Sinus Pressure+5K Training=Pain

I have never considered myself a sinus sufferer until the last few years. My allergies have definitely been out of control for a long time, but I have been able to manage the sinus pressure okay until lately.  One particular morning comes to mind when I think of how something as simple as sinus pressure has effected my life and stopped me from doing something.

I have made a personal goal to run in a 5K in early May, and I am very fortunate to be joined by a few of my friends and some of the youth at church in this goal. We decided to meet up on Saturday mornings for a group run to maintain accountability, and to keep each other motivated as we train by ourselves throughout the week. (Now I have to interject here that this is a big goal for me because I am not really the running type. I enjoy physical activity, but running has never been my exercise of choice so I knew I was going to have to really put forth an effort to get in shape enough to complete my goal.)

I wish I could say that I was able to go to our first training refreshed and ready, but I had been up most of the night with sinus pressure that got worse every time I tried to lie down. By morning I was tired, but I figured I needed to get up and train with the group because I knew it would set the tone for the next month and a half and I wanted to start off on the right foot.

We got to our start point and everyone took off running. The younger girls that I am training with are between 12 and 18 years old so they are all fit and easily able to run a full mile without too much strain. I knew I would probably be the last in the group because although I am not overweight I am out of shape. I started off slowly running down the desert path and within three or four minutes of running I could feel a headache starting to come on. I suffer from occasional migraines so I got a little scared at first thinking I had triggered a migraine somehow so I stopped running and walked a few yards. I stared to feel a little better so I decided to give running another try.

As soon as I went a few feet I had an almost instantaneous pounding headache.  Being the fast learner I am, I kept running for a few minutes and finally I had to stop. The pain was unbearable.  It was so bad I almost started to cry.  All of the girls I was running with were already down the block and out of sight. I turned around and headed back the way I came thinking I would just catch the group as they ran by me the other direction. Long story short, I realized too late that my group was too fast for me and they had already passed the point where I was waiting for them. They sent out three girls and one of my friends to look for me because they got worried.  I got my ego bruised a little because I looked like such a loser in front of my friends and the teenage girls I was supposed to be setting an example for. The worst part about it was that I really did want to train and run, but because of my sinuses I was truly incapacitated.  I have never felt that kind of intense pain from my sinuses before and now that I know what caused it I hope to never have to suffer like that again.

As a condolence prize, maybe I will win the SUDAFED® REPLAY Sweeps!  I entered with this story, and if you have had a time that you missed out on life because of your sinus pain you can enter too.  See below for details and good luck!

Connect: You can connect with SUDAFED® on

Win: Sinus sufferers can enter to win a SUDAFED® REPLAY to help them relive their most regrettable, missed moments.  By simply describing the activity they missed or suffered through due to sinus pain and congestion on the SUDAFED® REPLAY app on the SUDAFED® Facebook page.  The sweepstakes is open through April 6, 2014. 

 Thank you to SUDAFED® for sponsoring this post.  All opinions are my own and 100% honest!