How to Get Rid of a Cold Quickly

I'll tell you how to get over a cold quickly. Many people catch colds during times of large temperature differences between day and night. Among them, many people suffer from a stuffy nose. Your nose runs constantly, mucus drips down the back of your throat, and your nose is stuffy, so you breathe through your mouth, which makes your throat dry, your head aches, and so on. There are more people suffering like this than you might think. I'll tell you the secret to getting over a stuffy nose quickly.

1. Understanding the Difference Between a Cold and Allergic Rhinitis

The first thing I want to emphasize is understanding the difference between a common cold and allergic rhinitis. A cold is an infection caused by a virus or bacteria that causes an inflammatory reaction in the nasal mucosa, and the nasal mucus becomes thicker and thicker. If treatment is delayed, it can progress to sinusitis, and the mucus can run down the back of the throat, causing coughing, fever, or headaches.

These symptoms usually appear suddenly and disappear within about a week. On the other hand, allergic rhinitis is caused by an overreaction of the nasal mucosa to a specific allergen. It is accompanied by a series of continuous sneezes, a runny nose with clear mucus, nasal congestion, itching of the eyes or palate, and fatigue.

Unlike colds, there's usually no fever or body aches, and the symptoms persist until the allergen is gone. The symptoms are quite similar. So, if you want to get over a cold quickly, it's important to first know if it's a genuine cold. Instead of making hasty judgments, it's better to get a proper diagnosis and examination to prevent the condition from worsening.

2. Thorough Hygiene Management

Since a common cold is an infection with a cold virus, thorough hygiene management is necessary to prevent infection from others and to prevent spreading it to others. When coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth and nose with your sleeve, wash your hands thoroughly, and wear a mask to prevent yourself and others from getting infected. Also, make sure to dispose of used tissues properly.

There's a proper way to blow your nose. Usually, people blow their nose by holding a tissue to both nostrils, but if you blow too hard, it can increase the risk of spreading the inflammation in your nose to your sinuses or Eustachian tubes. Therefore, blowing one nostril at a time is a more effective way to remove mucus and prevent infection in other areas.

Also, if one ear feels stuffy after blowing your nose, you can block that ear with your hand and blow your nose with the other hand. This can prevent mucus or air pressure from entering the middle ear through the Eustachian tube.

3. Maintaining a Moist Environment

Due to a cold, you may experience a constant runny nose and nasal congestion, leading to a feeling of pain in your nasal passages. If your nasal mucosa swells too much, these symptoms can worsen. That's why the third step I recommend for getting over a cold quickly is to maintain a moist environment.

Slightly dampening a towel and microwaving it for about 30 seconds to warm it up, then holding it to your nose and breathing can be effective in relieving symptoms by delivering warm air into your nasal passages.

Taking a hot shower can also help moisten your nasal mucosa with steam, making it easier to blow your nose or relieve other nasal symptoms. It's also a good idea to use a humidifier to keep your surroundings from becoming too dry.

If you still find the cold symptoms difficult to manage despite these measures and want to shorten the duration of the symptoms, taking medication can also be an option.

4. Choosing the Right Cold Medication

Let me explain which medications are good for a common cold. There are over 200 types of cold viruses, so there's no specific cure. Instead, treatment focuses on managing the symptoms, also known as symptomatic treatment. This means treating each symptom, such as a runny nose, fever, or headache, individually. So, when choosing cold medication, you should select the one that addresses your most bothersome symptoms.

Cold medications that include the words 'nose' or 'nasal' are generally for stuffy noses. They primarily work by constricting capillaries to relieve nasal congestion and prevent mucus buildup around the nose. However, if you have high blood pressure or benign prostatic hyperplasia, you should consult a doctor before taking these medications. If you're struggling with body aches, headaches, or fever, you can take an antipyretic and analgesic medication.

Antihistamines

Antihistamines are commonly referred to as allergy medications, and they are effective in relieving the most bothersome symptoms of a cold: runny nose and sneezing. However, allergy medications can make you drowsy.

Since they work by suppressing the body's overreaction, they can cause sedation and drowsiness, making daily life difficult. In such cases, choosing a second-generation antihistamine like 'Mexitazine', which has reduced drowsiness, or one containing caffeine, which has a stimulant effect, is a good strategy.

These second-generation antihistamines improve drowsiness, dry mouth, and dry eyes, and they have a longer duration of action, making them more effective. Second-generation antihistamines typically last about 8 hours, so you only need to take them once a day, which is convenient. The symptoms of a common cold and allergic rhinitis are so similar that allergy medications are also used for colds.

And most importantly, when you have a cold and your condition is not good, you should absolutely avoid overexerting yourself. When you're tired or stressed, your body's healing ability decreases, so it's important to get enough sleep, eat well, and avoid overdoing it. Don't forget that resting is crucial.