Hi Andy,
Sorry to hear about the cold, but here’s my experience with decongestants–my endo said I could take the little red Sudafed, but not Afrin or any other brand of decongestants. (I take one instead of two because meds affect me strangely). Turns out that my Claritin-D was also a problem for me (the D is a decongestant).
Even as “normal” where I am now post-RAI, that darn Claritin-D was causing my blood pressure to be too high. Gads. So, I’ve switched to Allegra and am doing well.
As a non-decongestant alternative, I can strongly recommend a saline nasal spray (drug free) to help open those sinus passages. (Throw it away after this cold). And, a steamy shower can really help, too.
Can you put in a call to your doctor’s office and get a call-back on this kind of thing? That’s what I did when I got a sinus infection. I told his nurse, “Please! My kingdom for a decongestant!”
Wishing you clear sinuses,
Melinda