It Snot Funny... A "Dog Days of Summer" Rant

I hate this time of year.  The final days of Summer and the beginnings of Fall when my sinuses go haywire. I don't have any allergies, but for some strange reason, they go into overdrive and produce more mucus than normal making sleep nearly impossible.

Why, you may ask?  I suffer from what used to be called "Post Nasal Drip".  They used to have commercials about it back in the '60s and the medicine to help alleviate the symptoms.  Basically what happens is when you lay down to sleep, your sinuses suddenly decide to drain, right down your throat.  Normally this isn't a problem since it is usually  thin and just goes down your esophagus and you swallow it.  Yeah, disgusting isn't it, but harmless for the most part.

Now comes the fun part.  The usually thin mucus is thicker, yet still fluid enough to flow kind of like molasses, and therein lies the problem.  When you lie back to begin the entry into dreamland something happens.  Why, I don't know.  What I do know is that about 10 to 15 minutes after you lay back and just before sleep takes you, a glob of thick gooey snot is released from your sinuses, flows down your throat and clogs your windpipe. This is usually not a big problem, a little cough and a quick swallow and back to dreamland.  It's an automatic thing and nothing to worry about, but, when you are exhaling and it drops just as you begin the inhale, it clogs things and and you wake up in a panic unable to inhale or cough enough to dislodge that glob of snot that's clogging the works for a few seconds.  If you're lucky, you can hang off the side of the bed while gasping for breath and get it to dislodge so you can take that deep breath you need.  If not, well you might shuffle off this mortal coil and it looks like sleep apnea did you in.

For me, sleeping in a semi upright position helps and that means lots of pillows to keep me raised.  Now comes the next bit of fun.  This time of year the humidity at night is higher than normal and the sweat just lays there on you.  The fan in my room helps a little, but waking up wet and clammy and sticky is not  pleasant even under the best of circumstances, but couple that with choking on your own snot makes for a long line of sleepless night and you wander through your days like a Zombie, barely aware of your surroundings, yearning for that deep, restful sleep that eludes you.  You get cranky and snap at your loved ones and can't think clearly.  Even simple routine things become difficult, like reading a book or trying to watch a movie without your vision going wonky and suddenly falling asleep and snapping awake with a snort wondering what happened, or giving in for a power nap to  revive your self then feeling like you're climbing out of a deep pit before you can fully function. Such is Life during the Dog Days of Summer.

I can't wait for November when things finally begin to cool down!