Oxygen intake through your nose - Sinuplasty surgery by an ENT Doctor

No, but have you tried hayfever allergy pills? They send to open up my nose quite a bit - and I don't have loads of allergies 

I’ve been considering this surgery for many many years now, just have not gotten the courage to do it. I have a deviated septum in three places, plus allergies. One nostril is 100% blocked at all times, or both are 50% blocked.

I had a sinus endoscopy, (so maybe a bit different then your situations)because of a sinus infection that would not go away. One sinus was full of mucus/infection the other about 50%. Could not breath through my nose for shit. Getting the surgery was the best decision I made. It’s been close to 10 years and I haven’t had any problems. The first two weeks after surgery I couldn’t blow my nose or sneeze was the worst part.  I think it’s 100% worth it, you kind of forget how much easier it is to breath correctly.  Just make sure you have a good surgeon/ent doing it. 

I had a septoplasty at the end of 2001. I’ve had pollen allergies all my life and that summer I was having a terrible time with my sinuses swelling up, and not being able to breathe properly, after every ride. My allergies typically didn’t / don't bother me in the summer.

When I went to the ENT doctor, the first thing he said when he looked up my nose was, “Oh boy”.   I have / had a pretty badly deviated septum and didn’t really realize it.

The surgery itself wasn’t that big of a deal, but the recovery was pretty rough for me. I had packing up my nose for a week and had to have a pad of gauze taped across my upper lip to absorb the leakage. I had to change that gauze every few hours. When I got the packing out, it was a whole new world, but still no nose blowing or sneezing for several weeks. I was also totally wiped out for several weeks. I think the surgery triggered Epstein Barr in me. I wasn’t tested at the time, but have had a round of Epstein Barr since then and the symptoms were the same. Not saying the surgery will give you Epstein Barr, but your sinuses are pretty delicate, and it does do a number on your body. For reference, I’ve also had two minor arthroscopic knee surgeries, and those were like getting a haircut compared to the sinus surgery as far as the recovery went.

Overall I’m glad I did it. My sinuses still aren’t perfect and there were/ are some negatives, but the positives are much greater. I can breathe better overall. My nose doesn’t get as runny / stuffy as it used to. And, yes your sinuses do act a bit like a third lung, so I do get better oxygen flow. When my allergies flare up its not as bad and I can still breath much better than before. The only lasting negative is that I will on very rare occasions get a minor nose bleed, and it’s always on the side the doctor did the most work on. Still sensitive I guess. I also use a neti pot everyday now, and I find that very beneficial.

I had surgery for deviated septum a few years back and it was definitely an upgrade.  It hurt like hell for a long time, though!  But it definitely made it easier to take a deeper breath through the nose and helped with snoring at night as well.  I didn't get the type of surgery where they enlarge both of the nostrils, but it still helped a ton especially when exercising.  

Upgrade for sure but painful recovery 

My wife had it done ,that's as close as I ever want to get to the 3 days after the surgery.

I had an ENT fix my deviated septum. I could barely breathe through my nose during the day. Huge bummer, now I almost never feel stuffed up. It’s made my life way better. However, when you’re doing anything above zone 2, you really have to use your mouth no matter who you are. Maybe it helps a bit for moto and high intensity stuff. But I’d do it more for the other 23 hours of the day. 

Hurt a bit the first couple days. I was fine in a week, riding again in two. I had a good surgeon and was diligent about keeping it clean with saline. 

5 surgeries on the air intake so far.  1st made the biggest difference. 

Mine worked, my sons didn’t. My breathing is a lot better. It’s a miserable recovery, but it was worth it for me.  

Had mine done after also breaking my face. The ENT was shocked i just lived with the poor nasal cavities as i did until i broke my ocular bone in 4 places. One was plugged on entry and other was clasped internally. Surgery went well and recovery wasnt the worst Ive had, just slept in the lazy boy recliner for a week.  I didn't even take anything pain wise after discharge, but everyone has a different pain threshold. 

When i went to have the stints removed the assistant asked how my breathing was before she pulled them and i said about the same, maybe a tough worse. She said just you wait, and after she pulled them i was shocked at how restricted i was. Night and Day better. 

I had sinuplasty as one side was closed off and I was getting chronic sinus infections. I also had bad allergies that kept my sinuses swollen and closed off even after the surgery. Once I got the allergies sorted (immunotherapy) I could realize the affect of the surgery and it is great.

That being said, have you had an ENT check out your sinus structure? If your sinus cavities are already open I'm not sure you'll get much benefit from the procedure. 

My wife had the sinus surgery and swears she'll never try anything like that again. It didn't help her and the recovery was miserable. 

I do all of my cardio nose breathing. Doesn’t matter for me. High intensity rower intervals or marathon prep. Had septoplasty done back in 2010. Had turbinate(not sure if that’s the right word) reduction in office September 2023. Both nostrils are more consistent now. 

Ammonia Smelling Salts on the line before you take off. Trust. You will be able to breath wayyy better. 

The first one i had they didnt use stints. They used a gel which completely blocked off both sides so i was a mouth breather for a few days.  then one day i started coughing and out came a huge ass black glob of goo.  i wanted to stare at it in amazement and disgust but was overwhelmed by how damn well i could breath.  all the others had little to no improvement. i still get a lot of sinus infections. The last procedure the ENT Doc pretty much stuck a pry bay up my nose stood on the chair and put his weight on it. no idea what the hell that was supposed to do but oh well....  might need to schedule another appointment with an ENT since its been a good 8 years or so.  I know i was getting a lot of polyps growing up there and u=im sure im restricted again.