3 Things More Disgusting Than a Neti Pot

Its cold and flu season.  Apparently this year, more people are coming down with colds and flu this year than the previous two years, making lots of men and women, boys and girls miserable.  


It's amazing to me that there are not better treatments for alleviating the symptoms of colds and flu.  Most of the over the counter cold medicines have side effects that are only slightly less unpleasant than the cold itself.  Then you have to carefully select the medicine based on the time of day so that you're not taking an upper when its bedtime or a downer when it's 10 a.m.  And then almost always, the virus will hop on over to others living in your house, making multiple sick people all living under one roof.  


If you are like me, a common head cold often results in a sinus infection that lasts for weeks.  Several years ago, I had sinus surgery to try to correct this.  That cut down the number of sinus infections from about 6 to 4...so not worth it, but whatever.  After some investigating, I finally stumbled upon "nasal irrigation" as a means to reduce the likelihood of a cold progressing to a sinus infection.  One flush of my sinus cavity, and I was sold.  I also find that it reduces the symptoms of my cold, making life a little more tolerable when sick.


If you're not familiar with nasal irrigation, here's the quick 101:  you make a warm salt and water mixture in a little pot (called a neti pot) and while leaning over the sink, stick the end of the teapot into one nostril and let the water flow through your sinus cavities and then out the other nostril.  I do this 5 times a day when I have a cold until the symptoms resolve.  


Since I'm so in love with my neti pot, I recommend it to EVERYONE!  Approximately half the time, people (especially SHE friends) bristle, say "Ewww", and tell me it is "disgusting".  So I've been starting a running list of all the things that I can think of that are more disgusting than a neti pot...just to have a quick comeback.  


Here are three things just from last week that I think most reasonable people would agree are more disgusting than a neti pot:  


 1. Children with gastrointestinal illness.  A week ago, when one of my twins started throwing up, I knew immediately that I was in for a week of hell.  Every third day, one of the other kids came down with the "barfing illness", culminating in an ER visit and at least one garbage bag full of sheets and towels that were not worth washing.  If you have children, you must agree that there are few things more disgusting than when they have a gastrointestinal illness involving "the attic" and "the basement"...if you catch my drift.


2. Coming down with a gastrointestinal illness yourself after a spicy meal of chicken curry.  True story...enough said.


3.  A collection of doggie "land mines" all over the sidewalk, driveway, and patio following a brief warm front that melts the 2 feet of snow camouflaging all that crap.  It doesn't even matter that it's my own dog, I still find it horribly disgusting in a way that makes me just want to move....and leave the dog behind.


Agree?  Anything else you would add to the list???