Excess saliva

[trinidiva]

Ok,this is kind of nasty, so that's my warning....lol. so I've been sick with a bad cold, pretty much all last week. Now, I think I have post nasal drip, although my nose isn't stuffed up anymore, because I keep feeling like I have mucus in the back of my throat and it has been causing excess saliva and a nauseous feeling. I keep dry heaving all day. This actually has been going on for the past two days. What can I do to get this to stop??? I've been obsessing about it all day.

[helplessinseattle]

Hi. You likely do have a lot of mucus in the back of your throat. This is mucus draining from your sinuses as your cold goes away. The lining of your sinuses makes a lot of mucus when you have a cold and for a while after. This is a GOOD thing. As the muscus flows downward it cleans out the areas that were infected and gets rid of any leftover virus so you don't get sick again. Our bodies are programmed to do this, part of the whole immune process. And of course the stuff goes down into your stomach where your stomach acids kill any viruses that might still be alive in the mucus. It sure can make you nauseous. You can nearly always stop the nausea by drinking water, a glass or two every hour or so. This dilutes the mucus and helps it move along through your digestive system and out. I use warm tea for this and it has worked every time. No need to obsess. This is a completely normal process and can do you no harm.

[trinidiva]

Thank you for responding. It was a rather gross question, but I really needed to ask. I do notice I do feel better when I take small sips of water or eat something. It just took me back to my morning sickness days..which I THOUGHT I had blocked from my mind...lol.... My mom keeps asking if I am preggo, which I absolute am not......
I am hoping this mucus clears out soon though!!!!!

[cabcom]

I went through this same thing a few months back. It's normal for all that to happen when you have a cold. Anxiety just makes it feel worse. I actually felt like my tongue was swollen and too big to be in my mouth....Just know it won't last forever. Just endure it as best you can and keep your mind occupied.

[trinidiva]

I went through this same thing a few months back. It's normal for all that to happen when you have a cold. Anxiety just makes it feel worse. I actually felt like my tongue was swollen and too big to be in my mouth....Just know it won't last forever. Just endure it as best you can and keep your mind occupied.

Thank you!!! Anxiety does make it worse, but truthfully, I feel a little better today......drinking a lot of water is helping.