Allergies

[IMADreamer]

I have never had allergies before in my life. Ok occasionally when I mowed the yard I'd get a little stuffy and sometimes during peak farming season when I've been around a lot of dust but this year it's different. Sometime around the new year I started waking up every day with a really stuffy nose. As the day went on it turned to sneezing and sometimes coughing. This has been an off and on thing for months now.

It was so bad I practically made over the whole house. I washed everything i could, changed furnace filters, etc. About a week ago it all seemed to go away and I was doing great, until two days ago when there was so much pollen that my car was yellow and ever since I've been miserable. Like none functioning miserable.

How the hell do people live with allergies?

[redbirdjazzz]

Medicine. I speak from experience.

[thrill]

I've been having a terrible week with my allergies, too.
Any OTC meds actually work? I don't want to go to the doctor's to get a scrip if I don't have to.

[redbirdjazzz]

I've been having a terrible week with my allergies, too.
Any OTC meds actually work? I don't want to go to the doctor's to get a scrip if I don't have to.

All three of the major ones (Claritin, Zyrtec and Allegra) work for me, but tend to lose effectiveness after a few months on each one, so I switch back and forth. My allergies have been really bad lately, so I've been taking Zyrtec in the morning and Allegra at night, and that's helping a lot.

[Swirls]

Yeah, OTC generic Zyrtec for me. I've taken it daily for about the past 5-6 years. Before that, it was prescription Allegra. Claritin has never worked for me for some reason.

[IMADreamer]

I'm going to try some Zyrtec tomorrow. I basically lost a weekend to this crap.

[Mary1966]

I would occasionally have the symptoms of a cold--sore throat, cough, runny nose--for weeks on end but I never associated them with allergies until 2009, when I switched primary care physicians and discussed it with my new doctor. She asked me if I had ever been tested for allergies and I said no. She sent me to an allergist and they gave me tests and said I was allergic to four types of mold. I was prescribed Claritin and Flonase. I took them for several months and then stopped taking them. After than, I didn't have any symptoms until this year. Around the last week in February, I started getting symptoms again. I told my doctor and she prescribed Zyrtec and Flonase. I took the Zyrtec and that didn't seem to help so I started taking the Flonase. The symptoms have gone away for the most part, except that sometimes I will have them come on all of a sudden, sneezing and coughing. I told this to my therapist and she said that she also has allergies and she didn't have them until she turned 35, and they became worse as she got older. Supposedly it's a bad time for pollen right now where I live, although I am not allergic to pollen maybe mold is bad as well. Has anyone tried a cool mist humidifier? I'd like to get one that says it's specifically for mold, but it's kind of pricy. I'd like to hear that it works before getting one.

[Fat Strat]

Claritin. Almost everyday.

I hadn't heard that they lose effectiveness over time. Might have to start switching up. But, I also haven't had any problems. Used to get awful colds every year. Always thought it was just a cold. Turns out it was allergies. Never really diagnosed. My wife just recommended that I start taking Claritin -- she had a script. My symptoms were identical to hers, so it made sense. And it has definitely worked.

[redbirdjazzz]

Claritin. Almost everyday.

I hadn't heard that they lose effectiveness over time. Might have to start switching up. But, I also haven't had any problems. Used to get awful colds every year. Always thought it was just a cold. Turns out it was allergies. Never really diagnosed. My wife just recommended that I start taking Claritin -- she had a script. My symptoms were identical to hers, so it made sense. And it has definitely worked.

If it doesn't lose effectiveness for you, that's awesome; keep taking it. Claritin's the cheapest of the big three, and I'd love if I could just take it full time.

[Diddy]

I have to switch allergy meds every few months. I can come back to them again, usually the next season, but deff quit working after I've been on one for awhile.