VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[bobfromboulder]

Ok, so I teased everyone on the "What's in your neti pot?" topic about a new procedure I decided to try. Looking it up online, I found it listed as Balloon Sinuplasty.

And it's pretty much exactly that.

No surgery involved, it literally uses a balloon to open up the sinuses, just like angioplasty. I was going to say "but without the mess" but this can get pretty messy actually! Ha! Your newly open sinuses flush out afterwards, and during the procedure, you're quite likely to tear up being that your tear ducts are getting squeezed from the inside.

I'm getting this done by a local chiropractor. It's a really non-invasive procedure, and is primarily used to treat muscle tension throughout the skull, and even down into the neck. This is due to all the muscles along your scalp from the base of your neck, eventually being anchored to the muscles in your face. Sinus pressure from colds, allergies, general inflammation, mucous buildup, and even scar tissue (from previous colds, etc) causes muscular tension in a sort of feedback loop. Releasing some of this pressure can relieve headaches and even straighten the bridge of your nose. The friend who referred me to this is doing it to relieve migraines. I had my nose broken at a very young age, as did she, and though I haven't had a migraine in a very long time, my right sinus has been nearly completely blocked for many years. When I have had a headache lately, it's usually a tension headache that crawls up the back of my neck and over my scalp, but only on the right side.

So anyway, for a bunch of reasons (and particularly his $30/session fee!), I'm intrigued.

So it goes like this: He has a little air pump with a short tube on the end. The balloon is affixed to the tube with rubber bands, and he coats it with a water-based lube (yes, KY). He has you lie back in a reclining position. Then he inserts the balloon one at a time into each of the three sinus passages in your nostrils and inflates the balloon. This is the really freaky strange part. If your sinuses are clear, the balloon passes right though easily, and he deflates the balloon and moves on. The catch is, of course, that when the balloon pushes through, it pops out in the top of your throat causing a gag reflex. ...And that's how he knows it's through. :) If your sinuses are not clear, then it gets rather uncomfortable as the pressure of the balloon pushes back on the inflammation in your sinuses. Sometimes, you'll hear a tiny *crunch* as things readjust. Sometimes it pushes through, sometimes not. Sometimes you have to come back after clearing the other two passageways and try again.

On my first trip, we got all three on the left (pretty clear) but only the top and middle passageways on the right. My second session, we got all three on the left again, but this time only the bottom and middle on the right. I can definitely tell there's a change in my breathing on the right side. Already I can breathe through my nose only for a while and feel that I'm getting enough air. I couldn't do that before. Yes, I'm a recovering mouth-breather. :p

So, I'll keep this thread up-to-date for a while. The doc recommends once a week for a month and once a month for a year (for $30 a pop, not bad, IMO). I think I'm going to try to get my friend to videotape a session. :D

He's apparently got a growing legion of power-cyclists who come in a day or two before a big ride to get things cleared out.

[todd ellis]

ok - i'm just gonna say it ... GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
_________________
"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[Jeffrey Kafer]

[Lizden]

...but if it works for ya.....go for it!

L.
_________________
Liz de Nesnera O.A.V. ~ Livin' The VO Dream!
English/French Bilingual VO w/ ISDN
HireLiz.com / liz@hireliz.com