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.
Flonase. HEPA air cleaners will help a good deal. Benedryl and now the over the counter version of claritan at Wal-Mart will also help. Frequent showers to get the pollen out of your hair. All of these will help. I always keep one of those saline spray bottles handy. And I use those breath-rite strips at night as I have a deviated septum.
It doesn't hurt, it feels a little strange at first because you're moving warm water through and out your sinuses. It can take a couple of days to clear everything out if you've gotten really congested. I've used it when I've gotten a sinus infection, and was able to avoid antibiotics, and was feeling better in three days instead of weeks. Something like this: nasal cup
I see that you can buy packets of saline solution with this thing, but I just use warm water and salt I mix up myself.
In my case, the eustachian tube swells (especially my right ear) and fluid backs up. The sinuses on that side, same problem. (How can the left and right be so different??) The Alkalol cuts through congestion and reduces swelling just enough to clear things out. It does this far more effectively than any decongestant I've ever used, plus, it's topical. There's no drowsiness or irritability associated with its use. There are discussions about it all over the net, from chronic snot sufferers like us.
I don't know how it works exactly, and if you get a raging head cold it really can't keep up with all the waterworks, but it has reduced my antibiotics intake from -- oh gee, I'd have to say 2 or 3 times/year to maybe once or twice every two years. I was one of those Keflex/Cipro/Dura-Meds people. I'd find out I was catching a cold by the onset of a double sinus infection, which would spread to both ears and bronchitis quickly.
My regimen these days includes limiting dairy, Flonase, (keeping Nasonex and Nasacort on standby), Allegra seasonally, Sudafed, Alkalol, and a HEPA filter in my bedroom. The very best nasal inhaler I ever used was Vancenase, which they stopped making because people kept giving it to their children against manufacturer's orders.
Sounds like poor MFH had a sudden onset of miserable allergies. At least mine built over the course of a decade or so. Took another five years to figure out how to manage them. Welcome to the Allergy Lifestyle.
the saline solution in post #2 does work--may take a day or two so use in combination with something else and then stay with it
Singular is good, I take one every morning during spring allergy season. I also take a Zyrtec every night all year long. Finding out what it is that you are alleric to is the key to fighting it correctly.
You need to find a beekeeper in your area and get some bee pollen from him. It will contain all the stuff that is making you have the allergies.
A few weeks before allergy season start taking a granuale a day for a week, then increase it to two for a week, then three, etc etc.
It works on the same principle as a snake bite. If a snake handler takes a little bit of snake venom at a time he builds up antibodies. Come to think of it it works for lots of things like smallpox?
"The key is to make sure he is selling local honey. I know you wrote "local honey producer" which covers it, but sometimes the local honey seller will look like a local honey producer, but he is also selling honey from two States over or someplace"
You have a very good point. There has been a blight on Bees this past year and some local honey brands are getting ther supply from elsewhere just to keep their customer base. It is important to ask if it truly is a local honey.
Is it ok to take both Singular and Zyrtec at the same time? I have both and have only been taking the Singular..I wasn't sure if I should mix both?
Stupid question...but...do I just look under something as simple as beekeeper in the phone book?
"My regimen these days includes limiting dairy,"
Oh, that is a big one! I failed to mention that. The dairy on combination with an allergy outbreak can just make you miserable.
Brevard here as well...I have never encountered the hell that this has been.
Treating symptoms is fine; treating the cause is better in the long run. I have had allergies (allergic rhinitis) and asthma since 1947. Started out with 111 different allergies and began antigen shots. Today, I still get shots but the number of allergies has decreased to a handful. Steriods (like prednisone) are OK in the worst cases of asthma. Unfortunately, they have undesirable side effects and should be used rarely. Again, steroids treat symptoms. Air cleaners like AirFix might be good choice for some where it is desirable to create a comfortable environment. Ditto for frequent changes of pillow cases. But most of all, from an empirical expert who has dealt successfully with these allergy demons for more than half a century, the solution is: 1) find a highly qualified allergy/asthma specialist; 2) get a skin test 3) get your shots regularly.
Use raw honey made locally from indigenous flora. Honey from wild bees is best.
WebMD is a marketing tool for the drug companies. You really should be able to grasp that.
I had a dreadful experience with allergy shots and all the medicines mentioned helped for short periods but had problems of their own. My b-i-l an allergist strongly endorsed the salt water nasal sprays. I tried them. If I remember to use them regularly, my symptoms are lessened and I rarely get sinusitis. (I limit decongestants to emergencies and air travel.)
I think it's not a bad idea to try the least invasive things first. Salt water nasal treatments have been used to good effet in India for thousands of years. And there are NO side effects.
For the acid reflux, before trying anything else, I'd prop up the pillow, and avoid alcohol, spicey foods,caffeine,and chocolate before bedtime and take over- the- counter antacids for a few days .
I will just talk to the pharmacist tomorrow and ask...thanks anyway.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.