mga pagmumuni ni carmen

Disclaimer: After you read this post, you will understand me and my nose better. Close na tayo!

You know that life is pretty uneventful when, months after blogging hibernation, you resurface to write about nasal endoscopy. 

I’ve felt that my nose has been clogged for quite a while now but my attempts to decongest have resulted only in blowing holes through several pieces of tissue. After being thoroughly frightened by theories that I might be harboring strange growths in my nose or that this might turn into a case of sinusitis that will require surgery, I found myself in the waiting room of the clinic this morning to consult with an ENT.

“Ma’am, bakit kayo andito?” the nurse asked as she took my blood pressure.

“Ay, magpapa-check lang sana ako kasi hindi naman nawala yung sipon ko. Well hindi naman siya sipon na sipon kasi walang lumalabas pag nagbloblow ako ng nose ko.“

“Wala naman kayong cough o colds?”

“Wala naman, basta feeling ko lang talaga na clogged yung nose ko.”

“Gaano katagal na?”

“Since December.” The nurse looked up from the blood pressure thingy and pursed her lips.

“Naku,” she said, nodding her head sagely, “matagal na nga yan.” 

I felt slightly alarmed at her nonchalant assessment of my condition. I was hoping for–oh, I don’t know–assurance that it was nothing serious but it was with this grave confirmation that I was led to the doctor’s office. He asked me a series of questions then used a nasal spray on me. I tried my hardest not to laugh but it really tickled! In fairness, it was like inhaling a breath of menthol-infused air and I immediately felt better. Little did he know that he was preparing me for the nasal endoscopy.

The doctor turned his back and when he faced me again he was holding this long, thin instrument with what looked like a tiny light bulb at the end. “So,” he said casually, “I’ll insert this in your nose so we can see inside it and just let me know if you feel pain.”

I threw a panicked look at my dad but he just smiled at me reassuringly and told me to close my eyes. Obediently, I shut my eyes and thought of my happy place while the doctor gently maneuvered that thing inside my nose. I wanted to ask if he could see all the way to my brain but I might laugh and he might get startled and he might poke me and turn the laughter to pain so I wisely kept my mouth shut and thought of rainbows and butterflies and whiskers on kittens.

In fairness, it didn’t hurt. It just felt like..well, it felt like someone was poking something long and thin inside your nose. Or, as I succinctly described it to Nelli, “Parang may ibang taong naki-kulangot sa ilong mo.” Afterwards though, my nose felt a little violated but rejuvenated. Indeed, whenever I inhale, I feel the breath all the way to my soul. Okay, that might be a little over the top but I do feel like I’m breathing the way I’m supposed to. No more strange clogged sensation!

The doctor said that there’s something in my nose that’s misaligned. He asked me, “When you blow your nose, does it feel like it’s on one side only?” I was like, “hey, ang galing! how did you know?!” Apparently, when you rub your nose too vigorously when it’s itchy it causes one side to cave over time and the only way to correct it is through surgery. (Sidenote: so maybe pinching the bridge of a baby’s nose to make it sharp is not a myth after all?)

I have to spray my nose everyday for the next month or so. He also prescribed me a nasal wash and now I feel all important because my nose will be the cleanest and most pampered olfactory organ in the whole world! It’s a wee bit expensive though–so much so that when the cashier told me how much my nasal spray would cost, it was the man beside me who gasped, looked at me in wide-eyed horror and exclaimed, “Ang mahal naman ng gamot mo!”