Dealing with Nasal Congestion

I’m on CPAP. With the advent of winter the humidity has decreased. As a result I get nasal congestion at night which is a problem with using a nasal Cpap mask. The temp and humidity settings on my Cpap machine don’t seem to be solving the issue. This morning I drug out our humidifier to see if that will help, though I’m doubtful. In the past I’ve used Flonase but I’m pretty sure that’s what triggered my last bout of AFib. I stopped using it and I’ve had no AFib since. Btw I’m one year post ablation. Im wondering if there are any safe decongestants for us Afibbers. Everything I read says all of them can trigger AFib. I’m just wondering if anyone has found a safe decongestant if my humidifier fails to solve my night time stuffy plugged up nose. Thanks.

Saline Nasal Spray? I live in the desert, and I get up 3 times a night and use the spray.

Antihistamines are fine but they dry out the sinuses even more, which makes mucus thicker and harder to expel. But anything labeled a decongestant isn't friendly to people with afib. If you've already got a humidifier going and that's not enough, I would recommend Anti-Fib's advice of using saline nasal spray. Or a neti pot if you don't want to spend money on nasal sprays.

You may want to look into the underlying cause of your congestion and address it directly. For me, my congestion cleared up after I removed dairy from my diet.

Quote
Yuxi
You may want to look into the underlying cause of your congestion and address it directly. For me, my congestion cleared up after I removed dairy from my diet.

Me as well. Now 70. LIfelong rhinitis. Over 10 years ago changed to a low lectin pescatarian diet and rhinitis improved 80%. Then I read a 1956 book by a Dr. Coca about using pulse testing to identify food sensitivities. Doing this testing, I improved probably another 15-18%.

This is from a prior post elsewhere:

My autoimmune issues (chronic rhinitis from birth) improved probably 80% just following Gundry's generic plan (books). Then several years ago, I found Dr. Coca's 1956 book on pulse testing for food sensitivity. Basically you test your pulse before you eat and 30/60/90 minutes after. I found a 60 second manual test with my fingers on my radial pulse gave better results than an instantaneous electronic device (of which I have many). Coca said if your pulse was elevated 6 BPM or more you were sensitive to something in what you ate. If it is a mixed meal, then you have to go back at another time and eat things separately to figure out what is causing the elevation. In my case, I found some foods that were causing non-subtle increases (15-20-25 BPM). When I first got an Oura (tracking) ring, it said I had 0-3 minutes of deep sleep a night. I couldn't figure out how to improve that! Then I tried Coca's approach and eliminated the obvious offenders. Before Coca's approach, one night my pulse averaged 63 BPM overnight. Not bad as I was about 63 years old. Two much later, after removing foods, my pulse averaged 45 & I had not changed exercise at all! In addition, my deep sleep ranged from 30-90 minutes, depending on the night. Obviously a huge change for the better.

Looking back in my data, the Coca test picked up my egg & avocado sensitivity, but I ignored it :lol: I wasn't eating any dairy, so that sensitivity wasn't tested.

A quick version of the Coca pulse test is on p 3 of this PDF: The Q &D Coca Pulse Test - Empower Your Patients To Be Able To Check Themselves for Food Sensitivities.pdf (attached) In my case, I initailly did the original version of the test, I've done the Q&D a few times and others have tried it and given me positive feedback.

Food Sensitivity Testing with the LNT Coca Pulse Test
 Do this test 1-2 hours after eating or drinking anything. Start when you are mentally, emotionally and physically relaxed. Always take your pulse for one full minute... don’t take it for 30 seconds and multiply it by two.
 While sitting, take a deep breath and slowly exhale. Take your pulse by counting how many times your heart beats in one exact minute. It may be easiest to feel your pulse by placing two fingers on the upper right side of your neck. Record this pulse rate.
 Next, put a piece of the food in question in your mouth. It is okay to chew, but don’t swallow. Taste the food for at least 30 seconds. Then, take your pulse again for a full minute with the food in your mouth. Spit out the food and rinse your mouth with filtered water.
 If the pulse rate rises 6 or more points with a food, it indicates a stress reaction and that food should be avoided. Remember, food sensitivities can heal through diet and lifestyle changes, so it will be possible to re-test and reintroduce these foods after a period of healing.
 Let the pulse return to the baseline before testing with a different food.

Separately, I practice slow nasal breathing during the day to increase serum CO2 toloerance & tape my mouth at night. A afibber friend who uses a CPAP said his data showed much better sleep with mouth taping with the CPAP. In my case, mouth taping eliminates my apnea: [www.afibbers.org]


Doing this pulse test with a pulse oximeter[
(which I've not done - this is a 1/21/26 edited add on}. The following is quoted from the source and "I' is the author, not me, as I've not done it using this method. Source

Anyway, this is how I have used the Coca Pulse Test Method throughout the years:
Because manually taking a pulse causes movement that may influence the pulse, I chose to use one of these inexpensive Finger Oximeters, which you can purchase for about $20 US on Amazon, or about $40 Canadian on Amazon. The prices have doubled over the last couple of years. But once again, this is something that, in my opinion, everybody should learn because it not only replaces muscle testing, which I advocate for every one of you to learn to do, but it also proves the effectiveness of muscle testing.
1.) The individual being tested should lie on their back with their upper abdomen exposed, on a comfortable surface, and in a relaxed posture for at least 5 minutes before testing, with limited movement.
2.) Using an oximeter (most accurate and recommended), determine their resting heart rate. This will be the baseline heart rate and the standard against which all tests are compared. Leave the oximeter attached to the finger with the screen visible to you.
3.) Place a food or substance on the solar plexus and observe the heart rate changes on the oximeter. If the heart rate rises 3-5 beats per minute, there is a food sensitivity. If it rises 6 or more beats per minute, there is a full-on allergy. Remove food and wait 60 seconds before testing the next food!
4.) Incidentally, if the heart rate drops 3-5 beats per minute, this will be a food containing nutrients that the individual needs. If it drops 6 or more beats per minute, I classify that as a food that will heal the individual's body. An extreme need!
And that’s all there is to it. Wait one minute between tests, and don’t worry about how accurate the oximeter is, because it’s about the contrast of heart rate, and it doesn’t need to be exact in the measurement, just to show increases or decreases.
It doesn’t matter which model or brand name you buy. Because every one of them under $250 is junk, but that junk will work and do exactly what you want it to do.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/21/2026 09:44PM by GeorgeN.

Original Poster got me worried about taking Flonase. I have environmental allergies. I also have chronic sinusitis. I use a cpap, which I am told can aggravate the sinusitis.

So anyway, I checked with my pharmacist, a trusted family member, and she said she did not find much to indicate Flonase would aggravate a-fib.

Similarly, I checked with my allergy doctor, and he said continue Flonase despite Afib.

I know there in a non-steroid inhalant called Azelastine that has been prescribed for my allergies. Even though it is inhaled, it makes a bad taste in my mouth that lasts for 45 minutes. Plus, it does not help me much. My pharmacist says data shows it works on 60% of patients.

As far as the cpap, with my narrow nasal passages, I am forced to use nasal pillows. By attaching directly to my nostrils, the pressure tends to inflate my nose. (That is a good thing. If I use a facial mask, the air pressure on the outside of my nose closes my nasal passages right off.) The ones I use are the tap-pap which is held in place by my teeth, or the Bleep Sleep, which uses an adhesive attachment around my nose.

On Cpap, I use a band over my head to keep my mouth shut so it does not dry out. I also use a heated tube with the humidifier for maximum moisture. There are saline nasal sprays, but there is also a saline nasal get that is supposed to stay in place longer. I got a little statisfaction from that, but quit using it in the end.

I find that a nasal spray with Propolis helps quite a bit. The one I have is made by Beekeepers Friend. While Flonase doesn't bother me, it only seems to help if I use it intermittently.

Try NASOL nasal spray.with Capsaicin, Aloe, Sea Salt Rosemary , vitamin C. This will clean out your congested sinus's. Been using for a number of years.

Also, Neti Pot and Sinus Rinse bottle combo in A.M is very effective. If any sign of infection add some Lugol's iodine to the Neti Pot/ Sinus Rinse bottle total water used.