Yesterday, Dr. Eric Levi—"a triple-Fellowship trained Specialist Otolaryngologist (Ear Nose & Throat), Head & Neck Surgeon based in Melbourne, Australia"—tweeted this photo of the correct angle you're supposed to use when administering nasal spray, and I was surprised to learn that I've been doing it wrong all of these years. He explains:
The nose goes back not up. Use your nasal sprays properly. Aim back, not up. Otherwise Dr E will be angry at you.
I needed more information, and some actual video demonstrations, so I searched through "DocTok" (doctors on TikTok)—and these are the best ones I found. The techniques demonstrated in the videos aren't all identical, but in general I learned that:
You should be not be spraying straight up your nose, but rather you should angle the spray to the back and sides of your nose.
You should be using an opposite hand/nostril combo when spraying each side of your nose (so Dr. Levi should really be holding the spray in his other hand in that photo).
You shouldn't sniff forcefully after spraying. If you spray directly up your nose, the spray is just going to go directly into your throat and you won't be coating your nasal passages properly—I learned the phrase "if you taste it, you waste it," which addresses this issue.
I learned so much! I hope these help you, too!
