Most people know that a good massage can relieve muscle soreness. What few people know is that you can also massage your sinuses.
The Benefits of a Sinus Massage
The sinuses, the four pairs of air-filled pockets behind the face, are prone to inflammation. If you’ve ever had allergies, a cold or a sinus infection, you’re familiar with that aching sensation in your face—the one caused by fluid buildup in the sinuses. When you massage your sinuses, you encourage them to drain the built-up mucus, alleviating that uncomfortable facial pressure.
The Steps of a Sinus Massage
Take the following steps to massage each area of your sinuses:
- Upper sinus pressure point. Place your index fingers beside your nostrils and slowly glide them upward toward your eyebrows. When you reach the area just beneath your brows, pause and apply gentle pressure. Hold for a few seconds, then make small circular motions for about 10 seconds.
- Upper sinus pinch. Using your thumb and forefinger, lightly pinch along your eyebrows. Start near the center and move outward toward your temples. Hold each pinch for about two seconds. Continue along the length of your brows in small sections.
- Lower sinus pressure point. Position your fingers on either side of your nostrils, focusing on the smile lines that extend downward. Apply light pressure in short, two-second intervals.
- Upper sinus sweep. Begin at the inner edges of your eyebrows. Glide your fingers along the brow line out toward your temples, then return to the starting point. Repeat several times, gradually moving slightly higher with each pass until you reach your hairline.
- Lower sweep. Starting beside your nostrils, trace your fingers along your cheekbones toward your ears. Continue up along your temples, across your eyebrows and back down the bridge of your nose. Then reverse the motion, following the same path in the opposite direction.
Repeat these steps as needed to drain mucus. You can vary the pressure you apply and the area you focus on based on where your symptoms are most severe. The sinus massage should never hurt; if it does, lighten your pressure or wait a couple of hours before trying again.
Applying a warm compress across the nose, cheeks, eyes and forehead before you start your sinus massage is an excellent way to improve your results. You can grab a warm compress from an Atlanta drugstore or make one at home by microwaving a wet rag in ten-second intervals.
For more information about managing sinus pressure or to schedule an appointment for chronic sinus infections[1], contact ENT of Georgia North today.
[1] Cleveland Clinic. (2023, July 26). *Chronic sinusitis: Symptoms, causes & treatment*. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17700-chronic-sinusitis