After my daughter was born four years ago, I went through a two year stretch of awful chronic sinus/ear infections, probably triggered by her bringing stuff hom

After my daughter was born four years ago, I went through a two year stretch of awful chronic sinus/ear infections, probably triggered by her bringing stuff home from day care. Two rounds of prednisone, probably six or seven rounds of antibiotics, even an MRI to check my auditory nerve for issues after my ears got plugged up badly after one of them. I'm deaf enough as it is and it's immensely frustrating when my ears clog up and temporarily remove what little remaining hearing I have. Regular sinus rinsing made a huge difference in getting that under control. I'm also a big fan of the NeilMed squeeze bottles and that's what I've been using for a couple of years now. That said, this year I switched to the Xlear salt/xylitol packets and I like them better. I don't know if there's actual science to the claims that the xylitol inhibits bacterial adhesion or any of that, but I do find them gentler on my sinuses and less unpleasant if some of the solution works its way into my throat. I don't rinse daily, but the instant I start to feel even a bit crap, I'll pull out my rinse bottle, distilled water, and packets, and have at it. I'll be honest, the other thing that's helped is that "world events" normalized wearing masks in indoor public places, and I will continue to for a good while (the 3M Aura foldable N95 masks are _fantastic_) for things like grocery shopping. Wearing them doesn't bother me personally and definitely beats spending two weeks with my head full of crud I can't quite get rid of, or with my ears full of fluid.