Afrin is a bad idea

So here's the skinny on the nose spray I've found that is absolutely ridiculous. It's called Afrin and you can buy it over the counter. There are also store brands of the same product. I started using it a few months ago when I got really sick with a bad cold and was super congested. This stuff works like a miracle. It takes about 30 seconds and even the worst congestion is completly gone for about 12 hours. Sounds like a dream right? WRONG. It does work miracles for the nose but what its really doing is ruining the tissuse of your inner nose and septum. The reason why it works so well is it shrinks the blood vessles in your nose so there is no swelling and immediately dries anything thats in there, leaving you with a perfectly clear nasal passage. But what it's REALLY doing is making your nose so that it depends on this chemical to be able to be clear. So without it, the tissues of your nose are so swollen that it forces you to need to use the spray again. And the more you use it, the more you need. It's an endless parade of dependency. It says on the box to only use it for no more than 3 days...which is great, if you only need it once or twice. But I've never had a bad cold that only lasts 3 days. Once you use the spray for a week or so, you're hooked. And this is my situation as we speak. I went to doctor who told me that I am actually addicted to this drug, and if I try and go off of it I will have withdrawal symptoms just like any other drug. Lovely. He told me I had to stop using it cold turkey and suffer for about 3 weeks until my nose can heal and not need the drug any more. That's easy to say when your not pregnant and have two small children to take care of and sleep is the most important thing in your life. So that's the deal with Afrin. Don't ever use it.... because it works so gloriously. I've been trying not to use it for the past 6 days and at first I could only go until 2 or 3 in the morning and then I had to use it because I was so desperate to go to sleep. The last 2 nights I was able to not use it all night, but I sure didn't sleep. My nose feels like someone poured cement in it and it's completely shut closed. So irritating! So I just wanted to write about this product and give warning to anyone who is thinking it might be a good idea to use it.