Comments on: I Have a Nose Spray Addiction – I’m Addicted to Afrin

By: tammy j

tammy j — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:24:05 +0000

have just spent most of the evening reading through all these comments. i too, had no idea that afrin was so dangerous and addictive. i started using it during a head cold. that was 4 months ago.
the addiction and rebound effects are bad enough… but here is another side effect that people may be unaware of. my blood pressure has spiked to crisis levels for the last 2 weeks. my last readings were 208 over 106. that is stroke level blood pressure.
you can indeed die from this terrible afrin. the doctor told me today to stop it immediately. cold turkey.
as i sit here typing this, i am breathing through my mouth. and i know i will have a terrible night. but 2 nights ago i sat in a chair with my heart pounding in arrhythmia and blood pressure so high it could have killed me. it was saturday night. i simply sat in the chair too frozen with fear to even call 911. i am a widow and live alone. i will NEVER touch that stuff again. many of you are so young you aren’t thinking in terms of blood pressure. but this drug can raise it no matter what your age. so beware. it is more than mere discomfort. it could very well kill you.
drinking cold water through the night has been helping me. i am going to make this. it just takes courage. it takes wanting to live. even if it means having to breathe through your mouth for however long it takes. the doctor said i have no choice.
i was glad to stumble upon this site. there is always hope in good communication. bless us all, every one!

By: Ken J

Ken J — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:13:58 +0000

Hi everyone,
And best wishes to all who are struggling to beat this horrible addiction. I am in the midst of it now and let me tell you where I’m at:

First off, I’ve got the double tap of addiction in that I am definitely and alcoholic and definitely an Afrin addict. Over the last year I’ve tried to get off the Afrin but my hangovers are just too brutal to go without being able to breathe. I tried the one nostril for a while but I reached for the nose juice during one of my hangovers and was back on it again. Not to mention that my drinking zaps any willpower I have so I knew the both had to go. So I decided to go cold turkey on these addictions and by the second day I was back on Afrin but not on alcohol…., Afrin is definitely harder to quit than drinking.

I went seven days without a drink and then decided to start the Afrin one nostril withdrawal, but the panic attacks made me reach for the bottle (whiskey) and the drinking seemed to plug up the good nostril too. What else could I do but try again? So, I started using the Afrin in just my left nostril (because my right one seems worse) and did that for 7 days. And those were the worst days I could imagine. Being plugged on one side gave me vertigo and headaches and felt like concrete was poured into my right sinus. But I kept telling myself that it was better than having both nostrils plugged. But I became irritable with the situation and during the last two days I had 5 beers to try and get some sleep…, and that didn’t help much either: it seemed to make the good nostril worse. Although after 7 days the poured concrete feeling has dissipated a little and the right sinus has opened up on occasion.

Ironically, my alcohol withdrawal only took like 3 days and consisted of the shakes, headache, nausea, and hot and cold sweats.., and really red irritated eyeballs. But most of that has subsided now so I’m really only battling the Afrin at this time. After the beer experiment I realize that to quit Afrin means to quit alcohol, so whatever that entails I am ready to do it. And after all the Afrin addiction is really a microcosm of my alcoholism…, a vicious cycle!!!

So about a day and a half ago I stopped dosing the left nostril and what followed was just madness. I had expected the healed nostril to lend me some ease but both nostrils plugged totally. This has to be the worst feeling a person can live through…, it’s like you are drowning and can’t get enough air. And then the pressure on the sinuses causes debilitating headaches. I also was trying the Advil congestion relief tablets but they had no effect. Nyquil…, no effect. Sudafed.., no effect. Morning showers would loosen the phlegm enough so I could blow my nose but then both nostrils plugged right back up instantaneously.

I paced…, I was panicked…, I looked towards the Afrin bottle but knew I couldn’t. But there is a bright spot.., every now and then the right nostril will open up and I can breathe a little so that gives me hope and I’m stuck to accepting that I’ll have to be plugged for a while. I’m on day two now and I’m totally plugged right now except that there is a little relief in the right nostril. I have noticed that when I’m walking around at work and exerting myself that both nostrils will clear for a while, only to plug again minutes later when I stop. But those 10 or 15 minutes of real breathing are worth more than gold. It seems like right now I’m cycling between a minimal clearing in the right nostril and it being plugged…, but there IS SOME CLEARING.

I can see that for the next few days I’m going to be miserable but I’ve got to weather the storm. What good would it do to reach for either of the evil liquids I am damaged from? I’m getting off work now and going home and I’ll continue to stay sober and just talk myself through the totally plugged nose. I have seen some clearing so there is a bright spot on the horizon…, and that is the sun rising on a new life free from Afrin. When it’s over I plan on writing the manufactures and the Attorney General on the dangers of this medication and how totally enraged I am that there aren’t more controls on them. This is total bull#*&@!!

My heart goes out to all of you.., and all I can say is stay the course. I know we can do it!!

Ken J

By: Val

Val — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:25:33 +0000

Looking foward to your update!

By: Val

Val — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:24:20 +0000

I’ve been online for 13 years and for some reason never thought of researching nasal spray addiction before. LOL I’ve used nasal spray daily, sometimes many times a day, for about 30 years now. Sorry to say I turned my husband onto it when he got a cold shortly after we married 28 years ago and he also has used it daily since. What a couple of nose squirters we are! Reading down through the comments here has been cracking me up! One of our major priorities at all times is to make sure we have nasal spray b/c without it we both feel like we are dieing. I’ve literally run to a store and ripped the box open and used it right there in the aisle before paying for it b/c I thought my head was going to explode in a million pieces. My husband and I both carry nasal spray with us everywhere we go and keep bottles on our nightstands, on the computer desk, in my pocketbook and my husband in his lunch tote. I have talked to my Dr.’s about it several times over the years and tried the script spray that gave me to help get off the real stuff but I might as well have been spraying straight water up my nose for all it did. I gave up attempting to get off it long ago. However, as I get older (46) and begin to suffer from various health issues, I realize the need to take much better care of myself and the importance of ridding myself with issues like the nasal spray. I typed into google “nasal spray addiction” and was led to a site for Rhinostat(as well as this site) – am wondering if anyone here has tried it and if so, if it was helpful? I’m sure someone mentions it somewhere within the over 400 comments but am lazy and hoping someone will respond to my comment so I don’t have to read through all 400+ to get my answer. LOL
PS. Love the idea of doing it one nostril at a time, just not sure I could take the pressure of the non squirted nostril long enough, and then knowing I’d have to go through it all again with the other nostril seems too daunting. However, if I’m ever in a position where I don’t have to worry about going to work for a couple of weeks I will more than likely give it a try and will post results here.

By: Randy

Randy — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:17:54 +0000

I finally beat the nose spray Monster! Mia’s comment touched my heart. Afrin stopped working for me a few months ago. I had to use Wal-Four to get nasal relief. Mucus was no longer my problem. My nasal cavities would swell shut. Wal-Four gave me instant relieve from suffocation! It was the same curse I had with Afrin! I needed something to shrink the swelling inside my nose. Now cost me twice as much to breath. I needed help. And this is what I did to beat the Monster! (1), I went to an allergist for tests. I discovered I was allergic to grasses, pollen, dust, mode and mildew. Now I take weakly allergy shots. (2), I have also been flushing my nose with salt water three times per day due to my allergist suggestion. Instead of using the expensive nasal rinse you can find in Walgreens, my doctor recommended one eight ounce glass of distilled water mixed with one forth of tea spoon of table salt. I washed out my nose three times a day for three weeks. (Utilizing a nose syringe used to clean an infant’s nose). (3), I used a Vicks Inhaler when the times got rough. (Looks like Chap Stick) After three weeks, I no longer need or use nose spray or the Vicks inhaler. I FEEL GREAT!!! You can do it too. I have broken a thirty year addiction to nose spray. If I can do it, so can you!

By: Mia

Mia — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:00:01 +0000

Kayla-
Im having the same problem! very frustrating..I stopped using the afrin for 2 months and was also congested most of the time and miserable at night. I tried nasal steroids, humidifier, sinus rinse, oral steroids..I failed and ended back up on the afrin. I was told and have read thet long term use of afrin can cause chronic enlarged turbinates that just dont shrink down anymore which is why some people stay congested. I agree with you that I have permanent damage now. I dont know what to do anymore, and also the afrin does not clear my nose like it did in the past which is scary.Please let me know if your congestion ever goes away or if anything works for you….

By: Cascadia

Cascadia — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:36:26 +0000

Hey Sherry,
You’re so right about the water consumption, it does make a hugeeee difference!! And as for the coffee I can understand that, LOL…

By: Cascadia

Cascadia — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:33:37 +0000

Hi Kayla,
I”m so sorry that you’re still having a difficult time with the nasal congestion. Have you tried using a vaporizer at night also?

I”ve noticed that it really helps me to breathe alot better and so, I usually get it set up and going an hour before I actually go to bed, so by the time I get into my bedroom the vicks or sudafed aroma is in the air.
Also, try laying on two pillows.

It will be a month soon since i’ve stopped using the sprays, and even though I did have a set back for a day, and used the spray, now I know how to manage the congestion if it appears again. Another thing, well for me is that I have to use the Nasopure often to rid myself of the congestion and it’s really working.

Don’t give up!!!! IT will and CAN get better….

Hugs

By: Kayla

Kayla — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:26:08 +0000

I’ve been afrin free for 2 months now and am still congested 50% of the time, especially at night. I haven’t slept well these past 2 months.

NOTHING has helped me get better. I tried it all. Neti Pot provides temporary relief (a few hours), but temporary isn’t good enough.

I think these past few years of afrin permanently screwed up my nose.

I WISH it was as easy as some of the people here have had it, simply clearing up after a week of no afrin. I guess I’m not one of the lucky ones.

By: Sherry

Sherry — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 23:39:11 +0000

Cascadia

I try to avoid using the neti pot before going to bed. When I do, I sometimes feel pressure around my ear when I wake up. So, I use it a couple hours before bedtime and that makes a difference. I have found that the amount of water I drink during the day makes a difference in how stuffed up I get. Being hydrated helps the mucous flow through the sinuses easier. Sometimes it is hard to make myself drink water though. I would rather have coffee.