re: Anyone ever had the balloon sinus surgery?

I used to get 4+ sinus infections a year. I was sick of burning all my PTO on being sick so the next time I heard the radio ad I wrote the number down and signed up for it.

I was probably in the office for 2 hours, the first half of it being spent on numbing your nose. You're awake for the procedure but highly relaxed from the meds. Doc even put on pandora for my listening pleasure.

You feel a little pressure from the balloons (which are extremely small) and you can hear the sinus cavities popping as they expand. He said I had one of the worst sinus structures he had seen so I might have taken longer than the typical patient. The worst part was when he was deep inside my nose he bumped the septum with a tool and it felt like someone punched me in the nose.

My nose bled a little on the way home. I went to work the next day with no problem. It was uncomfortable not being allowed to blow my nose for a few days.

Fast forward about 3 years and I don't think I've had a bacterial infection since. Had one or two viral infections. My sinuses now drain as intended and I feel nasal drip in my throat whereas before it would just fester in my nose and turn into a sinus infection. If my allergies act up I can pop a benadryl at bedtime and the next morning I'm all cleared up instead of calling in to work the next day. I recommend it to anyone who is considering. I've struggled all my life with allergy and sinus issues. I've done shots, had other nose surgeries, tried every medicine related to allergies/sinuses and the balloon sinuplasty is by far the easiest and most effective of all the options. Good luck