Posted on 05/06/2005 9:17:12 PM PDT by My Favorite Headache
I never thought I would be doing a vanity on this but here it goes.
I am interested in knowing how people cope with Spring allergies. I have never had them until this year apparently. I have had a sore throat now going into day 18,I have seen the doctor twice where once gave me Ketex and decongestion meds and those did nothing,so they ruled out the common cold or flu or any bacterial infection.
My throat is still red,I still am congested,I have regular acid reflux (gerd) to be exact so when I sleep at night all of the congestion and post-nasal drip about drowns me. I am miserable to say the least.
I feel physically fine half of the day and then all of a sudden it feels like I have zero energy. I wake up and my eyes are dry as can be. So I went back to the doctors yesterday and they believe it is really bad allergies and want to put me on some kind of steroids which I am not crazy about. I usually stick to eastern medicine i.e. acupuncture and that sort of thing but even that is not working. My blood work came back fine so I know it is not anything serious of nature causing it.
I just need some kind of relief and remedy as I have never had Spring or any kind of airborne allergy. Supposedly the Pollen and Oak count is the highest its ever been in Central Florida mainly due to the 3 hurricanes that came through my town this year and what it did to the trees,everglades,and ocean air flow.
HELP! Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
I thought you had misspelled something. I am going to read on it too.
That is sooooooooo interesting what you said about the honey!
Alkolol--Alcohol I see what you mean!
I am going on a hunt to find this product tomorrow.
After reading this thread doesn't appear that one precise way of treating symptoms will work on two different people.
The allergist we see said to do whatever it takes, even if it is at his loss (income).
20 years ago my drinking tea would cause a bit more than a "reflux". Now it's my drink of choice. It's wild how our bodies change.
But you're right. Tea, at least for me, does have almost an inner astringent quality.
My daughter, Jan, and I use to go see this doctor years ago. We both had sinus infections and he used those things. It hurt her so much that she passed out. But it helped the sinus problems. He has been the only doctor I have seen who has done that. I was thinking about going to a small walk in clinic tomorrow. They know me and it is a lot cheaper than going to the ER. I am also having shart pains beside my left eye. I had those before and it meant I had a sinus infection. All this would start when the dr's office is closed. Just what I need!
I can also recommend a wonderful effective but horrible strong tasting lozenge that I guarantee will clear up a sore throat. It is called fisherman's friend and it even looks ugly. You can get it where you buy normal throat lozenges and it comes in a white and red and black little paper bag. It will cure you or kill you,and have a little baggie handy so that you can pop it out every few minutes because it is very strong and the first time you use it,watch out. Whoever suggested the Mucinex was right it is fantastic to get the mucous up and make it thinnner so you can cough it up or blow it out. It is guaifenisin which is a remedy for Fibromyalgia that really works. It is over the counter and costs about $9.00 but has 600 mg of Guaifenisin and you don't have to worry about other ingredients in it that you do not need.
You really should get to the Doctor because you are right sinus infections will cause pain there. You probably have food allergies and if you an A blood type it is probably meat products. A blood types are natural vegetarians because they do not have enough stomach acid to digest meats and if they eat them the undigested meat backs up into your blood stream and causes the allergies. I discovered this after I had colon cancer surgery because it causes allergies and digestive problems big time. I only eat meat like hamburger now because it is easily digested(no intact tendons,etc)and it does make a difference. I almost learned too late.
Since you are open to eastern medicine, how about using a Neti pot? I use one regularly, it's an ingenious Ayurvedic method of washing junk out of the nasal passages and also gets the throat as well. It not only isn't painful or unpleasant but feels clean and pleasant, and you feel much relieved after. Regular use can help heal sinus infections as well.
Freepmail me if you want info on where to mail order one and so on.
Loratadine (prescription stregth Claratin)
Another thing I use for sore throats, scratchy throats and associated symptoms is chewing a little chunk of raw, peeled ginger root. It's pretty firey but it REALLY cuts the symptoms. They're scared to come back, even.
In the first place .. I'm not your "Babe".
And .. I really resent such condescending statements.
Not everyone is as ignorant as you imply.
re: GERD,, elevate the head of your bed a few inches, use a 6 inch wood block (adjust accordingly), so you are not sleeping in a flat position, that may help the nasal drainage thing a bit as well as alleviate some of the GERD effect in your esophagus.
also sleeping on your left side may help to reduce the amount of creep up the esophagus.
lots of good info here in the comments in response to your post otherwise, nothing like practical experiences to help others find solutions.
LJ, I eat Red Pickled Ginger (over a little hot rice) and Dried Sweet Ginger (straight out of the bag) and it really does wonders for a scratchy throat.
I also simmer chunks of ginger, whole cloves, black peppercorns, cardamom pods, some fennel seeds (hmmm, what else??) oh, and a cinnamon stick or two in a covered pot with a lot of water for about 45 minutes. Then strain, and add about 20% milk and sweeten with honey or raw sugar. Really, really good for what ails you, like wintertime or incipient illness. Or just feeling tired.
Have had chronic allergies and sinus troubles all my life.
Last few years have found the zinc cough drops with the lemon/honey variety together to be helpful as a preventive--if used at first hint of throat problems. The zinc/cherry alone doesn't usually taste so good. Also, the lemon/honey variety (Robitussin) seems to be significantly effective on it's own in early stages.
Sometimes the Zicam oral spray is helpful preventively and curatively for the throat. I use the swabs for the nose.
Saline solution is supposed to be about as good. It's more irritating, to me.
Breathing through my mouth because of clogged nose/sinuses while sleeping can easily cause sore throat problems from the dryness. Sometimes sleeping with one of the above cough drops helps prevent it.
Sometimes gargling with salt water every 10-15-20 min or so for several hours can be healing or beat back an early threat.
In terms of allergy meds--the 24 hour meds don't usually last me that long. I try and have several that work well to trade of with either every 60-90 days or a couple of different varieties every few days or one variety during the day and a different one at night.
This is all just stuff that's evolved over time for me and how I see it currently. Mileage may vary, for sure!
Sometimes my eyes and nose are so reactionary to allergy triggers that I have to soak a T-shirt or towel folded up in ice water to lay on top of them and calm them down. Otherwise, it seems like the meds have a harder time getting it under control if I've delayed taking the meds such that it's reached that point.
Anyway--FWIW
Health and healing to you!.
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