Sweet, Sweet Sinus Relief

I am an avid sufferer of allergic rhinitis and (self-diagnosed) chronic sinusitis. All that boils down to? I'm congested, deep in my sinuses, pretty much year round. Some times are better than other times, I'll be honest, but there are days, like today, when I wake up dry-mouthed and stuffy because I've been so congested I'm breathing through my mouth and not my nose.

There are a lot of OTC meds I can (and do!) avail myself of, but I have to be careful what I use because I am prone to nosebleeds. Nice, big, heavy, Old Faithful-like gushers, if I'm lucky, that take an age and a half to stop and leave me with headaches afterwards.

So I tend towards suffering through it, or slathering on the Mentholatum or Vicks VapoRub. Although occasionally, I will find myself going homeopathic, and I'd like to share with the rest of you snufflies out there my "miracle cure."

Vinegar. Mixed pickling spice.

I'm talking this and this mixed together:

It's really simple, and it's something that I found out when I was a little kid watching my gran make homemade pickles, but like a moron, I never put it together until my mother recommended it to me.

I don't measure when I do this, so any measurements I put up here should be construed as starting places. (Kind of like the Pirate Code; they're not rules, they're guidelines.)

2 cups distilled white vinegar
1 tbsp mixed pickling spice.

Mix them together in a pot on the stove, bring it to a boil. Stick your head carefully over the pot and breathe in deep. Alternatively, take the pot and place it on a trivet or other heat-resistant surface, breathe until the steam dies down, return to the stove and re-boil if you need a second treatment.

A Few Caveats To Be Aware Of:

• This is not for the faint of heart. By the first breath, you're already coughing and choking. Keep going. One whiff isn't enough.
• A dry towel over your head will keep the vapors in. You will want that.
• You will need tissues within close reach. Trust me.
• By the time the liquid has quit boiling, you're done. Immediately clear your head out by blowing your nose, and coughing a few good times.
• Have a cool drink or a cool cloth for your face, because you'll probably be a little overheated by this point.

Repeat as needed.