Hello,
I was not planning to write here anything, but I think I have a weak moment. I may need your advice. I will be very thankful for every advice you can give me guys. I apologize in advance for (longer) post.

My dad is very bad on it health wise. Since new years eve his nose started becoming very very stuffed, either one nostril or both, almost always after some time when he lays down on bed. He hasnt slept almost at all for 8 months now, it is worst at night, he usually sleeps for only couple of hours each night, and here and there during the day.ENT doctor hasnt found anything, no nasal polips, just slightly deviated septum (which may or may not help, but can possibly make things much worse), he also has diagnosed chronic rhinitis (he had swollen mucous membranes when he visited ENT).
Since then he visited multiple doctors, from cardiologist, to pneumologist, and general doctor. Hearth is ok, had tests done (but he feels pressure in his chest), lungs are ok. He was sent to sleep laboratory, where they diagnosed him with Central Sleep apnea (his brain doesnt give signal to breathe when he is asleep), IMO he has obstructive sleep apnoe as well, since he cant breathe through nose.
He tried CPAP machine, didnt work for him,made him feel worse, he received ASV machine which seems to work for 30-60 minutes, then it doesnt, his nose becomes stuffed despite him having the mask.Oximeter (while using asv) measured oxygen levels as low as 82 percent. He also had around 40 events per hour.
Nasal strips for snoring dont help, neither does nose dilator. Nasal sprays dont work, except for one that has Xylometazoline, which helps short term but makes muscous membranes even more swollen and much worse long term).
He had allergy tests done, they were ok.
Concerning is also fact that past few weeks he has been getting very dizzy at certain times, unusual for him.
He has a stubborn nature, I am certain that he has a physical problem as well since his nose become stuffed, but he also subjectively denies getting used to new way of sleeping, and fuctioning, so not sure how to approach that one and I am certain that he expects and worries each day that he will not sleep the following night.
How can I help him? His latest visit to ENT doctor (new one, for second opinion) was not good, he has not found anything,and said that it can be certain smells, food he eats, things he gets in contact with that may be causing the problem.
I advised him to stop eating dairy for at least month, I want to try a natural laundry detergent (soda for laundry), we have recuperation at home, which brings in a ton of dust, so it may be center of problem as well, not sure how to fix recuperation however. This is something we are only going to try now.
I am very afraid for him, his health declined rapidly over past 8 months. Not sure how to help him, whatever I looked up on net that could help turned out to be unsuccessful.
What could it possibly be? What should he do?

Thank you very much guys.

2 years ago*

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My dad had a (big) snoring problem and eventually after like 20 years started using a CPAP machine, which helped him.

I knew someone with COPD that slept with an oxygen tank, isn't that an option since his levels get low?

There is a lot of medical terms for the average joe to make most sense of it, which makes more sense to try any of many medical forums.

And offcourse it's an easy thing to say but obvious, exercise..

2 years ago
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Thank you for your advice :), he tried oxygen tank, did not work either :/.

2 years ago
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no alcohol
no pillow
practice sleeping with you head looking up. the way you position someones head when you give them cpr. it ensures air passages are as open as possible.

2 years ago
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thank you,we havent tried that. I will suggest it to him and he will try it out.
He tried sleeping in 45 degree angle, he slept great for one night and then other nights it didnt work at all. Basically, many things either did not work or worked for one night and then never again (which makes me believe that it is subjective as well, especially since I know his nature).

2 years ago
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does he drink?
edit
a lot of people lie to there doctor and dont tell them they drink every night. and if the doctor doesnt know that your ingesting alcohol every night then they end up diagnosing a person with sleep apnea instead of just informing the person that alcohol relaxes muscles in your air passages causing difficulty breathing wile unconscious.

2 years ago*
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not at all, alcohol triggers headaches for him, thanks for suggestion though :)

2 years ago
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ok. cool. thumbs up.
i cant say that my recommendation will fix his problem, but its an indisputable fact that sleeping in the position i described does in fact allow for the best air flow, unless your a republican then you can make up whatever bull shit you want about any medical condition to support your claim...
not poking fun at you, just the anti vax morons out there who think they know better then medical professionals.

no joke tell him to look up while laying on his back its %100 proven to increase air flow.
good luck and thanks for all the fish, im leaving this planet before the humans destroy it with there ignorance.

2 years ago
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nah, i am from europe :), we have completely different political sides here,lol.

What about sleeping in 45 degrees position? Is that good too? He tried 45 degress which helped him once and never again. I read it also helps patients with sleep apnea. What is the difference then between 45 degrees vs sleeping on bed without pillows (that is how I sleep for 10 years btw) ?

2 years ago
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sleeping on a tall pillow(45 deg) helps more for acid reflux and legit congestion from stuffy nose brought on from cold, flue, allergy's, ect.
tilting your head back/up is in fact the best position for maximum air flow.
but in the end this is the worse site to ask for intelligent feedback, after all most the people here are dumb enough to pre order digital copys of games and buy day 1 dlc. you wont find many intelligent people here. best to take your inquires to a website that medical professionals hang out on. hell, Yahoo Answers will provide better feedback then the people on this site.
facts are facts. tilting your head up wile sleeping is the best way to increase air flow. but as someone in his shoes its hard to train yourself to do it, but it WILL help, but WONT solve the problem.

2 years ago
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and if it is just his nose use nasal spray, sure it will destroy your scene of smell and taste but thats a small price to pay not to die in your sleep

2 years ago
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legit is the wrong word, but i assume you know what i mean

2 years ago
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Your Dad should try the dairy-free diet. I suffer from sinusitis and I have no idea what the cause of it is. I know I'm allergic to something, but never got tested to see what it is. But, when I gave up dairy, the problem lessened. Whenever I forget and have real milk or cheese, I get the headaches and the night time nasal drip and all that horrible stuff. I say thank God for vegans because there are plenty of dairy free options around now, so doesn't feel like I've given up anything.

In my case, I'm not allergic to dairy, it's just common knowledge that dairy thickens mucous making any of these conditions worse than they need to be. It won't cure him, but he should try it for a couple of weeks and see if things get easier for him.

2 years ago*
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thanks buddy, yes, I agree with you, I read on net as well that dairy was sometimes cause behind stuffed nose, it is something he is planning to exclude from his diet.

2 years ago
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That's good. I hope it improves for him.

2 years ago
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thanks dude :)

2 years ago
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Oh and I should say, just make sure that he sticks to it stringently for at least two weeks. No milk, cheese, chocolate, chocolate biscuits. Nothing. lol. Even a little bit can put you back at the start. It's hard, but so worth it if it works for him.

If he's anything like my Dad, my Dad is a brat. He's on a low fluid diet atm because he has hyponatremia and we have to keep an eye on him because he'll eat ice-cream or something behind our backs. He's only allowed 1 to 1.5 liters of fluid a day for now and that includes things that melt. Doctors are trying to get to the bottom of what's causing the low sodium.

2 years ago
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yep, my dad is like your dad :D.

2 years ago
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Haha!

2 years ago
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I second the dairy-free diet. My nephew had to cut dairy due to breathing and sleep issues, so it's something to try :)

2 years ago
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U said "we have recuperation at home, which brings in a ton of dust,." The dust is most likely the reason why his nose is so stuffy. U might try a "neti pot" which cleans out the nasal passages and helps people breath better. This is what Wiki says: Nasal irrigation is a personal hygiene practice in which the nasal cavity is washed to flush out mucus and debris from the nose and sinuses, in order to enhance nasal breathing. Nasal irrigation can also refer to the use of saline nasal spray or nebulizers to moisten the mucous membranes. Wikipedia
Hope u find a solution for him soon! Let us know how he is doing.

2 years ago
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2 years ago
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thanks for suggestion :),yes, he tried neti pot right at the beginning, did not work. It was one of the first things he tried. His nose does get stuffed but he is unable to get anything out, must be something else that is causing this problem.

2 years ago
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A friend of mine had similar issues.

He cut out processed foods (ones with preservatives and such).

After 2 weeks, his nose started dripping like crazy. All sorts of **** came out for a day or 2.

He feels much better now, and happily avoids processed foods.

Hope this helps.

2 years ago
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thanks, definitely helpful suggestion. Worth a try. But knowing my dad (he has problems cutting out dairy), seems like almost impossible task. Not sure how would I convince him.

2 years ago
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Has your dad done a rhinoscopy with the microcamera thing? I have a deviated septum too, and some of the turbines are elarged in a way that is not visible with the normal tool, and whenever the temperature falls below 20-25C my nose starts getting very stuffed too. A friend of mine with the same sumptoms had a surgery to shrink the turbines and straighten the septum and it changed his life, I plan on doing it too. Of course, it's best to consult a doctor who will actually do the posterior rhinoscopy correctly.

2 years ago
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Not at all, he visited 2 ENT doctors and both used only basic tool to look inside. I might try to call and get him to third one. Hopefully he will get it done. Thanks for suggestion :)

2 years ago
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Do you already have quality hepa air filters in his room? Is there any chance of mold in your home? He could try sleeping in a different room to see if his allergies are any better. You might try switching to everything fragrance-free (not unscented), laundry detergent, shampoo, deodorant, etc. Natural products aren't necessarily fragrance-free. It sounds like he needs to go to more doctors to find the root of the problem, as frustrating and time-consuming as that is.

2 years ago
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No mold I think, problem persisted when he went to different room, even when he went to a different city in different country for few days. His problem still persisted.
Dont have any air filters yet.
Yeah, I agree, it is good (and probably needed) to try different laundry detergent, I looked up yesterday that "Soda for laundry" exists, it is allergen free, and you use like 2 tablespoons for washing. With shampoos and soaps it will be good to go with baby shampoos and soaps I think, should be safer.
Thanks for suggestions :)

2 years ago
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First of all, I like that you care so much. I'm also impressed that people here can offer good advice on this subject.

I can't really offer good advice. I do suffer from a stuffed nose which at best allows partial air flow. This comes from allergy, most likely, since I'm allergic to a lot of stuff, but I never tried to pinpoint the cause, and at this point in life I'm quite used to it. I sleep well, breathing through my mouth when I can't breath through my nose. (I do snore when the situation is particularly bad, but not normally, far as I know.) The only times I really have trouble sleeping is during allergy seasons, when my nose runs during the night.

I think I remember that sleeping with a surgical mask (COVID mask) helped a little at some point when I tried it, though obviously anything that you put on your head adds to inconveience and so disturbs sleep.

I imagine that part of the problem with any of the solutions you mentioned is that he's not used to them. Anything you're not used to will bother you through the night, and it takes time to get used to new things. It's possible that if he just persists with something that helped, he will eventually get used to it. For example:

He tried sleeping in 45 degree angle, he slept great for one night and then other nights it didnt work at all.

It's possible that it helped, but for the first day he was just tired enough that it didn't bother him, and then, when he was feeling less tired, it bothered him because he's not used to it.

But since he was diagnosed with central sleep apnea, I'm not sure if any measures will really solve his problem.

2 years ago
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Thanks dude :), good that you learned how to breath through your mouth. ENT doctor and my family were telling him that he should learn how to do that but he said he doesnt know how to and thats it. He never tried for past 8 months.
I dont think issue really was him being tired, as he has various nights, some when he is tired more,some where less even when trying new things. They always worked but only for the first day
Last ENT doctor said that central apnea and his stuffed nose are two separate problems, he has main issue with his stuffed nose unfortunately.

2 years ago
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I don't think it has been mentioned, so...is your father overweight by any chance? That's like, one of the (if not the) main cause of sleep apnea.
Visiting a gastroenterologist (if you haven't already) is a must as well. Gastroesophageal reflux is often a cause.

2 years ago
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Yep, he has acid reflux but he takes Ozzion for that.
Not overweight I would say, not slim either, I think that something in the middle, slim but with beer belly (he doesnt drink alcohol though). He has body common for his age.

2 years ago
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My mother had a client who couldn't sleep much as well ~1-2 hours a night. Bad health obviously followed. He learned to meditate for a few hours, so his mind and body can actually rest. But sounds hard to convince your father? Not sure if you can force some professional courses onto him.
But does not solve the nose problem at all.

Ever tried some vacation, or moving out for a week, hotel with totally different food, different air.


Did you measure the humidity at home? Especially in winter it's pretty bad for me as well <20-25% sometimes, spring was also <30%. Even with air humidifiers.
40% - max. 60% would be good. Too much humidity could indicate fungus and spores.
To little or to much(danger of spores) will be bad for the nose.

Not sure where you live, 8 months ago was winter as well.

2 years ago
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I suppose I can try convince him for meditation, but knowing him he will probably find it useless before even trying it. He doesnt think that there is any chance of problem being partially in his head.

Humidity I think not, but we have recuperation on which should keep humidity stable at normal levels.

2 years ago
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My advice would be
Sleeping with your head up without Pillow.
Clean the room hes sleeping in .
He should make some Gymnastic or Yoga (Not much just a little bit stretching here and there) .(Morning/Evening)
And hes probably stressed a massage on the neck with an relaxed atmosphere should help too .
He has probably some pinched nerves .
It could take 1-3weeks or 3-6months until it goes away
Im no expert but his symptoms so far indicate it for me atleast .
I would advise against too much sugary drinks,Energy drinks,Alcohol.
And he shouldnt sleep with his smartphone close by thats connected Wifi.

2 years ago*
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thanks dude, yep, told him to sleep without pillow, he has yet to try it :).
But the rest of the things are all right, clean room, no alcohol, smartphone in different room, etc. :).

2 years ago
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My dad uses CPAP machine, but other than that he doesn't do anything for it. He's not super healthy.
Exercise + medication, basically what everyone else is suggesting. If your dad smokes or drinks it would help if he stops.

2 years ago
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You could try looking into allergies. There is a simple blood test called RAST or a skin test that can check for allergies and may give you more of an idea of what is going on with his nasal issues.

2 years ago
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You mentioned he had allergy tests done. Do you know what kind of tests they were?
My brother had similar problems and allergy tests came up fine but he was still getting relief from Antihistamines so he went to a specialist that ended up finding he had allergies not to one thing but to a combination of some specific pollen and some other thing (I can't remember what it was but it was something food related) so the tests he had done before couldn't isolate the cause.

Long story short, did your dad try any form of Antihistamines?

Also, not to cast aspersion on the medical profession, but some doctors can be very focused on the little part of the machine in front of them, so seeking second and third advice might produce different results. It took years for my sister to be correctly diagnosed with a syndrome that causes her asthma and nasal polyps. She now uses intranasal corticoids and can breathe all through the night, which wasn't always the case.

2 years ago
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When I did Keto diet and lost weight, the first thing I noticed is that I slept better and stopped snoring.
I have since gained half the weight back and am getting occasional complaints of my snoring.

Just an thought as weight does affect sleep and snoring.

2 years ago
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I've read through all the comments so far, and saw that nobody has asked suggested this.
I did have a couple questions though

Does the blockage usually also constitute a runny nose?
Is there any mucus that he can actually feel in his nose? Or is it stuffiness further back?
As a follow on: does his voice sound 'stuffy'?
And lastly: does he feel any 'pressure' or 'tightness' in his eyes/ face?

One suggestion I can give would be warm water vapor, a natural way to do this is just taking a warm shower, and breathing through the nose normally which will bring warm water vapor through the nasal passage.
So do you happen to know if the blockage get's any better after he has a warm shower?
If it does, then you could try getting a pot of steamy water and have him lean over it for short time periods to breathe it in. I would also suggest he drapes a towel over his head and the pot during this. If this does help, it is most likeley a temporary fix, but at least it gives more information for what it could be. As if warm vapor helps with the problem then it is likeley inflamation/ swelling somewhere in the nasal passage. My main suspicion is sinuses.

The other important thing is to drink a lot of water/ fluids. Is he getting enough water to drink each day?

Sorry for not having many tips, but it seems like you've already tried so much. I hope you can figure out something which helps.

2 years ago
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I had some problems with breathing when trying to go to sleep.
So far it turns out its caused by Gastroesophageal reflux disease.
I know i cannot eat some food, especially milk in all shapes and forms and most of milk products. Also coffee.
Its not as severe as you posted but i know what is it like trying to catch a breath while you cant.
I had a bad cough for like 20 years, also related to milk and milk related products.
That cough was many times started by certain smell or some specific strong scents. Or it started by no reason at all, or i couldnt find and trigger.
Good diagnose is a key.
There i was, thinking im eating decent food.

Maybe try to get rid of milk for few weeks ? It took me some time to see the difference after i stopped using milk and co.
And the doctor said it wasnt allergy. Intolerance ? Dunno.

Asthma ?

2 years ago*
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Hi, I hope you get to the bottom of the problem!

2 years ago
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Sounds like traditional medicine is failing you. Maybe search out a good, reputable naturopathic doctor. TCM and acupuncture might also be helpful.

2 years ago
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