Any experience with non-allergic / vasomotor rhinitis?

Hi there,

I haven't posted in a while, but I have been doing the work, and doing pretty well for the past year. When I joined this forum last May, I was suffering with arm and wrist pain that I feared would become debilitating. One year later, I have tackled a lot of the issues that were weighing on me and have completely changed my life as well as my relationship to pain. I have moved back to my home town, living in a better environment, and now have a job that revolves around typing all day - something that would have terrified me a year ago!

I still have arm and wrist pain occasionally, but it does not bother me and often passes as quickly as it comes. Pain of any kind doesn't bother me too much anymore.

However, I have recently been rocked by a recurrence of non-allergic (or vasomotor) rhinitis. I suffered with a perpetually blocked left nostril for 3 years - between May 2019 and June 2022. - due to swollen turbinates and a deviated septum. Eventually, I had surgery that relieved the swelling and allowed me to breathe through my nose better. It also took care of the frequent nose bleeds with which I had suffered since childhood. However, over the past 3 weeks, my nose has become increasingly congested - at first I thought it may be a cold coming on, and was not bothered. Then, when it persisted, maybe sinusitis - which bothered me a bit as it is a more drawn out infection - but I still didn't care. When it carried on, and I realised that I had no other symptoms - no coughing, no green mucus, no fever, no fatigue etc. - and that only my left nostril was blocked - I realised that I was suffering a recurrence of non-allergic rhinitis. I was devastated and have been in an ever deepening anxiety pit this last couple of days. It is more than just a blocked nose - it affects my ears, my breathing (feel out of breath constantly as I cannot take full breaths), and I have bouts of head pressure and dizziness with it. It makes sleeping harder, and creates a feeling of perpetual unpleasantness in the middle of my face that can be hard to distract myself from when it is at its worst.

The biggest reason I am angry at myself is because I believe I may have caused this - as for the past few months, i have been smoking weed on weekends and I believe this to have greatly irritated my nose. The stupidest thing is, I know damn well that just being around smoke irritates my nose and makes me feel stuffy - so mainlining it in there feels extra stupid. I am trying to do the Sarno work, but as the eternal struggle goes, I cannot get past this being a genuine, structural issue. Every time I smoked weed, I felt that nostril close a bit - but I didn't care as I was high. Twice, when I maybe smoked way too much, I felt like I was drowning - my full throat and lungs felt full of water - they were the worst experiences of my life, and those alone should have made me stop. I have seen a doctor, and he said it is extremely enflamed and pussy. I know from past experience that nothing makes it go away - there's just days when its more or less blocked. Sprays and rinses do nothing. But, I have read that 'vasomotor rhinitis' has been vaguely linked to the autonomic nervous system and emotional states - which sounds very sarno-esque, and is making me think once again, that this could be a TMS manifestation - but its very hard to find anyone online who has actually resolved this with anything other than surgery.

Has anyone had experience of conquering non-allergic - or indeed allergic rhinitis using Sarno's methods?

Sorry for the ramble, but its good to get stuff out.... thanks for any advice and help, as ever. this forum and the work it highlights has really helped change my life.

 

So technically, you are not medically diagnosed as having "vasomotor rhinitis" or even allergic rhinitis right now?
You have a runny nose.
It's best to stay away from self diagnosing, as that is total catastrophic thinking - you've already scared yourself by thinking surgery is an option, and that this is some sort of a "disease".
Have you considered that maybe you're just having an allergic reaction to smoke?
Allergies themselves can sometimes be attributed to TMS, and at least the amount that they interfere with life is most certainly a TMS type response in many people.
You are "devastated" and "anxious". This is absolutely part of the TMS cycle - and increases the nervous system response to symptoms - and TMS symptoms often include depression ... and anxiety.
Have you considered the fact that this is a minor setback in which you may quite easily overcome by reviewing the work that Dr. Sarno set out for us to do?
Refresh yourself by reading Sarno - think PSYCHOLOGICALLY. Why not explore the feelings and emotions that led you to want to start smoking pot? Perhaps you were unconsciously already feeling anxiety, or were using it to block emotions? Explore the emotions and self pressure you feel about smoking pot, and most assuredly your incredible self-pressure to relieve yourself of these symptoms.

Perhaps you were simply not totally finished with "the work" and needed a refresher. It often happens that TMS evolves like the "peeling of an onion" for the emotional work. You can get to a certain point with it and alleviate most symptoms, but then a trigger of some kind, or a slow build up of internal stress once again makes it easy to fall into old coping patterns that created the TMS symptoms in the first place. It just takes a little more peeling on the onion.

The point is that we are going to feel stuff, and sometimes have symptoms. The pitfall is freaking out. The success is not letting the symptoms play into the inner stress and create suffering. Have confidence that you are absolutely a TMS success and have the skills to overcome your symptoms.

 

Hi @james9494 ,

I’m writing to you right now because your “symptoms” sound a lot like mine. (I try not to speak about symptoms whenever I post here because I do believe that “one person’s back pain is another’s migraine is another’s chronic fatigue,” i.e. that symptoms are equivalent and interchangeable, but I identify with yours, all the same.)

You clearly feel guilty about smoking. (I relate to this feeling, too, by the way.) Keep in mind that guilt, regret, self-flagellation is part of the TMS cycle. While it is natural to think back on “what caused this to happen,” it’s too too easy for guilt and regret to warp the picture.

While I can’t say this with any authority, it seems highly unlikely to me that a few months of marijuana could do anything “physical” enough to harm you to such an extent. If you ask most other people, I think they’d say the same. (If you were chronic with it for years, that might be a different story. But still.)

On the other hand, guilt—regret—self-flagellation: these are core ingredients of the TMS elixir. Add in the special property marijuana gives, that of narrowing attention (read: hyper-fixation), and boom. There you go.

Now, I realize the bias many have towards their pain, that their pain is the worst. (Catastrophizing.) I hear you when you say, however, that it’s hard to ignore pain in the face. The head is the HQ, where the important senses live. If TMS theory states that symptoms are a distraction, well, great job, TMS—you’re distracting this guy pretty well.

I’ve been mystified by my own nose symptoms. So have doctors. The nose is actually a very underestimated piece of machinery, however: its linings are extremely sensitive and adaptive. (James Nestor in “Breath” talks about this.) I bring this up because whatever you are feeling, “you” are sooooo close to it that it’s hard to see the bigger picture and de-emphasize what’s happening. You know the phrase, follow your nose? Well, you’ve been following your nose back to ….. your nose.

For a conclusion, let me say that, yeah, your emotional state and attitude make TMS seem a high probability; yeah, the brain is very capable of creating symptoms in a sensitive and obvious location of the body; and finally, I’m still in the woods myself, but that’s because I’m a resistant little fucker.

I appreciate your post because it helps me see myself better as it also, I hope, provides some assistance to you. You’ve had good success in the past with other symptoms. Use that past success for present perseverence!