You have a runny nose.
You are congested.
You have not slept well because you could not breathe through your nose.
You have a headache.
Your throat is sore because of post nasal drip.
In general you feel miserable.
The question is, are you suffering from sinus problems or do you have a cold? That's a question that many sinusitis suffers ask themselves.
It is the one question that keeps sinus sufferers from seeing their doctor when they answer it wrong.
The problem is, the main symptoms of both colds and sinus infections can be the same.
How can you tell which one you have? You can figure it out by asking yourself some questions.
The first one is how long have you been feeling this way? If you have just recently started feeling this way, and have not had any symptoms in previous weeks you most likely have a cold.
Colds tend to have a pattern of two to three days with a runny nose and then two to three days of a stuffed nose and then you start to feel better.
A sinus infection will hang around longer.
If after a week, you are not feeling better, the chances are you have a sinus infection.
Many times a sinus infection is brought on by a cold.
The cold actually goes away but the symptoms are still present because you now have a sinus infection.
So the first test is how long have you had the symptoms.
Less than a week, a cold, more than a week, sinusitis.
Another question to ask is, have I had the same symptoms just recently? If you can answer no, then again you most likely have a cold.
If you answer yes, you have just recently had the same symptoms, you may have a sinus infection.
If the same symptoms keep coming back you may have chronic sinusitis.
Another question is, do you have a fever? Colds generally do not produce a fever.
Sinus infections can many times be accompanied by a fever.
Be aware that the flu can also cause you to run a fever.
In summary, here is what you should look for.
If you have an isolated case of symptoms and you do not have a fever and you start to feel better in about 5 days, you have a cold.
If you have the symptoms repeatedly, if they linger and you do not feel better after a week and if you have a fever, you probably have a sinusitis.
If you can say yes to any of the three question you may have a sinus infection.
The number one indicator though is the first one.
Do you still have symptoms after a week.
If you have symptoms after a week, if they don't seem to improve then it is time to see your health professional.
The diagnoses could be a sinus infection.