BS: Allergies

Subject: BS: Allergies
From: Gern
Date: 03 May 05 - 03:15 PM

Am I the only one who is suffering from record pollen counts in the eastern US? I've never had any allergic problems in my life, but now, at 51, I'm struggling to breathe much of the day. The problem seems to go away during the day but come roaring back in the evening. Sleep is constantly interrupted. We're buying tissues at a rate of six boxes a week! It's gross and miserable, and even affects my singing. I cautiously use nose sprays, but am afraid of becoming dependant on them. Over-the-counter allergy meds I've tried work for a day or two and then are useless for me Besides they only work for a little while. Can geezers like me suddenly develop allergies?

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 03 May 05 - 03:29 PM

Yes, geezers like us can suddenly develop allergies.

The last two years I've had vertigo when the pollen count is high. It's about the most sickening feeling I've ever had.

Last week Lexington, KY hit #1 for the worst springtime allergies. (up from #16) Louisville, KY fell to #4. I live between the two cities.

I'm a little better this week - oak pollen must have fallen a bit from the all time high.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: GUEST,jeffp
Date: 03 May 05 - 03:37 PM

Call your doctor. I was suffering the tortures of the damned until my wife remembered that my doctor had given me Nasonex last year at this time. I called and they called in a prescription for Nasonex (nasal steroid spray) and Clarinex (antihistamine). Now I'm sleeping much better and breathing much better.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 May 05 - 03:37 PM

Allegra works well for me, and I now use the one-per-day (180mg) dosage. If the allergies are really strong I boost the Allegra by taking a Benedryl at bedtime. I can't take the full dose of two capsules or I wake up hung-over (benedryl just does that to me, it isn't the combination). My son does fine with Allegra-D, and one in the morning is enough to last him for 24 hours (Though you can take one every 12 hours).

Take a shower at bedtime and wash all of the day's accumulation of pollen out of your hair. And/or you might want to change your pillow case each evening. That way you don't have your face right against the fabric that is carrying the pollen off of your hair while you try to sleep.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 04 May 05 - 05:58 AM

I'm suffering too here in the still-chilly north; I asked my doc for Allegra but she told me to try over-the-counter Claritin first. It gives me the worst buzz!!! So today I'm trying nothing but Tylenol to counter-act the headache that accompanies all the other misery.

Following advice from my naturopath (who now lives in Tuscon!):
I also eat a spoonful of local honey a few times a day- seems the bees have the answer- it does relieve the symptoms for a few moments. And supposedly if I'd remembered to get Nettle pills from the local health store and started taking them a week or so ago, it would relieve symptoms, too.

But the stuffed head, oozing eyes, and drowsy feeling is hard to live with for now!

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: *daylia*
Date: 04 May 05 - 09:50 AM

One of my sons has suffered allergies and related asthma most of his life. He's spent so much time over the years suffering, not to mention all that money on Ventilin and over-the-counter drugs, which never seem to work very well and are hard on the rest of the bod too. Yesterday he sent me this interesting article about allergies...

Allergies are the result of a hypersensitive immune system. The allergic immune system misidentifies an otherwise innocuous substance as harmful, and then attacks the substance with a ferocity far greater than required. The problems this attack can cause range from mildly inconvenient and uncomfortable to the total failure of the organism the immune system is supposed to be protecting...

I've been telling him for quite a while now about the quick success other people I know have enjoyed with acupuncture. In my understanding, acupuncture works because it changes the way the immune system reacts to the "trigger" substance (ie cat hair). The needles redirect the body's energy so that it flows correctly even while being exposed to a tiny bit of the substance. The body quickly responds to this new "conditioning" - it "learns" it can tolerate the substance without symptoms, and changes it's responses permanently.

Here's what one MD has to say about treating allergies with acupuncture....

I find it gratifying to treat seasonal allergies with acupuncture. There is often a quick response. Often patients get some relief during the first visit while lying on the exam table with their acupuncture needles in place. Patients are asked to score their nose stuffiness on a zero to ten scale. Zero meaning no stuffiness at all and 10 being the worst possible stuffiness for the patient. A score may be determined before and after the acupuncture treatment. Patients can also determine the effectiveness of acupuncture treatment by tracking the number of sneezes per day and the number of itching episodes around their eyes. After an initial series of treatments, patients come in for further treatments on an as needed basis. Some patients come back in once or twice a year for a booster while others may come more often.

In general, patients do better if they avoid sugar and milk in their diets. They have better and longer lasting responses. I have seen many patients who failed medication and allergy shots respond to acupuncture. Patients continue with whatever standard treatments they are currently undergoing while getting acupuncture treatments. Most patients end up significantly reducing or eliminating their dependence on allergy medications.

I sent my son that article yesterday, and also this glowing testimonial . And what's his response? "U know me, I hate needles. Or maybe I'm just lazy."

Oh well, I give up.... for now...

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: MaineDog
Date: 04 May 05 - 11:17 AM

When I moved to Maine from Mass. I found that I had trouble with seasonal allergies the second year. It takes some time for the body to get sensitized. Likewise, the local honey took another year to cure the problem. You have to eat it regularly, several times a month, for a year or so for the body to build up resistance. And, of course, the more local the honey is, the better it will work.

MD

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 04 May 05 - 03:56 PM

I'm convinced I posted to this yesterday..... did I fall out?

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 04 May 05 - 04:04 PM

Obviously it fell off...

Try using sunflower or olive oil instead of vegetable oil. Sunflower and olive oils are pressed from the seeds and fruit whereas vegetable oil is pressed from the whole plant, which is usually oilseed rape, a member of the brassica family. It's also notorious for causing allergic reactions with its pollen which can end up suspended in the oil.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: wysiwyg
Date: 04 May 05 - 05:23 PM

B5 (pantothenic acid) will help reduce the severity of the histamine reaction over time, if you take it faithfully (400mg/day during allergy season), and it will help keep your lil adrenal glands from getting worn out.... and thus help prevent an overall increase in inflammatory pain that often comes along when the adrenal system is stressed.

The adrenals make the cortisol that is our bodies' natural cortisone-- which pours out to help allergies and inflammation, both, as well as keeping us vertical instead of passed-out-horizontal from physical stress.

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: hesperis
Date: 05 May 05 - 12:53 AM

Tell your son that acupressure works just as well if he's THAT scared of needles.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: *daylia*
Date: 05 May 05 - 07:31 AM

That might go over better with him, thanks! Do you know if acupressure is as effective, hesperis?

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: hesperis
Date: 05 May 05 - 04:37 PM

It's supposed to be the same thing, but in the allergy treatments I had they did acupressure first and then acupuncture. They might be able to do acupressure for all of it but in the second part they're supposed to puncture several different spots (depending on what you need) and leave you with the needles in for half an hour, checking up on you occasionally. Doing that with pressure might be a bit difficult to reach all the spots at once, and therefore more expensive.

You really can't feel the needles once they're in. But if he insists, well... Acupressure would work, you'd just need more people working on you. *Shrug*

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: *daylia*
Date: 06 May 05 - 10:35 AM

Thanks again hesperis - I just copied out your posts and sent them to him ... to needle him a bit more ....   :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 07 May 05 - 04:44 AM

Think he'll get the point?

: )

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: *daylia*
Date: 07 May 05 - 08:29 AM

Maybe. Don't want to get under his skin though.    :-D

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: mg
Date: 07 May 05 - 12:07 PM

Do your own research on this but I have read that you can stop an asthma attack by putting a bit of sea salt on your tongue and drinking lots of water...but don't take this as medical advice..folklore perhaps. mg

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Alice
Date: 07 May 05 - 01:30 PM

If you have been drinking chamomile tea, STOP immediately. Use over time can lead to weed pollen allergy. The same with prolonged use of echinacea. (quote from link below...Echinacea- "may overstimulate immune system and lead to immune suppression" "Increases tumor necrosis factor" "Don't use in HIV" Don't use for more than 2 weeks in a row.)

See an allergist. I had gotten to the point in my late 40's where I could not breathe except through my mouth. A skin patch test on my back revealed that I am very allergic to feathers. I threw out all my feather pillows. Nasonex helped me recover.

See some info here:
The Voice And Swallowing Center
Click here

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: GUEST,jOhn
Date: 11 May 05 - 01:48 PM

I'm allergic to turkey shit,it gives me spots.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: dianavan
Date: 12 May 05 - 01:32 AM

marygarvey - it might be folklore but if it works...

I suffer from allergies but have figured out how to fight pollen.

I buy a sterile saline solution and irrigate my nasal passages at the first hint of an allergic reaction. I also gargle with salt water.

It doesn't cure you, but if you get to it right away, it seems to wash away the majority of the pollen and keep the whole problem at a more manageable level. The trick is to do it right away and irrigate your system as often as possible.

And yes, wash your hair and change your pillow cases.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 12 May 05 - 06:11 AM

If changing pillows every summer is beyond your means, most pillows can be washed in a standard washer with no ill effect (unless they are feather!). Anti Allergen pillows don't really make much difference.

If you have a good powerful vaccuum cleaner (Dysons work really well for this), then give your pillows and mattress and other soft furnishings a good vaccuuming each week - it helps a lot!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: hesperis
Date: 13 May 05 - 02:41 AM

Anti-allergen pillow covers can help a bit if they're the good ones. My husband has two and I started snaffling one of his pillows all the time because I slept so much better with it!

Allergy can also be caused by a nutrient imbalance... but it's not much use to take vitamins when you're allergic to the vitamins. That was my problem for about a decade, until I got the acupuncture treatments.

It sucks that malnutrition can lead to allergy and malabsorption, and then that leads right back into more allergy. You can probably fix it if you catch it quickly enough at the first sign of malnutrition... not much of an option when living on welfare though. Oh well.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 13 May 05 - 03:30 AM

I must have got hold of a couple of crappy anti allergen pillows then because they did nothing for me at all.. Mind you... we never did discover what my main asthma triggers in the home were... it sure as hell isn't cats!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: GUEST,Tinker
Date: 13 May 05 - 08:26 AM

Why flush the sinuses....

My son's allergist really recommends this, and I have to say although it is not real pleasant, it is very effective at clearing problems quickly. You can mix your own solution or get pre-made packets and just add water. It also speeds up recovery time from sinus unfections.


One we've used....

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: GUEST,sniffly
Date: 13 May 05 - 08:40 AM

Washing and dusting and cleaning and flushing out the whole world - even your own sinuses - may relieve the symptoms momentarily, but such "remedies" make for a lifetime of work and do nothing to address the cause. Allergic reactions are caused by the body's maladaptive responses to the environmental "triggers", not the environment itself.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: JennyO
Date: 13 May 05 - 08:43 AM

I'm allergic to turkey shit,it gives me spots.

Well jOhn, in that case then, remind me not to give you any of this here Turkey Turd Beer.

Jenny

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: Kaleea
Date: 14 May 05 - 02:18 AM

The pollens are alive & blowing in Kansas, too. Here, the powers that be are going to make certain that the tiny bit of allergy med which barely works since they took the better products off the market a few years back, is now to be obtained only from behind the counter of a pharmacy, & one must show one's ID & sign for it as one must do for a narcotic. And, why? Because bad guys get it & make crack out of it. In Oklahoma they enacted this new law, & the crack labs have significantly diminished, making the arrests for crack makers go down. Thus, they have efficiently removed much of the crime of Oklahoma, & send the crack makers & searchers across state lines. Just think of the lost revenue in taxes. The crack makers must go out of state to purchase their supplies--& pay the taxes on it. Then they, as well as those addicts who search for it, must purchase much more gasoline out of state--& provide that state with more tax money. Ingenious, isn't it. And, since I do not have medical coverage of any type, I am subject to attempting to find lesser products for which now, I must pay 3-4 times more than just mere weeks ago when I could get it at a dollar type store. Ahh, Spring.

Subject: RE: BS: Allergies
From: GUEST,JTT
Date: 14 May 05 - 06:49 AM

Ahh, spring. Think of all those poor ex-crack-makers, with their streaming noses and red-rimmed eyes.