A very neti experience

I tried a neti pot today. The very short instructions that came with the pot read, "Fill the pot with warm water and 1/4 tsp non-iodized salt. Bending over the sink, tilt head to the left side, position spout at entrance of right nostril, water will automatically flow through one nostril and out the other. Gently blow nose, refill your pot and repeat in other nostril. There is no sensation of water going up your nose."

First of all, "water will automatically flow through one nostril and out the other" makes it seem like you can just direct the flow of water right into your sink. WRONG. I had water all over the place. It leaked out the pot, it leaked out the incoming nostril and it leaked and dripped everywhere BUT the sink!

Second, I must point out that the directions stated in bold, italicized AND underlined print that, "there is no sensation of water going up your nose." If something is bold, italicized and underlined, one would think it is a special note to be considered. So, I believed them. And, I have to admit, the sensation was not of water going up my nose...but of water going straight to my brain. I felt like I snarfed up an ocean right into my forehead! I sputtered and blew (not so gently as the instructions suggested in a font not bold, italicized and underlined). I'm pretty sure water came out from under my eyes.

After some composure, cleaning up of the sink area and coughing out water a few times, I tried again. This time I put my head right in the sink, tilted my head farther over, squeezed my eyes shut and suppressed the feeling that I was drowning. It seemed to work better. I repeated on the other side and even sneaked a peek at how ridiculous I looked in the mirror. This time, water WAS flowing out the other nostril in a stream much like that of the neti spout. Success? I'm not quite ready to say that I'm an "old pro" now.