seasonal allergies....

[Pequenita]

Anyone out there a fellow sufferer? I went for a run last night, the first nice day in a long time here, and once I stopped running, I started sneezing.....and have been now for the last 15 hours. I've taken a couple of Claritin D's, but it's apparently not enough.


Obviously, this means that I shouldn't stop my legs from running, otherwise my nose will start running.

 

[pinto]

Mine were getting progressively worse until the only thing that would work was a couple of Benadryl (which meant I was taking a looong nap).

I finally went to the allergist last fall, and got the scratch test. Out of 40 allergens, I was allergic to 38, and the two that I wasn't allergic to are molds that don't even exist here in Colorado.

(The doctor looked at me incredulously and said, "Are you just miserable all the time??")

So, she gave me Zyrtec, which she warned might make me sleepy, and Nasonex (one of those nasal sprays). I tried the Zyrtec, and it was awful .. it DID make me sleepy, and it's a time-release pill so I was sleepy for about 12 hr. But the Nasonex has changed my life. Honestly. It's awesome. Two squirts a day.

I also have some fenofexadine (aka Allegra), but I use it only during high-pollen times. I haven't had problems at all this season.

Claritin never really worked for me, by the way.

 

[Pequenita]

It's funny how different meds affect us. I used to take Zyrtec and was totally fine with it, while it knocked out a friend of mine. Claritin had worked for me; I used to take a pill every other day and was fine. But, methinks I better get myself to an allergist one of these days....

 

[SnowHot]

Allegra D did wonders for me a few years ago. My husband suffers from allergies far worse than I 've ever experienced, and he's only found relief from Allegra also.

Peak allergies hit us when the farmers around us mow their hay, so we have a few months before we will really suffer.

 

[Jilly]

Mine are just starting to bother me. So its a trip to the drug store soon. Nasonex has been prescribed for some time because of allergies and chronic sinuitis. I seem to be allergic to mold and spring things, more than the summer stuff - pollen.

 

[pinto]

...Peak allergies hit us when the farmers around us mow their hay, so we have a few months before we will really suffer.

We live by a golf course, and spend a lot of time at the pool/tennis courts in the summer (which are sandwiched between the par 3 we live on and the regular course) -- when they mow, I just lose it. It is terrrrrrible. We'll see how it goes this year.

 

[num]

At work today I was walking between buildings on campus, and apparently they'd just mowed last night. It was very windy in the morning, and the wind combined with freshly mowed grass turned into green-out conditions. I'm not alergic, but it wasn't fun for anyone! Students with allergies were complaining a lot, some using it as a (more valid than most) excuse to skip some classes and get off campus early.

 

[abc]

Speaking of medicines, funny how advertisement works.

Claritin was toted as such a magic drug, on TV. But in reality it works for some and fails miserably for others. Much the same as the "other" drugs, Allegra and Zertec.

I had success with both Allegra and Zertyc. But Claritin did NOTHING for me. I couldn't tell if I've taken it at all! Its only effect was a lightening of my wallet!

In any case, the best option, if it works for you, is the nasal spray. You need to try different ones. Some people are lucky enough they don't need to take anything orally once they found the right nasal spray.

Sadly, I have no such luck.

 

[abc]

Oh yes, just to make this thread "in topic". That's another reason to extend the ski season. As long as you keep going up (or north), where the trees/flowers hasn't started to bloom yet, you'll spend less of your leasure time in the spring bloom of your low altitude/latitude home!;)

Where there's snow, there's no flower. Hence no allergy!

Hopefully, by the time all the snow is gone from northern VT and Canada, the bloom will be over around the mid-Atlantic. There, is the one way to escape the seaonal allergy! Not to mention more snow time...;)

 

[persee]

I'm in the seasonal allergy boat as well. In the past my allergies used to get so bad that I would get allergic bronchitis often in the month of May!

Presently I take an inhaler for my asthma and Singulair which seems to help my allergies as well. If I'm desperate I'll take benadryl. I've been prescribed Allegra in the past but it does not do me any good - despite the fact that it's predecessor "Seldane" worked great for me as a kid until they took it off the market. I've tried Claritin and it's completely ineffective as well. Never have gotten to try Zyrtec as my lovely health insurance plan refuses to pay for it since "they cover a similar drug in Allegra". :mad:

So alas I get to suffer a bit during pollen seasons. I have found that since I moved to where I currently live, I'm much better allergy wise than when I lived in the Hudson Valley of New York.