I woke up Monday morning, pleasantly startled by the fact that I was breathing through my nose — and involuntarily! I’m going to credit the combination of nasal irrigation, vitamin supplements, red clover and Coldcalm — because I’m sure I wouldn’t have felt better so soon using just one of the options.

I did have some slight congestion while sitting most of the day at work, but at least I didn’t feel like someone had stuffed extra-thick cotton up my nose. Some air was able to pass through my sinuses, which is more than I can say for the four or five miserable days of congestion I experienced with my last cold. And not nearly as much gunk needed to escape from nose to tissue, thus my raw little nostrils healed faster.

The morning of day 4 (Tuesday) yielded even more relief, and with a few quick nose-blows and two irrigation sessions, I officially declared my cold over by the end of the day. Kaput.

Four days is a new record for me — as in shortest cold ever.

What did I do?

  • At the first sign of sniffles, I irrigated with the neti pot, adding Neti Wash Zinc & Herbs to each rinse. On the days I felt the worst, I irrigated 5 to 6 times a day. I left the Neti Wash out of a few rinses so as not to overdo it with the zinc.
  • I took the following vitamin supplements (dosage is per day, as close as possible to recommendations in Prescription for Nutritional Healing):
    • Vitamin A: 20,000 IU
    • Vitamin B complex: 300 mg
    • Vitamin C: 3,000 to 5,000 mg
    • Vitamin E: 400 IU
    • Zinc: 80 mg
  • I added 800 mg of red clover blossom days 2 through 4, to help rid toxins that can cause inflammation and congestion.
  • I took Boiron’s Coldcalm homeopathic cold relief — 1 dose every 15 minutes for the first 2 hours, then 1 dose every hour until the symptoms ceased.
  • I sipped hot tea as much as possible and tried to eat as healthily as my appetite would allow.

I know this seems like a lot of work, but it was worth the extra effort to shorten the symptoms and be back to normal in less than a week. Now the trick is to keep my immune system in good shape to prevent another nasty virus from invading again, with the combination of a healthy diet and nutritional supplements.

Disclaimer: This regimen is what worked for me, and I was willing to take the risk in experimenting with vitamin, mineral and herbal supplements. It is not suited for everyone, and pregnant women and others with compromised health conditions should absolutely exercise caution and consult a doctor before adding any kind of supplement to their diets. Always check with a medical professional prior to choosing a remedy if you’re concerned about reactions.