Call it what you will -- nasal congestion, sinus congestion, a stuffy nose, stuck boogers, or what-have-you -- you must be a pretty miserable person right now. Sinus congestion can mean boogers pouring out of your nose in the front and severe sinus blockage in the back. Whenever my nose is stuffy, I end up sleeping on my face and waking up gasping and drooling on myself in the morning. Sometimes, I’m lucky enough to have to use a Q-tip and my fingernails to get crusted snot off of my nose ring.
There are many causes of a stuffy nose, and it’s often best to treat the cause and not simply the symptom. Things such as hay fever, cat or dog allergies, a common cold, flu, a sinus infection, sinusitis, sinus irritation and smoking can cause a stuffy nose. Often it’s easy enough to tell what’s causing the problem. Once you’ve removed the problem, it’s easy enough to temporarily treat the symptoms and offer yourself that double dose of relief.
Get Rid of Sinus Congestion
Staying hydrated will help naturally relieve nasal congestion. There’s no doubt that water fixes almost everything. It makes up the vast majority of each of our cells, and so the vast majority of the human body. Keeping enough fluid pumping through us can help with everything from losing weight to fighting disease, lethargy and even depression. So when you have a stuffy nose, the most natural way to get rid of that congestion is to put a little extra fluid in your body. Water is great, but you can also try natural fruit juice, commercial products such as Pedialyte or Gatorade, or green tea with a bit of honey. Your body wants you to breathe from your nose, so it’ll fight the fight for you as long as it has the fluid to do it with. 
Use an OTC decongestant to get rid of nasal congestion. This is the quickest, though not necessarily the surest, way to get rid of a stuffy nose. Many over-the-counter drugs can get rid of a stuffy nose to one degree or another. Whenever you’re poking through the medicines at the local Walgreens at two in the morning, look for the term “decongestant.” Sudafed or Claritin-D is probably your best bet, though they will be (depending on your state) locked away behind the counter. In lieu of those, look for medicines that are simply decongestants and are made only for decongesting. Chances are that those medicines will have a more effective dose to help you get rid of your stuffy nose.
Antihistamines can help relieve sinus congestion. Antihistamines are fairly cheap and are easy enough to come by. Whatever it is you’re allergic to, be it grass, pollen, flowers, mold, or cats, an antihistamine will help get rid of allergy symptoms. In some situations, it’s difficult or impossible to get rid of the allergen making you miserable, i.e., you can’t ask your neighbor to burn their lawn into the dirt because you have a stuffy nose. And I would never recommend the shaving of a feline (which wouldn’t help anyways). So if you can’t get rid of the cat or the grass, then keep a steady supply of OTC or even prescription antihistamines on hand to combat the sinus congestion symptoms. 
Take an anti-inflammatory drug to help get rid of nasal congestion. With all that crud sifting around your sinuses, it’s no wonder that they become irritated and inflamed. Whether it’s sinus congestion due to sinus infection, a common cold, flu, allergies, or simply blowing your nose like a Brahma bull, your sinus tissue may be inflamed. Taking an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drug can help to reduce the swelling, tenderness and pain of inflamed sinus tissue. A common anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen is cheap, easy to find, and can get rid of the pain and help unclog congested sinuses. Of course, it’s only temporary relief and doesn’t treat any underlying medical problems, but there’s nothing wrong with a little temporary relief. 
See your doctor to help get rid of sinus congestion. Yes, it’s a wild idea to go see your doctor to help you with your stuffy nose. But doctors, as usual, have access to a wide array of prescription decongestants, antihistamines and many other drugs to help treat the symptoms of your nasal congestion. Even better yet, your doctor could probably not only figure out what’s causing your nasal congestion, such as allergies or sinusitis, but may also be able to treat that underlying condition instead of just the symptoms. If your doctor can treat what causes sinus congestion, your symptoms can be gone in hours. Signs You Should See a Doctor
Often, a stuffy nose isn't the only symptom a person suffers at a single time. Sometimes it’s a difficult call to decide when to visit a doctor, and when to simply take a sick day and watch reruns of House. Some symptoms are signals that you should visit a doctor right away. These include, but are not limited to:
- High or prolonged fever
- Alterations in vision
- Swelling of the face or nose
- Neon-colored mucus in your nose or throat
- White spots on your throat or tonsils
- Rash
- Cough lasting more than seven days
- Difficulty breathing
