I am a 16 year old male. I have suffered from nasal congestion and post-nasal drip for 3 years. During those years, I thought it was mad weird, only one side of my nose worked and NEVER (rarely) both work at the same time. The problem alternated because sometimes one side would relax and it would switch to the other side. So basically, I've been living with this for 3 years or so. I decided to go the doctor, a nose specialist, I think. He checked it up and said it could be sinusitis but it wasn't and he wanted me to take a allergy test because I have a cat at home. I've had a cat for 3 years or more. So I took a skin allergy test and it turned out... unfortunately, I was allergic to the cat. Also to dogs, dust mites, some tree, german cockroaches (ewww). Now, it turns out this problem was probably from the cat dander so I decided to lock him out of my room and purchased a air filter. It kinda helped, I had taken fluticonase spray and saline and claritin-D but... no help. I still have only 1 nasal passage functioning. I had to go back to the doc's because he wanted to check up. So, first of all, I couldn't get rid of the cat as my sister and family loved it. Now, I don't really think it's the cat's fault anymore, it must be the dust mites. So... what if it even wasn't allergies, could it be vasomotor rhinitis? I saw on the diagnosis thingy, I had chronic rhinitis and the middle turbinates swell. When I look up my nose with a flashlight and mirror, I could see a muscle like thing blocking the passage. Anyway, I hope this helps: when I stick my index finger in the right side of my nose, about 2 inches up, I feel the muscle thing, I could push it towards the right, its like a flimsy muscle thing and I feel bone at the back. If I sleep next to the cat for too long my eyes may get red, if he scratches me, I get a raised bump where he scratched me. I'm leaving for college in about a year so, that might help but still. One last thing, I sometimes if I put the index finger 2 inches or 2 1/2 inches and pull it back, I see blood on the fingers, sometimes bloody snot comes out hardened. I used Afrin but rarely when I really need it (due to rebound effect) and when I use it, it works but the rebound effect..... When I sleep, the nasal congestion is the worse.
-K (Just call me K for now)