Thread: Neti pots. Seriously.

The use of a neti pot to irrigate one's sinuses is properly called Jala Neti. Jala Neti is Sanskrit, an ancient language of India that is no longer in use.

I first learned of neti pot use at a Yoga retreat I attended at an ashram in New York state. Jala Neti is a part of Ayurvedic medicine and was developed as a part of Yoga. Yoga itself is more than 5,000 years old so there is no telling how long neti pots have been in use in India. (When I say "Yoga," I am speaking of an entire philosophy, not just the stretching exercises we are familiar with here in the West.)

There are videos on the Web that demonstrate proper basic technique. This is for irrigating and flushing out the deep sinuses. An additional technique you won't likely find on the Web is intended to flush out the the part of the sinus adjacent to the soft palate where it opens in the back of the throat behind the epiglottis.

While performing an irrigation with the salt water dribbling out of your lower nostril, sniff GENTLY two to four times. A very small, gentle sniff is all it requires. This will draw some of the salted water into the throat area, carrying mucous with it. Just open your mouth and allow the water to drain out into the sink. Repeat on the other side.
Namaste,
Morty -_-

I use a Neti pot whenever I have difficulties with my sinuses, and I find the practice to help me quite a bit.
I should do it on a routine basis as a preventive measure, but like many things that I should do, I just don't.
IMO, it is very helpful.

Originally Posted by bassguy

If you're weirded out by it, I don't know what to say. But if you've ever done an ear candle and been mystified by what came out of your ear, you'll get a kick out of the neti pot.
For what it's worth, salt is salt. Just make sure it's dissolved first!

I think it would be better to use salt that doesn't have the silicon anti-caking agent in it. The purpose of the salt is the electrolyte/de-salinization prevention of the vulnerable mucous membranes. Kosher is good (without anti-caking agents) but so is real sea salt, which has the full spectrum of minerals (as long as it isn't from contaminated waters..).

Even more important: the ear candling is one of those trendy, new-age, hair-brained, overpriced schemes to deplete your money and give you an ineffective, possibly injurious product. It's a high candidate for bogus home remedy. The wax you find at the bottom may be the candle's, not yours.

Try a half-and-half solution of warm water and hydrogen peroxide to loosen and foam up the impacted wax deposits, tilting your head the other direction and shaking to allow to drain. It's a very cheap solution so you can do it several times. Then you can really clean it out with carbamide peroxide solution (available at most pharmacies). Or reverse order, I don't know which is better or if it matters. I tend to pick it out after a shower but those two are quite good at cleaning the ears. The hydrogen peroxide is very nice because it foams and bubbles, you can feel it working to dislodge the wax, so you know it's legit.

I like the neti pot, too. I haven't used it much but I do it over the kitchen sink. Just remember, people who scrape hairs off their face directly with extremely sharp objects are also not thought to be engaging in "normal" behavior. Neti pots are grade-school crazy compared to crazy str8 users.

My nose is for air, not for water.

Originally Posted by Morty

The use of a neti pot to irrigate one's sinuses is properly called Jala Neti. Jala Neti is Sanskrit, an ancient language of India that is no longer in use.

I first learned of neti pot use at a Yoga retreat I attended at an ashram in New York state. Jala Neti is a part of Ayurvedic medicine and was developed as a part of Yoga. Yoga itself is more than 5,000 years old so there is no telling how long neti pots have been in use in India. (When I say "Yoga," I am speaking of an entire philosophy, not just the stretching exercises we are familiar with here in the West.)

There are videos on the Web that demonstrate proper basic technique. This is for irrigating and flushing out the deep sinuses. An additional technique you won't likely find on the Web is intended to flush out the the part of the sinus adjacent to the soft palate where it opens in the back of the throat behind the epiglottis.

While performing an irrigation with the salt water dribbling out of your lower nostril, sniff GENTLY two to four times. A very small, gentle sniff is all it requires. This will draw some of the salted water into the throat area, carrying mucous with it. Just open your mouth and allow the water to drain out into the sink. Repeat on the other side.
Namaste,
Morty -_-

Good write up Morty. I use one when I feel the need, or every few days. Just to breathe better I feel like the "sniff" comes from the back of the throat, or at least you have to open that up; is it the nasopharynx? I cant describe it well; so yeah; good job

Use distilled water (16 oz) and a heaping teaspoon full of himalayan serpa pink salt. I heat the water to about 110 and go for it. Every day just like washing your face,

Originally Posted by AxelH

I think it would be better to use salt that doesn't have the silicon anti-caking agent in it. The purpose of the salt is the electrolyte/de-salinization prevention of the vulnerable mucous membranes. Kosher is good (without anti-caking agents) but so is real sea salt, which has the full spectrum of minerals (as long as it isn't from contaminated waters..).

Even more important: the ear candling is one of those trendy, new-age, hair-brained, overpriced schemes to deplete your money and give you an ineffective, possibly injurious product. It's a high candidate for bogus home remedy. The wax you find at the bottom may be the candle's, not yours.

Try a half-and-half solution of warm water and hydrogen peroxide to loosen and foam up the impacted wax deposits, tilting your head the other direction and shaking to allow to drain. It's a very cheap solution so you can do it several times. Then you can really clean it out with carbamide peroxide solution (available at most pharmacies). Or reverse order, I don't know which is better or if it matters. I tend to pick it out after a shower but those two are quite good at cleaning the ears. The hydrogen peroxide is very nice because it foams and bubbles, you can feel it working to dislodge the wax, so you know it's legit.

I like the neti pot, too. I haven't used it much but I do it over the kitchen sink. Just remember, people who scrape hairs off their face directly with extremely sharp objects are also not thought to be engaging in "normal" behavior. Neti pots are grade-school crazy compared to crazy str8 users.

+1 Neti pot with dissolved measured amounts of kosher salt, in moderation.

+1 On cleaning the ears with dilute peroxide, in moderation (blue moon).

I said moderation, the "wax" in the ears and mucus in the
nasal passages are part of the natural body defense against
invasion from bacteria. For a lot of people helping mother
nature is a fine and dandy thing to do. Especially when
combined with medical advice and supervision.

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

My nose is for air, not for water.

That is funny right there. Although, i do have questions. I suffer from chronic stuffy nose. Would it help this? And how do you get it to go out the other side?

The things you can learn here at SRP...and the things you never ever wanted to visualize. YUCK

I gave it a shot when I had chronic sinusitus, but I think my sinuses were too far gone at that point to allow irrigation. Never tried it afterwards for maintenance.

All these glowing testimonials have me wondering, though. For the sake of balance, are there folks here who did it for a while and *didn't* get results/relief, etc.?