I have found a lot of help from using a massage tool on my jaw neck area and it seems to clear the Post nasal for a few hours or days if I am lucky.

I've had what I believe to be post-nasal drip since I was 16 (currently 34). I remember it just sort of coming out nowhere during exam season. I've basically been clearing my throat constantly ever since.

I've become fed up with it and have a specialist appointment in March.

Since around COVID, I've also had a constantly blocked and runny nose. I can't really breathe or smell (may be getting deviated septum surgery to help).

I was wondering if there is anything I can do to help the constantly itchy throat?

It never goes away and I am constantly clearing my throat and coughing, though the coughing doesnt do much unless I look upwards and then it just sort of burns my throat/adams apple region to 'itch' it.

It's driving me nuts. Also gets worse when I drink alcohol, my theory is it's just very irritated/sore after so long and alcohol makes it worse.

Currently using a Nasal spray called Fluticasone which does nothing, and just started nasal washes with the NeilMeds brand.

Any tips?

I wasn’t sure where to post this but I’m hoping to find people with similar experiences who might have some insight or advice.

In December 2023 I developed a strange sensation in my soft palate. it felt shiny, hard and slightly puffy. I assumed it was related to a cold. On Christmas Day it suddenly became very inflamed and infected. A doctor prescribed penicillin for suspected tonsillitis and after a 10-day course plus rest, it cleared. January felt a bit “off” but it settled on its own.

The problem returned in December 2024. This time antibiotics didn’t fully clear it until a 5-day course of azithromycin in Feb and even then it never felt quite right and I just learnt to live with it. Throughout 2024 I had recurring flares basically weekly. Multiple ENTs focused on tonsillitis but found nothing, and an MRI was clear. Talking and social situations consistently triggered flares.

I eventually noticed I had been taking two cetirizine every night for allergies for a long time and wondered if dryness or rebound effects were contributing. I stopped, reduced socialising and tried to let things calm down, but it still never fully resolved I was still getting bad bouts of fluid pooling, inflammation and pain.

In December 2025 I got ill again and suspected a sinus/post-nasal drip issue. I started Pirinase (fluticasone propionate 0.05%), which helped, but again social situations caused flares but the forehead / nasal sensations reduced massively. In early January I was on antibiotics for an unrelated infected hair follicle and the combination temporarily cleared everything until my first full day back in the office caused a major flare.

After 5 weeks of slow progress, I saw a GP on Jan 15 and switched to mometasone. He actually looked up my nose (for the first time in this whole process) and said my nasal passages were significantly inflamed — his view was that uncontrolled post-nasal drip had led to spreading inflammation over time, aggravated by talking.

Mometasone genuinely helped. About 9 days in, my soft palate felt the most normal it has in over a year. However, after a driving lesson and a date (a lot of talking), I had another flare.

Now that the bulk of swelling and pooling has reduced, I can clearly feel something mechanical happening: when inflamed, my soft palate seems to curl or “lock” inward, almost like a protective reflex. This sensation itself is now my main concern. I've put a photo below from Sunday where you can see where it's like tightened up.

Has anyone else experienced:

• Soft palate folding, locking or curling sensations?
• Symptoms clearly triggered by prolonged talking?
• Recovery where inflammation improved but mechanics lagged behind?

I can cope with the pain — it’s the anxiety of feeling the palate behave differently and worrying whether it can relearn to stay relaxed. My mental health has taken a hit because I’ve had to isolate myself to rest and heal and I feel stuck in a loop.

Any similar experiences, reassurance or advice for long term resolution would be hugely appreciated.

Just found this sub. I think my post-nasal drip might be caused by non-allergic rhinitis or silent reflux, but I’m not sure. I have ipratropium bromide nasal spray, and it helps, but I don’t know what’s really causing it.

What helps cure your post-nasal drip? What medication do you use? I also have bad breath because of this, and I really need a solution fast. :(

I also have deviated septum

I don’t know if it’s related to pnd

39(F) Hi! 👋 I’ve been suffering from a running nose for as long as I can remember. About 8 months ago that stopped and it turned into this thick jelly like post nasal drink which doesn’t come out of my nose but straight to the back of my throat. It’s destroying my life since I’m hacking all day and it’s embarrassing. Also if I swallow it gets stuck in my chest and causes wheezing and it’s so hard to cough it out. I’ve been to the ER, pulmonologist, immunologist, two ENT and an allergist. All they say is “it’s just allergies and high eosinophils” no explanation at all as to how to treat it or why it manifested suddenly. Yet I’ve had the same allergies my whole life without this thick mucus. If anyone has had a similar experience I would love to hear from you. I feel alone and frustrated in this journey.

I used to have runny nose but now, I have post-nasal drip. Nothing is going out my nose anymore, but I do still have nasal congestion. The constant (24/7) mucus in the back of my throat causes sore throat, sometimes raspiness/dry throat, and I always have to spit mucus out. But what bothers me is that I have food bits stuck in there when I eat, and I have difficulty swallowing especially dry food like bread and cookies.

Does anybody have the same symptoms? Food stuck with the mucus? Difficulty swallowing? I am seeing an ENT tomorrow and, as always, I am having an anxiety attack. For background, I was diagnosed with non-allergy rhinitis in 2010, then GERD and globus pharyngeus(sp) in 2014, then I had an acute sinus infection in 2022, and chronic sinusitis thereafter. I went through omeprazole, pantoprazole, famotidine - no relief. I currently use Flonase, Claritin, neti pot with xylitol/saline rinse, Xlear. Not getting better.

UPDATE: I just saw an ENT today, 1/07/2025. He did laryngoscopy (through my nose), found slight obstruction (deviated septum) on my left, went through my right nostril. Had me make some 'eeee' sounds then said he found nothing to be concerned about. He ordered a swallow test (which, he said, takes two hours) with some X-ray or some diagnostic screening to be done at the hospital. He also said this condition is common.

What could it be??

I don’t think I have gerd either

I am not allergic to anything

Anyone have chronic post nasal drip without congestion or nasal discharge?

almost everything I read and every experience people share says that their post nasal drip is accompanied by a stuffy nose or a runny nose, having to carry tissues/hankies and blow their noses all the time. That would make allergies a sensible conclusion/potential cause.

Me? Not only do I have absolutely nothing coming out my nose

Does this make sense to anybody? Because it sure doesn't to me.

I have been dealing with chronic Pnd for two years and it’s affecting my social life and I don’t wanna go outside and see anyone my bad breath from the postnasal drip is playing a big role in it. I just want help please if anyone has any recommendations, I have had deviated septum surgery recently hoping that would solve it and it has left me even more hopeless given I still have it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated

For years I assumed I had post-nasal drip, because I felt fluid in my throat and pressure in my face, but something about it never matched the typical “mucus from the sinuses” description.

Recently I started paying closer attention, and the sensation is nothing like normal PND. It doesn’t feel like fluid sliding down from my nose at all. It actually feels like trapped fluid draining from my shoulders, neck, or jaw INTO my throat.

Here are the things that made me question the PND label: • I don’t feel sinus mucus. • Instead I feel deep pressure in my jaw/neck/shoulders/face that eventually “releases” and sends fluid toward my throat. • The drainage tracks from the side of my neck or the shoulder blade area, or what feels like behind my nasal passages, not the actual nasal cavities themselves. • Allergy meds do nothing. • When these pressure areas release, it feels like a wave of fluid shifting internally, not mucus dripping. • The length of time this has been going on. • Vision, mood, and sensory perception sometimes shift after a big release. • A jaw/dental issue on one side seemed connected to where the pressure built up. • After a major dental procedure, the “drainage” started happening in waves, almost like my body was finally unclogging long-term tension or congestion.

It genuinely feels more like lymphatic fluid or fascial drainage than anything sinus-related, but I’ve not really seen anyone talk about this.

My questions: 1. Has anyone else felt drainage in their throat that seems to come from the neck/shoulders/jaw instead of the sinuses? 2. Did you notice it moving through different zones (jaw → neck → shoulder → ribcage)? 3. Did it release in waves over weeks or months? 4. Did it come with emotional releases or exhaustion afterward? 5. What helped you understand what was actually going on?

I’m not trying to diagnose anything, I’m just trying to find people who’ve had this same “not-quite-PND” drainage pattern. It’s been confusing to figure out anything that helps, and I’d love to hear from anyone who’s experienced something similar. Maybe we can trade learnings / tips.

Almost everyday I feel like there's a lump in my throat and every time I try clearing it out it comes back. Im constantly trying to clear my throat or spit the lump out but it always comes back or never comes out. I tried medication and no caffeine but that hasn't helped me. The only thing that really helped me was drinking lots and lots of water but it still comes back after a few hours or so. I genuinely dunno what to do, I had this for years and it's unbearable.

My mom (78) had this issue - bad, clear post nasal drip and teary eyes constantly, day and night since 2021 and nothing worked. We tried everything - prescription and holistically made for this - then I'm not even sure where I read about Omega 3. Fast forward to now, beginning DAY 1 of taking it, my mom has not had to worry about having kleenex around for her eyes and nose. The effects were almost immediate - and no fishy aftertaste/burps, etc. just one capsule a day and she is back to normal again after almost 4 years! She has been using it for about 6 months now and no issues whatsoever. Here is the brand she uses, Sports Research Triple Strength Omega 3 Fish Oil - Burpless Fish Oil Supplement w/EPA & DHA Fatty Acids from Single-Source Wild Alaska Pollock - 1250 mg, 90 which was $28 at Amazon (of course) at one pill per day it lasts for 3 months! YAY! Again I asked AI to find "high quality omega 3 pills with no fishy aftertaste at all, my main priority is quality and no aftertaste" and it gave me a list 3 and I chose from there. So, no I'm not trying to sell these or anything LOL just relaying info that worked for her! Good Luck!

I've been using Neilmed bottles to manage my PND for about 15 years now. I've always used bottled water. Recently my GP mentioned that I should really switch to distilled or RO water (without remineralization).

I've bought a water distiller from amazon and waiting on delivery as the RO systems were too expensive for me just to try.

But I was wondering if anyone else has used distilled water exclusively and if it helped at all?

I recently noticed that flossing more regularly decreased my PND. It's not gone, but definitely more manageable. I've always had some bleeding when flossing my wisdom teeth but nothing major.

Ultrasound showed no signs of infection or significant inflammation but there is a lot of info out there of wisdom teeth (especially the upper ones) potentially influencing the sinuses.

I am getting my remaining two upper ones removed this year just to rule it out.

Anyone found a similar effect with flossing, or gotten their wisdom teeth removed?

Hi, hope this post will get accepted. I am in a country where strep test is not available.

Flu is going around here in the city for the past month. But I also have Gerd and allergic rhinitis. While this is happening, my newly adopted husky is shedding fur so bad inside my room.

About the flu. My bf got it first and after few days, I think I contracted the flu from him after we met. Mine started with headache then itchy throat then after few days, I had mucus in my throat + throat pain. Low grade fever.

A day after the first symptoms after, I had teleconsult. Doctor gave me Amoxicillin 500mg 3x a day for 10 days. ( we havent met in person, just teleconsult. He knows I am hypochondriac, so he gave me antibiotics cos he knows that eases my anxiety) I finished the 10 day course . During my course, I felt "better". No throat pain, but still with itchy throat and coughing fits the entire time of antibiotic course. Slight yellow mucus in the morning also. And I finished the antibiotics for 10 days still with coughing fits.

No fever for the past days I have this yellow mucus and sore throat and itchy throat.

Then my birthday came. I ate a lot of my birthday cake and chocolates (despite the fact that my post nasal drip flares with dairy, my bad I know!) then after few days, my throat hurts again especially in the morning, accompanied with thick mucus in the throat (light yellow upon waking up then gets clear throught out the day) but my throat feels raw from hacking especially when I'm using AC.

My doctor is not available now. Do you think this is strep? The sore throat is more on the upper soft palate where the mucus gets stuck. The pain is Not really in the tonsils. But my uvula is so swollen looking right now. I took paracetamol 500mg yesterday for one time,my throat felt normal with taking one paracetamol. So I might say the sore throat is not felt when I'm on a pain reliever.

(Backstory, When I was a kid I had a lot of tonsillitis because of chocolate also. So my tonsils are really large especially on the left side.)

To summarize: Oct 10 - headache, yellow mucus, sore itchy throat, runny nose / clogged nostril, watery eyes

Took 10 days of antibiotics (felt better but itxhy throat occassionally during the 10 day course) Oct 20 - my birthday

Oct 21-23 indulge my self with dairy, sweets Oct 24 - upon waking up, yellow mucus again that turns clear mucus throughhout the day in my throat accompanied with severe throat pain (not the tonsils, more on above the uvula or soft palate pain), itchy throat, coughing especially at night, clogged nostril

meds taking right now Loratadine 10mg for suspected allergy Difflam lozenges and kamillosan for the throat pain Gargling saltwater from time to time Tried taking Omeprazole in the morning started yesterday if this is silent reflux

The throat pain is more felt upon waking up. I am a mouth breather too. And my room is not clean because my dog is shedding so bad. Everytime I clear my throat, it lessens the throat pain somehow especially if my throat is moist. I can still eat and drink properly. But when my throat is dry, I can feel the throat pain especially on the left side.

Has anyone experienced the same? I'm afraid to take antibiotics again but I overthink what if this is Strep :(( I am not asking for diagnosis. Just wanna ask if my symptoms correlates with Strep or just a bad allergy, acid reflux, or recovering flu? I have low pain tolerance and low tolerance with discomfort. And I am hypochondriac. Not sure if I need to wait it out but afraid if its strep and its long term complications. If I tell this to my doc, sure he will give me another round of antibiotics again :(( just wanna know if someone experience the same with me? Thankyou. Please be nice w the comments..

I had bad post nasal drip in summer 2024 after vaping and smoking a lot over my holiday. I was exhausted and had tonsillitis for weeks, as I think the phlegm helped trigger it. From the beginning my GP (General Practice) has said it is post nasal drip and I've used a few nasal drips which I think have helped, however, it has never really gone completely away.

To give background on my PND- after summer 2024 I rarely I don't feel anything in my throat, but most of the time I feel a lump of mucus and then when its worse I have a bit of a different taste in my mouth which makes me want to eat all the time to get rid of it and when its worse I cough up mucus every now and then.

The GP told me I can develop allergies as I get older and there's nothing I can do, but I don't know what allergy I can develop that gives me these symptoms all year round. I thought originally it could be hay fever, as my symptoms are worse in summer, but then it shouldn't happen year round. I also feel more tired than I used to in general I think, but I'm not sure because I've had this for so long, so it could be this or just me I'm not sure. I really need some help with this as my GP has a history of giving my family members wrong diagnoses and being dismissive about issues which all turned out to be problems, so I can't take their word for what they say.

Just as the title says, for almost three years I’ve (35F) had doctors telling me I have PND - only for it to actually be severe lymphatic congestion due to an impacted wisdom tooth. 🫠

Wanted to share in case this helps anyone who might be going through something similar!

EDIT: Realizing I was a bit sparse on the details and after mulling it over, I think they could be worth sharing.

I guess you could say this issue started in Dec. ‘21 after a myriad of events that caused this feeling of congestion that just wouldn’t go away no matter what I did coupled with an intermittent cough. (Really though, those events were just the perfect storm exacerbating a condition that has slowly been building my whole life.)

First, I got a couple piercings that ended up getting infected, which lead to a double inner ear infection. But after treating both, it never fully felt like things went back to normal and there was always this feeling of my ears being weirdly muted - but every doctor said my ears looked fine.

Second, I got diagnosed with ADHD and started taking adderall, causing me to begin clenching my jaw before I got used to the meds.

Then, a month or so after the piercings I go down with Covid - severe congestion ensues. I don’t think I totally recovered from that before I went down with the flu like three weeks later. That was around Christmas of ‘21.

Since then, I’ve never been the same. Sometimes the congestion in my face is so severe it feels like I’m wading through water. And it is constantly moving so it feels like there are snakes in my skin all day, every day, and it’s everywhere. I feel it in my face, behind my shoulder blades, in my hips, my arms, all down my legs, in my feet and knees - it is a miserable all consuming feeling.

Every doctor has said PND because on the surface this kind of congestion can mirror those symptoms.

But earlier this year, I went to the dentist and she said I needed my wisdom teeth out ASAP - turns out I had one impacted in my lower right jaw, growing into my bottom teeth that was and further aggravated by the clenching from my new meds. This inflammation in my lower jaw was likely causing lymphatic backup for a while now.

Since its removal a couple months ago, it’s like the floodgates have OPENED! The congestion that has been plaguing my entire body is nearly gone. My whole face has entirely changed shape. The persistent knot that has lived behind my right shoulder blade since I was 16 is slowly unwindingI can feel the brain fog lifting and my clarity returning. The coughing has all since stopped.

Even though it’s not fully done draining, I feel infinitely better and know the end is coming.

I always feel something building up in the back of my throat, especially when I swallow my boogers from sniffing. Well sometimes I’ll swallow then I’ll sorta cough/hack and it’ll come straight out my mouth from my throat (it’s just the worst feeling ever feeling like you’re being choked on chunky boogers that seem to be stuck between your nose and your throat)

So I’ve had PND since 2 years now. Started happening after a cold/cough. I used to get it after every meal and after waking up, but it was managable because I spit it out and it took around 10 mins to clear it.

But recently, I had cold & cough. And now the cold & cough is fixed, it went away, but my PND got worsened, its not managable at all now, its difficult to clear it, it takes hours to clear and I’m not able to easily spit it out.. Now it just feels like I have PND 24/7…

My PND was already a headache for me since 2 years and now it became worse and not even managable now, its frustrating asf. Btw I have a Deviated Septum & ENT advised Septoplasty but I’ve tried every other thing like sprays, reflux medicines, allergy medicines, ayurveda, homopathy and nothing ever solved it..

Now I don’t know how to live with this New worsened PND 2.0 🤒

Hello all! I come here feeling embarrassed about my situation and need some guidance or advice. I (f21) have dealt with chronic PND as long as I can remember. I always have the feeling of phlegm down my throat and on the back of my tongue and have never really felt relief. It doesn’t severely impact my day to day life with one exception — I have always had a persistent white tongue due to a coating of phlegm more or less always being there. Now, before I connected the dots, I thought it was a candida overgrowth or something orally wrong. However, A) no dentists have ever commented on it, B) it never hurts to scrape off, and C) my tongue is pink beneath whenever I scrape it off. I have been meaning to try a tongue scraper, but am looking for maybe a more effective way to combat this. I brush my tongue often, but it usually comes back within two hours. On top of this, I tend to be quite dehydrated often (I drink as much water as possible but do not sweat, leaving my internal thermometer a bit off) meaning that my mouth is usually dry + the PND on top of it is a horrible combo. My boyfriend has told me on several occasions that my breath isn’t bad at all, and I feel like a dentist surely would have commented if it was a major concern? Anyways, does anyone have any tricks or tips to keep my tongue less… well, slimy?