Argh! Sick! Make me better....
 

Okay, so my co-worker decided to show up to work despite Niagara-like snot fest. He sits...I don't know, 3 feet away from me? Long story short, I'm blowing my brains out. I have a birthday party to attend on Friday. I need to be healthy by that time.

Possible? How?

Over the counter medicine? Which one? Eating raw onions?

This sucks.

Curry is an excellent expectorant.

Hit up some spicy Indian food.

Ever seen Along Came Polly?

Yeah, it would be similar. Ethnic food is out of the question. Spicy, too.

Yes, yes. Spicy Indian food specifically. It warms you from the inside out.

EDIT: Wait. Why is spicy out of the question? It will clean you out nice and good.

Also, I swear by this. Don't hold back: go full strength and drink it all. (Translation: Do you want to get better? Then don't be a pussy.)

Ginger Tea

INGREDIENTS

• 1 inch / 2.5 cm piece ginger root, peeled
• 2 cups cold water
• 1/2 t cayenne pepper
• 2 T lemon juice
• Sweetener to taste
• 1-2 cloves garlic, mashed

METHOD
Grate peeled ginger root. Put it in a pot with 2 cups of cold water, bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Add cayenne pepper and simmer 1 minute more. Remove from heat.

Add fresh lemon juice, sweetener to taste, and mashed garlic (you don't want it to cook). Let cool slightly, and strain if desired (I don't).

* * * * *

Also, use a neti pot. And drink a gallon of fluids a day.

Have you tried a neti pot?

Neti pot - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://www.riverhillapothecary.com/zen2/images/3013.jpg

Seriously. This thing will rinse all the gunk out of your sinuses and nose. Given where you live I would use distilled water in the neti pot (chlorine can cause a burning sensation). You might also want to add salt. Don't use table salt with iodine--use a sea salt or kosher salt, about 1 tsp. per 2 cups of water. They also sell premeasured packets of salts for use in a neti pot. You also want the water to be about body temperature. I put the distilled water in a liquid measuring cup and microwave it for about 50 seconds, which gives me water near 98 degrees (I used a candy thermometer to measure the temperature of the water the first couple times).

And if you can find Traditional Medicinals teas, they sell a cold care variety pack that has a bunch of herbal teas my SO and I love when we're sick.
http://www.traditionalmedicinals.com...23d94eb255.jpg

Especially this one:
http://www.traditionalmedicinals.com...49e378fea2.jpg

This is another beverage we're a fan of when we're ill:
http://www.rwknudsenfamily.com/?e=vi...ng&h=420&w=210

Basically, rinse your sinuses out regularly, drown yourself in liquids, and rest up--you'll be better in no time.

That sounds pretty disgusting. Why is it that the things that work the best are always disgusting? I'll see if I have any of that stuff around the kitchen. Maybe I'll give it a try.

Haven't tried a neti pot, but I have a face steamer-thing that basically gives the same vaporous effect. The teas sound the most pleasing so far. I'll look into them. Also, it has been a while since I've used TheraFlu...would that work?

Thanks for the advises, peoples.

A neti pot actually puts water in your sinuses; it's not just steam. The salty water literally carries out all the snot and crap that's built up in there. While steam is good for loosening stuff up, the neti pot is nice in that it does the bulk of the work for you. The salinity of the water also kills the germies that might cause a sinus infection.

The key ingredients are ginger, garlic, and cayenne. The other stuff is to make it "drinkable."

A neti pot would be more effective. While steam hydration is beneficial, a neti pot uses "irrigation" that cleans out blockages/germs as well as hydrating the passageway. Much more suited to what you need.

Where would one find a neti pot?

I think many drugstores are now carrying a disposable alternative. Ask your pharmacist maybe? Ask about "nasal irrigation" or "sinus rinses."

www.neilmed.com
www.sinusrinse.com

If you've got a Whole Foods near you, I'd check there, but neti pots are starting to show up at regular drugstores like Walgreens too. Just look in the cold medicine section. They are usually on the top shelf.

I just checked it out on Wiki and...I actually have to dump salt water into my nose?

We have this life long (my life, at least) family habit of only irrigating the nose with meds (liquid nasal stuff) if it's congested. Mine isn't congested. I can breathe fine. It's just...mucousy.

Just seems a bit weird.

Look, do you want to get better or not?

Stop being a pussy.

...

I've got it: Go attempt to assault a woman carrying OC ("pepperspray") or CS ("mace"). That'll clean your shit right out.

I saw ropes of snot a mile long coming out of people hit by that stuff.

The thing is that I don't ever use any medications or home brews when I am sick, so all this crap is alien to me. I'm not even kidding.

I'll try some of it and let you know how it goes.

Especially Cromp's method.

Just make sure to keep your palms and knees planted on the ground after she hits you.

You don't wanna run into traffic or slam into a light pole.

I think the neti pot really helps at the mucousy-not-quite-yet-congested phase of a cold--it keeps it from turning into congestion.

I just want to say at this point, that I love the word mucous and other references to mucilage.

That one sounds like an exotic car.

The new Lotus Mucilage.

Doesn't it sound sexy? I'd drive it.

Hey, Logan... c'mere.

Make sure you get enough vitamins D and C.

I bought my neti pot at a chain drug store (Shopper's Drug Mart, for fellow Ontarians -- sort of our equivalent of CVS, from what I gather).

Lots of fluids, lots of rest.

It is day 2 and I am, much to my surprise, feeling better. I haven't blown my nose once nor have I tried any medications.

I'm not sure whether it was a fluke or if my sheer force of will and uneasiness with backing out of attending an event at the last day cured it or merely suppressing it until after the event.

I shall keep you all updated on my snot until Friday.

if your desperate to attend this party, see a doctor.

he'll diagnose your symptoms and tell you what is best for you.

i write to you after 3 days of not seeing a doctor while travelling though.. go figure. but then again im not desperate to go to this party

I'm not desperate. I just really dislike people who flake out and even more don't like to be one doing it.

That's really my sole motivation to get better which is what seems to be happening. A miracle? Divine intervention? Quite possibly!

ill pray for you..ive visited my fair share of mosques, cathedrals and synogogues in the last 2 weeks... i'm bound get to one right.

the healing powers of prayer...

Sure, give it a whirl. I haven't tried prayer as a cure for cold.

Any side effects I should be concerned about?

bad (or good) radicals...if they increase and multiply they become a problem.

not even Jesus could save you then

I just want Logan to step over here so I can spray him with some Mace and get this over with...

Would I need to sexually assault you or is that a freebie?

Can you tase a cold?

Let's give it the old college try.

I know y'all been wondering and anticipating an update on how Friday went.

It went great! I think it was just a fluke regarding my nose. Haven't really had any problems since Tuesday when I posted this thread.

Lots of fun and some new friends and all that.

Wait...I think we just discovered that TFP is the cure for the common cold!

Now all we have to do is get FDA approval.

Seriously, neti pot in the hot shower is awesome for that "my nose won't quit running, goddammit" feeling. I got mine at my favorite french store... Tarzhheeeh. Glad you're feeling better now.

This thread is like the plot to an '80s sitcom. Somebody come up with a jingle, quick.