holic beverage may be the cause of your brain fog, snotty nose, pro-
ductive cough, or crusty eyes the following morning. Many times,
it is that simple. Now if you add the late-night snack to the dusty
bedroom and the pet sleeping next to you, you may not only be a
“mess” in the morning but you may start off very fatigued as well.
Any of you seeing yourself yet?
Aside from cleaning up the bedroom and not eating offending
food the night before, one of the simplest things that can dramati-
cally improve your morning symptoms and health is a facial rinse
or sinus flush morning and evening.
To do the facial rinse, plug the sink, fill it with hot water (test
it with your chin; don’t burn yourself !), pour in two or three tea-
spoons of salt, and immerse your face completely in the hot water.
Hold it for five seconds, and then lift your face from the water and
blow your nose. Repeat this sequence four or five times over the
next few minutes. This simple technique can help clear out your
sinuses, reducing your annoying symptoms almost immediately.
This simple technique also helps to reduce your allergic load.
The “sister” technique to this is the sinus flush. This is usually
done while in the shower. Get a blue bulb syringe. Cut the tip so it
fits snuggly up your nose. Put one to two teaspoons of salt into a
bowl of lukewarm water. Suck up the water into the syringe and,
while you are in the shower, stick the syringe up one nostril. Tilt
your head forward and squirt it up your nose. It’s kind of messy
and might sting a bit, but it works. Together these two techniques,
if done consistently, can reduce nasal congestion, sometimes dra-
matically. Especially when done with food elimination the night
before.
There are a variety of other “sinus flush” devices that you can
commercially buy as well. Usually I will just cup my hands under-