Pregnancy rhinitis

Question

Does anyone here have nasal congestion especially during sleep? Im currently at my second trimester week 16. The nasal congestion started about 5 days ago and I visited a GP 2 days ago. Was prescribed nasal decongestion (oxymetazolin) for 5 days which works well but I realised the congestion has worsen after the effect of the medicine has worn off. The nasal congestion have been causing me sleep disruption (I wake up because I cant breath) resulting in daytime lethargy. I use a humidifier at night because I read online that it helps, but so far it didnt. I am also scared to use the decongestion even though it helps because the GP is not gynae trained and when I googled the decongestion that was prescribed, most articles says theres insufficient studies in pregnancy. Anyone else out there facing the same issue? Im quite desperate now with 5 days of sleep disruption. Should I just continue the decongestion? #1stimemom #advicepls #pleasehelpUpdate: i stopped using the nasal decongestion and tolerated breathing with my mouth for a few days. Subsequently got better. Still using nasonex as clearance is given by my obstetrician 👍

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

If your congestion started lately, it is good to look around for sources of the allergy. Rhinitis can arise from some things around you, and dust is one such example. For starters, you can look around your sleeping area for possible allergens which you know you’re allergic to. If it is dust, take a look at your fan if you’re using a fan when you sleep to see if it’s dusty, as well as areas around your room which can trap dust. Also, try not to point the fan at yourself when you sleep, as it can worsen the rhinitis if the allergic reaction was indeed due to dust. The action of pointing the fan at yourself does cool you more, but the flip side of it is that more dust gets blown at you, which ends up breathed in when you sleep, and that in turn would cause the rhinitis. Hope this helps.