Monday, September 24, 2018

...I'm Allergic To It

     Now, if only I knew what it was!  Or is.  Spring and Fall, there's something in the air my sinuses don't like.  The week of rain kept it down and it ramped up slowly afterwards, but it was fogging me yesterday and, in hindsight, the day before.  Just took a an OTC 24-hour allergy pill, which usually makes it better.

     It could be worse.  Sure, sneezing and snorking isn't nice, but when I was a child, the Spring/Fall allergy caused my knees and elbows to get bumpy and itchy and, in short order, scabby.  Mom called it "the elbow disease," perhaps because nobody in our house had allergies; having allergies was considered to be a self-indulgent affectation of the well-to-do.  Much like orthodontia, it was looked on as a little bit suspect.  Decadent, even.  As I grew up, "the elbow disease" faded -- and seasonal sinus problems followed.  I suffered through for decades; it was probably Tamara who bought the first OTC allergy pills and shared them.  They worked.

     Holy cow, it turns out I'm like the title character in The Princess And The Pea, a delicate flower.  With an allergy.  I just keep forgetting to take the medicine for it.

9 comments:

Ed Jones said...

Flonase and Allegra are my saviors.

Jess said...

I have two sister-in-laws suffering from their bi-annual "sinuses from Hell" episodes. Considering the weather, and where they live, I'd venture to guess the moldering leaves in the woods allowed mold spore proliferation. Whatever it is, they usually spend a few weeks dealing with sinus infections.

Rich in NC said...

It only happens in April and October. Go figure.

Rick T said...

Green, Blue, Purple. Green, Blue, Purple. Green, Blue, Purple. I'm practically a Drazi twice a year...

That's my regimen in the spring and fall, I rotate thru my three bottles of 24-hour antihistamines as I get immune to my current one after a few weeks.

In the old days I was popping (real) Sudafed every few hours.

fillyjonk said...

I don't know if it's ragweed or mold from all the rain, but I've been sneezing my head off here and also have been making monumentally stupid errors (my allergies make me stupid and I should probably just be locked in a box until the first frost).

I also get hives from allergies, which is not a good look on anyone.

Zendo Deb said...

My only reprieve is in winter, when everything outside is frozen - preferably under an inch of snow.

I have been tempted to move to the desert, though I'm probably allergic to something there as well.

Allegra going off prescription was one of the greatest medical advances in recent years.

Zendo Deb said...

Rick T, Nice Babylon 5 reference. Started watching that again recently. Can't decide if it's aged gracefully or not. Seems like if Hollywood is looking for something to reboot, that might be worth a look.

RandyGC said...

One side benefit of being placed on a CPAP is my spring and fall sinus flareups have stopped or been a lot milder. I think it's a combination of the air filter and humidifier.

Hope this episode passes quickly.

Roberta X said...

Rick T, Zendo Deb -- I have been rewatching Babylon 5, too. The sets and effects are dated, and the first season or more is painfully rough, but the stories are pretty good and get better quickly, as do the actors as they grow into their roles. I like it and I think the later seasons hold up well. Considering it was shot on a small budget in a former big-box store, with no marquee names, I think it's still excellent space opera. I think it's notable for having started the trend of long-form SF story-telling picked up by later series. (Notably the Battlestar Galactica reboot and The Expanse, though Andromeda and Dark Matter have long-form elements as well.)

Everyone, thanks for sharing! I, too was serious seasonal Sudafed user, back when the real thing was simpler to buy. As they have tinkered with the formulation, trying to make it less easier for criminal chemists to use, it seemed to get less effective and I stopped.