An alternative is sitting over a basin of just-boiled water with a towel over your head. Some people like this but others find it claustrophobic, hot and a little boring. Allow the steam to enter your nose and mouth by breathing normally though your nose and mouth. Do this for 10-15 minutes.
Inhale Steam
Showering in hot water, carefully inhaling steam from boiling water or running a humidifier can all help relieve sinus pressure. For additional relief, you can add eucalyptus oil to your shower or humidifier, which contains cineole, an ingredient that is known to help with symptoms of acute sinusitis.
Drape a towel over your head as you breathe in the vapor from a bowl of hot water. Keep the vapor directed toward your face. Or take a hot shower, breathing in the warm, moist air. This will help ease pain and help mucus drain.
Use heat treatments like breathing steam, applying a warm compress, or having a hot beverage to open up your sinuses. Irrigate with saline spray or use a neti pot to manually flush out your sinuses. Even light exercise or a massage with your fingers could do the trick.
Sinusitis (also called rhinosinusitis) starts when this drainage system becomes blocked, usually from swelling due to inflammation caused by infection or allergy. Soon, your head hurts, you feel facial pressure or pain, and thick mucus clogs your nose.
Increased humidity can help thin the mucus in your sinuses which is why steamy solutions provide relief for clogged noses. For immediate relief, take a hot shower, or do a facial steamer for 10 to 12 minutes.
Use both thumbs to apply pressure to the inner point of each eyebrow, between the bridge of your nose and eye socket. Press for 30 seconds and release. Repeat until you feel your sinuses begin to open.
On the other hand, repeated and forceful nose-blowing can generate pressures that are high enough to force mucus into the sinuses, which could be a factor in chronic sinusitis. If you are going to blow your nose, stick to one nostril at a time and do it gently.
Symptoms that are closely related to sinus drainage are most commonly thick drainage from the nose or down the throat. This drainage is typically yellow or green. You may also feel congested and have difficulty breathing through your nose. It also seems that there is a lot of pressure and pain in the face.
If you feel that you are blocked up but are not really producing mucus, then this is more indicative of a physical abnormality, such as nasal polyps or a deviated septum. It is quite common for people to complain of having a blocked nose on one side.
The frontal sinus has the most complex and variable drainage of any paranasal sinus.
Nasal congestion typically clears after a few days, but congestion that lasts for a week or more may be a sign of an infection. Left untreated, nasal congestion may cause sinusitis, nasal polyps or middle ear infections.
Prop yourself up
The best position to sleep with a stuffy nose is typically on your back with your head slightly elevated13. A blocked nose at night often feels worse as your body position causes more blood to flow to your nose, increasing the swelling14. It also means your body can't drain mucus properly15.
Mucolytics. Mucolytics, such as guaifenesin, are chemical compounds that can help loosen and clear mucus from the nasal passages, sinuses, and lungs. They dissolve chemical bonds in mucus, making it thinner and helping it to drain more easily.
So here's the big question: Should you spit or swallow your phlegm? Even though it might taste nasty, “there's nothing wrong with swallowing it,” Dr. Comer says. In fact, that's probably what your body expects you to do, which is why phlegm naturally drains down into the back of your throat.