and for the last year or so, I wake up with dripping of nose and blow a lot, and often during the day 5-6 hard sneezes.

Sure sounds like allergy to me, but I will certainly take no drugs. and just live with it...but wonder WHY....

I continue to take my Grape Seed Extact and and I'm not sick and no plans to ask a doctor.

Ideas anyone...besides allergy.

Caroline,
It could be a lot of things I suppose, but most of us will develop changes in the mucous membranes of the nasal passages as we age that are not allergy (immune) related, plus we have structural changes as well. These would act as irritants.

You could check into Non-allergic Rhinitis if you feel it's not allergy related. Just make sure that you have no blood in the mucus.

I remember that you used to take Ibuprofen daily but that may have been only a temporary treatment ages back. Ibuprofen is listed as a potential cause of non-allergic rhinitis on some sites. I personally wouldn't take Ibuprofen as well as grape seed extract.

If you live in air-conditioning, just make sure filters are clean and unit is regularly serviced.

We can become allergic if exposed long enough. Maybe a neighbour has planted some shrubs or trees that affect you.

Lots of potential causes, but if you don't think it's allergy related then I would certainly suggest checking out non-allergic rhinitis information.

Well, I use a pendulum for some questions I have - it's energy work. And I just asked if my issues are non allergic rhinitis and it told me Yes... So now I'll do some internet searching... Thanks for the suggestions.

Caroline,
If you have an aromatherapy diffuser, you could try essential oils to see if that's helpful.

The old staple here being eucalyptus or tea tree although companies now sell beautiful blends that can aid breathing. e.g. eucalyptus, mint, myrtle. That's one blend I have and it's called "breathe easier". You'd probably need to play around with them a bit just in case they're too strong and make the situation worse.

A lot of oils are toxic to pets so don't use those ones if you have pets inside.

p.s. I read somewhere about normal saline nose sprays. Might be worth looking into as well.

Thanks Lara, I use E.O's but never got into a diffuser...just couldn't bother. I read more on this rhinitis issue and some articles said -- often goes away on it's own...we shall see.

It hits me usually me when I lay in bed listening to my radio at night and then early in AM....

I'm dabbing some zinc oxide in my nostrils and we'll see if that does any good..I like zinc oxide.

I may dab some tea tree oil one of these days too. Thanks again.