Sometimes people find sneezing difficult and cannot do so easily. Such an inability to sneeze can be irritating, especially when they suffer from a blocked nose or other cold issues. So, how do people get sneezing, and what is the reason behind the sternutation?
Sneezing is the action of releasing air from the nose. Through sneezing, you are eliminating the irritants from your nasal pipe. Whenever people breathe viruses, allergens, or other irritants, it will cause sneezing. There is a great possibility of one inducing sneezing by stimulating artificially. In this article, let us explore interesting ways to make yourself sneeze easily.
How to Make Yourself Sneeze?
- Use A Tissue and Wiggle in Your Nose
To sneeze, you can use a tissue and gently wiggle it in the back of your nose. To do this, you must roll one side of the tissue and make a point. Use the rolled end of the tissue, insert it gently into your nostril, and wiggle it. So, you will get a tickling sensation. Due to this action, it stimulates the trigeminal nerve and that results in sending a message to the brain to sneeze.

- Use The Sense of Smell
When you smell certain spices, it will cause you to sneeze. Now, search for the spicy ingredients in your kitchen cupboard, such as red pepper, black pepper, or cumin. You can open the bottle of such spice and smell it strongly. As soon as you smell it, you will sneeze without any doubt. Other methods you can try include,
- Take the capsicum extract using a cotton swab and inhale it gently. But it would help if you were careful about the amount you took on the swab.
- You can also try a carbonated beverage stimulates your nose to sneeze. Furthermore, you can remove the seal and inhale the drink into your nose.
- Another interesting fact is that some people will sneeze after smelling peppermint. You can also try smelling the mint to sneeze.
- Look Up Toward A Bright Light
Some people sneeze suddenly after seeing the bright sunlight. It is known as Photic Sneezing, and it can be a hereditary issue. Not everyone will sneeze when suddenly exposed to the sunlight. But one in three people is sure to sneeze after seeing the bright sunlight. One will even feel the prickling sensation after being exposed to sunlight. Such people can close their eyes while exposed to bright sunlight. Furthermore, one should stay cautious of watching any light source directly.
- Try Tweezing Your Eyebrows
If you have tweezers at home, you can pluck the single-eyebrow hair. This will let you sneeze, as the action of plucking results in irritating the nerve endings in the face. Finally, it will stimulate the nasal nerve, and thus, you sneeze. Sometimes, you may sneeze immediately, or it will take two or more tries.
- Try Plucking A Nose Hair

Plucking a nose hair is not easy, as you will feel pain out of it. Soon after you pluck a nose hair, it will stimulate the trigeminal nerve and let you sneeze. The problem with this method is that you may feel some itching in your nose as soon as you do this. Since the nose is such a sensitive area, you should be careful about attempting this method to sneeze.
- Try Massaging The Mouth’s Roof Using Your Tongue
This method is somewhat funny, and you will use your tongue to stimulate sneezing. So, here you will use your tongue to massage the roof of the mouth. Soon after you do this, it will trigger the trigeminal nerve and make you sneeze.
During this method, you need to hold the tongue’s tip to the mouth’s roof. While trying this method, you should find out the right spot where it will stimulate you to sneeze. Also, you can try to bring it back as far as possible.
- Eat Dark Chocolate
The best way to induce a sneeze is to eat dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa. There is no reason behind this, as scientists don’t think about this cause. So, for people, it will be due to allergies or a type of PSR. But this is a rare cause where a few people only sneeze when they eat dark chocolate. So, not everyone is going to react by sneezing or eating dark chocolate.
- Take A Deep Breath of Cold Air

There is another best way to stimulate your sneeze is by taking a deep breath of cold air. For example, if you are staying inside the home and there is much cold outside, you can suddenly come out and inhale the cold air. Soon after you are exposed to cold air, you would sneeze automatically.
Sometimes, there won’t be cold enough outside the home; in such a situation, open the freezer and breathe the cold air. Within a few seconds, you will sneeze out of breathing cold air.
- Massaging The Nose
Whenever you pinch the nose, it will also trigger the trigeminal nerve. To get this sensation, you need to rub the bridge of the nose downward direction. This will stimulate the trigeminal nerve, and as a result, you will sneeze.
Some people experience sneezing due to pinching the nose. You can try this method, pinch your nose suddenly, and wait for the result. Thus, you will sneeze soon after pinching your nose.
The Bottom Line
In addition to the above methods, one can try out different procedures to sneeze. You can use a feather to tickle your nose and trigger the trigeminal nerve. Also, you can smell a strong scent, making you sneeze quickly. So, you have many methods to induce sneezing, and thus try them if you don’t know how to make yourself sneeze.
Also read: 8 Steps to Ensure Personal Safety During an Ongoing Pandemic