Hay Fever and general pollen allergies

[Leland]

Okay, I'm getting really tired of taking a regimen of antihistamines & allergy medication just to be able to function.

If I let my symptoms sneak up on me, I end up with Claritin, Sudafed, and Benadryl (and maybe Drixoral) in my system all at the same time, and maybe I'll get a good night's sleep (which is what I'm not getting at this very moment). I had a brief prescription of Deconamine a couple years ago, which was excellent for keeping my nose dry (and clear fluid from my ears, which was caused by pressure changes during an airplane flight), although it's pretty strong stuff.

I know that there's allergy therapy or something like that, but the last time I knew anybody who did it was in high school nearly twenty years ago.

Does it work? What's involved?

[Doug@GT]

You're taking the wrong medication for your symptoms. Sudafed is a decongestant, and Claritin contains a decongestant as well. In my case, decongestants just raise my blood pressure to dangerous levels and don't help at all.

An off brand of Claritin is Alavert, but you can buy it in a 24-hour tablet that doesn't have the decongestent in it, only the allergy medication. It works great. About every other month I have to got 2 or three days with benadryl to keep it effective (don't know why, don't care).

Try the alavert--sometimes Wal-Mart will have packets of 60 for under 2o bucks. Great deal, lasts 2 months.

If the Alavert doesn't work, try Flonase. It may still be prescription, but it's the stuff if you want to pay more. It's a steroid, so it'll clear you up for good.

If you have minor decongestion, try a simple saline nasal spray instead of medication.

I'm afraid of therapy, though, so no help for you there

Doug "ah-choo"

[Joe Baker]

Doug, there are two SEPARATE products, Claritin and Claritin-D, where the -D has the decongestant added. Also, while Alavert is a less expensive brand, you can find actual store brands considerably less expensive still. Look for "Loratidine, 10 mg" as the active ingredient.
_________________________________
Joe Baker, who has learned a lot about allergies since moving to East Tennessee!

[Leland]

What about the therapy that I mentioned? Do they still do this?

[Tabor]

Hey Leland,

At last, something on the tube-net I know about! There are different therapies for allergies. Inhalers, drugs and shots, but changes in diet work for some people. None of these ever worked any better for me than the stuff one can now get over the counter.

There are different things that specialists do in anticipation of shots. The first is probably to have you take some kind of allergy test to find exactly what you are reacting to and what type(s) of reactions you might have. They'll keep you there to make sure that you don't have anaphylaxis (so you don't die). (anaphylaxis hurts and is not fun) The most common now is using a tray of several needle-like things pressed against your back and measuring the reaction.

If you are like me, however, and have severe allergies, the tray won't work because the reactions will be too strong and bleed into each other's areas, disabling the ability to measure individual reactions. In this case, it will be individual needle scratches. Each needle or needle-like thing will contain some kind of or part of pollens, molds, dust or whatnot to determine to what you are specifically reacting.

If you do have any type of breathing reactions, there are several different types of inhalers and you may be told to carry an epi-pen or similar adrenaline (epinephrine) kit. I had one of these in High School, only needed to use it once and it worked very well. I would doubt this if you only have hay fever type reactions.

After it is known what your allergy is, a course of injections may follow. These can be one or two times per week and one or two shots each time. They are designed to get your body used to allergens over time, so benefit (if any) is usually slow in coming. I began taking allergy shots when I was five years old and stopped while in college.

My allergies actually seemed to improve when I stopped taking the shots, so I don't have much faith in the injection therapy, but it seems to work for some people. There are just times of the year when I have to be drugged up with the stuff you were talking about. As a disclaimer, I haven't been to a specialist in more than ten years now, so they might have something better or do things differently now. Good luck getting the allergies under control and also being of clear mind (that is the hard part).

[ThomasDodd]

MaryAnn posted at the end of this topic.
viewtopic.php?t=3561

Anyone with weird physical symptoms and/or run of the mill allergies, may benefit from absorbing the material at http://www.naet.com/

Nothing close to me, but I'm sure D.C. would fair better.

[Chuck(G)]

interesting...

...Just recently various folks I know (in all different parts of the country) have all told me they were suffering for "allergies". All of them were diagnosed with respiratory infections, and at least two of them ended up having to miss work.

You haven't encountered too many folks from the Willamette Valley, then. Around here, during grass-seed pollen season, you'll see some folks wearing masks around town. In the valley, we raise about 60% of the nation's grass seed and the pollen is quite visible over the fields at times. Those allergies are genuine.

Our neighbor up the road has a magnificent house, complete with indoor swimming pool. She's an allergist.

[Joe Baker]

Similar story here, Chuck. East Tennessee has thousands of varieties of flowering plants growing naturally, and plenty more imported, and the pollen is very thick. My pickup truck, normally red, looks like a very pretty orange this time of year, just from the pollen on it.

Also, the wealthiest person I know in Knoxville sits next to me in the church choir. He is also my daughter's (indeed half of Knoxville's) allergist, with something like 6 offices running "shot rooms". These shot rooms are each staffed by an RN and run about 20 patients per hour, collecting $20-$30 per patient. Cha-Ching!!
________________________________
Joe Baker, who does fine as long as he takes sudafed EVERY 4 hours this time a year -- including getting up at 3:00 AM for a dose.

[Doug@GT]

Doug, there are two SEPARATE products, Claritin and Claritin-D, where the -D has the decongestant added. Also, while Alavert is a less expensive brand, you can find actual store brands considerably less expensive still. Look for "Loratidine, 10 mg" as the active ingredient.
_________________________________
Joe Baker, who has learned a lot about allergies since moving to East Tennessee!

Well, there you go.

Doug "learning something new every day"

[Chuck(G)]

Similar story here, Chuck. East Tennessee has thousands of varieties of flowering plants growing naturally, and plenty more imported, and the pollen is very thick. My pickup truck, normally red, looks like a very pretty orange this time of year, just from the pollen on it..

A really beautiful section of the country, Joe! I have in-laws living in Asheville and Montreat and have been there during the spring and summer. The rhododendron in June is particularly beautiful.

[Mark]

Okay, I'm getting really tired of taking a regimen of antihistamines & allergy medication just to be able to function.

I hear you. I finally got fed up last year and went to an allergist and had the allergy tests. I'm now getting injections and until the course of injections is complete, I am taking Zertec and a nasal spray. Things are getting better...

Ask your primary care physician for a referral to an allergist.

[ThomasDodd]

Similar story here, Chuck. East Tennessee has thousands of varieties of flowering plants growing naturally, and plenty more imported, and the pollen is very thick. My pickup truck, normally red, looks like a very pretty orange this time of year, just from the pollen on it..

A really beautiful section of the country, Joe! I have in-laws living in Asheville and Montreat and have been there during the spring and summer. The rhododendron in June is particularly beautiful.

I'm having trouble breathing now...

Just reading that makes me sneeze.

[Rick F]

I went the injection route after an allergist found out what I was allergic to (grass pollens, oak pollens, pet dander were the biggies for me). I learned to inject myself with 2 shots a week (one in each leg). After 6 months of not seeing any improvement, I asked the Doctor. He said it could take quite awhile so I continued the shots. I would get terrible headaches the day after the injections. As Tabor said, the injections have the stuff you're allergic to. I kept up the injections for a little over a year -- but then decided to quit due to all the headaches. It wasn't worth it to me.

I now use Allegra 180 mg once a day and Flonase nose spray each morning. It helps, but it's not a cure.

Good luck.

[corbasse]

I used to be allergic for a load of stuff. Hayfever, fruits, nuts, trees, dust etc. Red swollen eyes and a runny nose all through summer from the trees and grasses and in winter from the dust, and a horrible itch in the back of my throat and inside my ears when I ate fruit. I used to take zyrtec all year round but decided to quit because I had a small suspicion it was having a negative effect on my mood.
Since I quit taking any medicine my symptoms diminished considerably. (And yes, I'm a lot happier too ) I still have some reactions a few times a year, but never strong enough to hinder me.
Did my quitting the medicine just coincide with the diminishing of the reactions, or was it a result of? I'll never know. People grow over allergies, given time.
The only thing I still react to are shellfish, but I don't particulary like them anyway.

[tubatooter1940]

I'm allergic to milk,booze and tomatoes.I refuse to get shots and I can live with out these items-with the exception of beer (in moderation).
Party down!

[Leland]

Even a certain former DC mayor would have trouble finding as much "powder" as each oak blossom seems to put out on the sidewalk:

[Tubaryan12]

I have used nasal steroids in the past (Nasacort, Rhinocort, etc.). They worked great but the only side effect I didnt like was the occasional sore throat.

[ThomasDodd]

Even a certain former DC mayor

Nice. That's great.

[Mitch]

I received the injection therapy from the age of four until twenty-one. At the beginning, two shots, once a week. At the end, two shots, once a month, but the syringes were FULL. The 24 hours following injection usually brought stifling cramps until the fluid had been absorbed. I have mixed feelings about the effectiveness of the injections. While getting the shots, I used to get little colds all the time. Without them, I would say I'm healthier more of the year, although when I get sick, it tends to be severe (double pneumonia this past December, for example).
Having lived in DC before, this time of year brought plenty of allergy issues, but having taken Claritin, Flonase, Zyrtec, et al., over the years, I've recently had good experience with Singular. If you've seen the ads, you know that it "works differently," targeting the leukotrienes, the cause of many of the symptoms, as opposed to other medications that aim to treat the reaction to the leukotrienes, such as the itchy eyes, runny/stuffy nose, etc. With Singulair, I've also not experienced some of the side effects experienced with other allergy meds, such as the drowsiness, altered moods, etc. With some of the other meds, such as Claritin, Claritin-D, and some OTCs, it seems I get more side effect than treatment. Also, with some meds you should expect to take them up to three weeks before you get any consistent relief.
If your allergies are persistent, i.e., there isn't a time of year without problems, you should seek out a board-certified allergist for evaluation. And just so there's no doubt, the tests suck. You will be there half the day, and, if they do the scratch tests, you will react, you will itch and itch, and it will be a less-than-pleasurable way to spend the day. If you go this route and have medical insurance, be sure to check with your provider. Even some major plans still fail to cover immunotherapy, some cover the shots but not the tests, and some cover a minute portion of all treatment. Considering that you will likely be going once a week to start, it's worth investigating.
If your allergies are seasonal, talk to your doctor about a prescription or two. I recommend Singulair without hesitation.

[MaryAnn]

Ok, another allergy post. The NAET web site was already posted, and although I have not had results from it personally I know a few people who swear by it.

My understanding is that allergies have a "mountain" effect. That is, you won't react to allergens until that last one creates the "mountain" and then you react to everything. So....my advice is to watch out for food reactions, which can be in many forms. I get stuffed up after I eat dairy products. I sometimes sneeze when I eat wheat. If you can identify some things you ingest that cause you problems, you can elminate them and maybe improve your situation.

I thought I was going to die once back East when I was on a ferry boat going from the Rhode Island shore out to Block Island. I didn't take my Allerest with me because I was going to be on the water, and there is no pollen on water, right? Wrong. I couldn't breathe and really was scared I would die. I made it though and went directly from the boat to the drugstore and bought some Allerest, which made me able to breathe again. That was about 20 years ago.

Lately, the biggest and best thing I've found for my overall health has been of course more alternative medicine. If you're curious go to primaldefense.net and read the site. I did the Fungal Defense followed as they say by the Primal Defense (which I still take, along with the multivitamin) and it really helped my overall condition. Here in the SW I don't have much in the way of allergy problems so I can't address that directly, but I can say that my immune system is definitely functioning better post-GOL products than pre.

MA, who takes pharmaceutical drugs as a last resort