Allergies - what do you do/take to cope?

[Paul_B]

I'm curious as to how some of you bushcrafters cope with allergies. I'm kind of a seasonal allergy sufferer with mostly hay fever. No idea which pollen as it is worse at different times of the year each year, with some years a lot worse than others. I have not picked up on any pattern to my worst days of hayfever.

I am also prone to dust mite faeces allergy (IIRC it is not the mite itself but the secretions of them that causes the allergy so rather than calling it dust mite allergy I am being literal here by saying it is the faeces that I am allergic to). Now I am mostly not too bad with just a low level of slight cold like symptoms but vacuuming the house becomes serious at times. I go through vacuums quickly - they simply die on me without any serious use - so I have found different vacuums are ok others give me allergies. The latest, a donated dyson, kills me. If I vacuum the bedroom I sleep in I have about 2 or 3 days of seriously asthmatic like symptoms at night. I have never been diagnosed asthmatic but tightness in the breathing and complete breathlessness when lying down and doing nothing is not good.

So I am curious as to what remedies or coping strategies you people have. I have yet to find anything to work for any of these allergies. A a barrier applied to the base of the nose doesn't help. Loratidine and other 3rd generation anti-hystamines are OK for serious episodes (such as my post vacuuming attacks) but i do get seriously painful, sore throats from them. The nasal sprays result in damage to the nasal blood vessels and subsequent rupture with associated periods of bleeding. Honey from a local supplier (fortunately live near to Galgate where a local honey producer is based) does not do anything.

I am trying again with a new vacuum and a more rigorous routine to cut down mites. Indeed I am planning a 6 month cycle for the replacement of pillows. Also looking at fine weave microfibre under pillow case barriers for the pillows to prevent mites getting into the pillows. Washing at 60'C to kill the mites and other tricks I have learnt from allergy organizations.

All this is time consuming and in the end less than fruitful so I am resorting to the excellent body of knowledge that resides in the heads of BCUK forumites. I am completely sure that some on here will have some herbal remedy or other traditional solution I have not heard of. To make this more important or urgent my partner has allergies and I believe my toddler is showing early signs of allergic response. Pharmaceutical industry has failed, can the herbal/traditional work??

 

[peaks]

I have a similar pattern of hayfever to yourself and response to the nasal sprays.
This year I've tried homeopathic treatment and its the best year I've had so far for many years.

I used to get asthma attacks following severe hayfever symptoms when in my 20s (I'm now in my late 50's) Tried all sorts of meds available at the time. GP suggested hypnotherapy - worked, asthma symptoms under control very quickly.
30 years on - still works.

I'm now a full time clinical hypnotherapist, and have good results with asthma and some other allergy symptoms. Have tried hypnotherapy on my hayfever and have had some success- but limited and varies from year to year.

I'm not saying that complementary therapies are suitable for everyone, nor for all allergies. I do believe they can help with symptom alleviation with a lot of allergies.
If you would like any more info, please give me a pm.

Regarding hoovers - tried allsorts. Came back to using my Henry with the latest bag filters. I use it all over the house as well as on the pillows and mattress on a regular basis. Also hoover the walls + ceilng. Works for me.

 

[xylaria]

OP you sound like you have asthma.

Go to your gp and get treatment. The longer asthma is left untreated the harder it is "to get better". I was diagnosed earlier this year I have has serious symptoms for two years. The nurse looking at my peak chart had to point out what the danger zones were for me. I felt alright.

I dust with damp cloths, vacuum with the windows wide open and dont have carpets. I aslo so eat a lot of fresh fruit and raw veg, to feed tye good bacteria and other organisms. Asthma is a life threatening condition. Get it under control.

 

[Graveworm]

I can't leave this alone Homeopathy is self hypnosis at best.
http://america.aljazeera.com/articl...n-study-says-homeopathic-drugs-dont-work.html
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/homeopathy/Pages/introduction.aspx
http://www.csicop.org/SI/show/why_bogus_therapies_seem_to_work/
You are drinking a few drops of water and telling your body that it works, of course that is a way to control allergic reactions but it is not any pharmacological result of the water.
Asthma is manageable with treatment so to the Op please seek treatment.

 

[Mesquite]

My mother used to suffer badly when any hoovering was done until she got a hoover that used water as the filter.

The machine wasn't cheap, something like £750 15 years ago but it was amazing at how good it was. Unfortunately I don't know what make or model it was as she passed away 10 years ago but I reckon you'll find it with a bit of googling

 

[xylaria]

There are natural treatments for allergies. Asthma was treated with herbs, it consisted of inhaling the smoke of some rather toxic plants such as henbane. These worked in much the same way as modern beta antagonist drugs. I generally prefer using natural remedies but not with asthma. Untreated asthma ruins your health, even in a mild way your sleep is less restful, it prevents good exercise and causes a general lack of fitness. Long term untreated asthma causes lung tissues to scar and copd to develop.

I hate having to take a steriod inhaler every day. But when I dont I cant exercise as well. I have lost over a stone since getting dianosed simply because I can exercise better and I eat better. Antihistamines and to an extent the blue inhalers are sticking plasters. They make things worse if taken to control a runaway immune response. A long term immune problem needs long term lifestyle changes and proper medical input. Netle pakora and ginger tea and pranayama yoga are good but not even mercola says ditch the doctor.

 

[drliamski]

Nettle pakora? Got a recipe?

 

[rik_uk3]

"blue inhalers are sticking plasters" tell that to someone having an asthma attack

 

[rik_uk3]

I can't leave this alone Homeopathy is self hypnosis at best.
http://america.aljazeera.com/articl...n-study-says-homeopathic-drugs-dont-work.html
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/homeopathy/Pages/introduction.aspx
http://www.csicop.org/SI/show/why_bogus_therapies_seem_to_work/
You are drinking a few drops of water and telling your body that it works, of course that is a way to control allergic reactions but it is not any pharmacological result of the water.
Asthma is manageable with treatment so to the Op please seek treatment.

My favorite homeopathy debunking site is http://www.quackwatch.com/

 

[Orchard]

"blue inhalers are sticking plasters" tell that to someone having an asthma attack

I think it's a fair point, making the contradistinction between it and preventative measures, no?

 

[cranmere]

I use antihistamine eye drops because it's my eyes itching that is the completely intolerable part of hayfever for me.

Be aware that there are 2 different kinds of eye drops commonly sold for that purpose. One contains sodium cromoglycate which stabilises the mast cells and stop them from over-producing histamine. You have to use those regularly even if you don't have symptoms. The other contains an antihistamine and you use that only when you have symptoms. It's surprising how many pharmacy counter assistants don't know the difference and will tell you that they are the same thing.

Antihistamine pills work pretty well for many people but if one type doesn't work it's worth trying another because they are very individual. The modern non-sleepy ones don't work for me but old fashioned Piriton (chlorphenamine maleate) works very well. I've learned how to use that effectively, I break the pills into quarters and take a quarter, then if that doesn't start to suppress the symptoms after about 20 minutes I take another quarter. That way I can sneak up on the syptoms without getting sleepy.

Eating honey is an alluring idea but trials haven't shown it to be useful. On the other hand honey tastes good, and unless you eat it by the jar full won't do any harm so you might as well give it a try.

Homeopathy is bunkum, however allergies are surprisingly vulnerable to the placebo effect. I've even used it deliberately, imagining myself taking a pill and actually had a reduction of symptoms for a short time!

 

[Tonyuk]

If you suffer badly with hayfever go to the doctor and get them to prescribe you anti-histamines. These always work for me since i get it every year without fail up here. If he doesn't want to play ball get yourself down to the local supermarket and buy the standard allergy tablets. Theirs two main types, citirizine & loratidine, buy both and see which one works. If your really bad take both at once for a few days until the symptoms go down. After that stop taking one and if they come back you know which one works for you.

Tonyuk

 

[Lizz]

It's sounds to me as though you (the OP) have both asthma and hay fever, the later may easily be helped by a range of over the counter meds, the other needs serious treatment. My husband has terrible hay fever and for years just bought over the counter stuff, until mentioning it to a doctor who promptly prescribed something that he takes from about April until September. But he doesn't have asthma of bronchitis, I had both as a child but have gradually kicked it - it does sometimes clear. But my best friend at Uni and one of my work colleagues both died from asthma attacks, in front of us, they didn't have their inhalers, we couldn't get breath into them, they panicked, the ambulances were too late. They died. I was one of two people who had witnessed others die from an attack (when it was my colleague) and even though we were both trained first aiders and a I had been a life guard we couldn't save him. If you are experiencing tightness of chest and throat and haven't been diagnosed do see your doctor. Even if you hate allopathic medicine, it can save your life. And if your doctor is diffident take a journal of incidents for the previous four weeks and talk it through.

 

[markheolddu]

I have suffered with hayfever/asthma since I was 8. I stopped eating wheat for two months at the start of the year and only eat it for a treat now. This year no hayfever not just an improvement totally gone.

Mark

 

[Lizz]

That's interesting - I'm on no grains for migraine. It's fantastic for the migraine but a nightmare for eating out, or buying things in a tiny corner shop at the end of a long walk... Is it all of wheat or gluten?

 

[Old Bones]

I use antihistamine eye drops because it's my eyes itching that is the completely intolerable part of hayfever for me.

Be aware that there are 2 different kinds of eye drops commonly sold for that purpose. One contains sodium cromoglycate which stabilises the mast cells and stop them from over-producing histamine. You have to use those regularly even if you don't have symptoms. The other contains an antihistamine and you use that only when you have symptoms. It's surprising how many pharmacy counter assistants don't know the difference and will tell you that they are the same thing.

Antihistamine pills work pretty well for many people but if one type doesn't work it's worth trying another because they are very individual. The modern non-sleepy ones don't work for me but old fashioned Piriton (chlorphenamine maleate) works very well. I've learned how to use that effectively, I break the pills into quarters and take a quarter, then if that doesn't start to suppress the symptoms after about 20 minutes I take another quarter. That way I can sneak up on the syptoms without getting sleepy.

Eating honey is an alluring idea but trials haven't shown it to be useful. On the other hand honey tastes good, and unless you eat it by the jar full won't do any harm so you might as well give it a try.

Homeopathy is bunkum, however allergies are surprisingly vulnerable to the placebo effect. I've even used it deliberately, imagining myself taking a pill and actually had a reduction of symptoms for a short time!

Totally agree. I've had hayfever for years, and Piriton works for me fine. However, my wife bought some generic ones from Sainsburys, and they knocked me out - they might identical in theory, but in practice, find the ones that work for you. Remember that a dose thats fine for someone else might be totally ineffective on you, and we all have different triggers - grass seed might make you no more than sniff, but a certain tree pollen might make your face puff up like the Stay Puff Marshmellow Man from Ghostbusters.

However, I also think the original OP might have asthma, as others have mentioned. Thats not surprising - hayfever and ashthma often go together, with asthma perhaps developing later (like me), or the asthma coming first (my son). And asthma/hayfever is often genetic, as are skin conditions.

See your GP for a checkup, and keep a diary of symptoms, conditions, etc. You may also have an underlying genetic problem. My mother suffers from just such a problem, which was only discovered some years ago. It explained why she had pneumonia as a child (in the Tropics!), and has generally breathed using perhaps a third of her lung capacity her whole life (it became a habit). She almost died of septicimic pneumonia 15 years ago, and was very lucky to survive at all. You can get tested for such things, just to rule it out.

Asthma UK might be a help, if only to understand that others have gone through the same sort of thing, and have found ways to cope. And they can recommend vacuum cleaners, etc.

You can lessen the chance of dust mites by using things like special bed covers. Pest Control Direct UK http://www.pestcontroldirect.co.uk/acatalog/Dust_Mite__House_Dust_Mite_.html sells them (great company - I used their products when we got hit three times by neighbours bed bugs in three years).

You might very well need inhalers, but thats no biggie. The purples are basically steroids with a bit of the blue to help you breath - they are a preventative (my son has them twice a day). The blue ones can be life savers (sticking plasters!), and I've noticed that my son has needed them a bit more this summer (he's eight, so doesn't always notice he needs them - I do!). Hopefully preventative measures should avoid the worst, but even so, sometimes you need them. Annoyingly Rose wine used to give me asthma, but since I had an allergic reaction to penicillen, most wine does the same thing. Its no fun trying to have a nice glass of wine, and then having to get out the inhaler. Just have to move onto spirits or meths.....

Homeopathy is bunk - sorry. And in this case, dangerous bunk. I'd highly recommend Ben Goldacre's excellent book, Bad Science, which includes a whole chapter about it. And Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science, written by Martin Gardner in 1952 (and still in print) is simply a classic. He not only covers homeopathy, but also warns about L Ron Hubbard, so not a lot has changed.

Get thee to your GP, and an asthma/allergy specialist. Asthma often comes later in life, but once you've had it, it ain't going away, just lies dormant. We've just had the annual talk on asthma and epi pens at the school where I work part-time - and its scary (and I get asthma!). Get checked out, and go from there.

One last tip - try not to take painkillers like cocodimal and anti-histamines together. Years ago, I had a meeting in London with my external PhD supervisor and my 2 internal advisers. I'd gone to a student party the night before, and woke up with a bit of a hangover, and a cracking headache. Dosed myself up on Co-codimal, and coffee, but it was a hot summers day, so I needed the Piriton. Fine - got the train (although one of my supervisors caught the same train - making intelligent or indeed any conversation with a deadly hangover is no fun). Got to the meeting, and then the two drugs really started to kick in. I actually dont remember much of the meeting at all, but one of my supervisors said afterwards 'we had a great meeting, We weren't quite sure where you were'!

It could be worse. The bloke I shared an office with at the time (and a house) did much the same thing, and then laid down for a little while just after I'd left for the office. I didn't see him the whole day, because he slept for eight hours!

 

[markheolddu]

That's interesting - I'm on no grains for migraine. It's fantastic for the migraine but a nightmare for eating out, or buying things in a tiny corner shop at the end of a long walk... Is it all of wheat or gluten?

At the moment avoiding all grains not easy and finding a snack when your out is a nightmare.

Mark

 

[Lizz]

I just made chia seed chocolate muffins, very nice too, and a grain free loaf, also nice and almost loaf like!

 

[mrcharly]

It is very worth pushing for extra looking at by a GP, even changing GP. I was diagnosed with COPD, handed an inhaler. It sort of worked, but on bad days I struggled to breath or talk, would go faint for lack of air. Irritants such as dust, some perfumes, air freshner would tip me over the edge and I would be gasping for air.
Then a new GP insisted on some more (very basic) tests, informed me that I didnt have COPD or asthma, I had a digestive problem. Severe gastric reflux was eating away my oesophagus causing inflammation and blocking my airways. Untreated I would have developed cancer or possibly died from airway obstruction.
Now I take one small pill a day and I'm absolutely fine.