[Vapor Audio]

It's starting early this year in St Louis ... my weeping willow already is greening out.  Then last night I had to mouth breath all night because my nose was completely clogged. 

I love and hate this time of year.

So anybody have allergy magic bullets?  Either pharma or natural cures.  Claritin and Zyrtec do little to nothing for, Allegra is decent at times.  But when I get that overwhelming hay fever attack, I've found nothing that works short of about 10 ephedrene pills ... which then completely dehydrate you and put you into a coma like state.  Last year I had a hay fever attack that turned into sinus infection, I'd like to avoid that.  Also had one attack that was terrible so I took a bunch of pseudoephedrene, and it gave me a kidney stone!  Literally sucked all the fluid out of body and formed a kidney stone in a day. 

So yea, I get bad allergies ... but only for a month.  Once the buds on trees turn into leaves, I'm good.  So any ideas for stuff to try? 

I've also tried a bunch of herbal stuff like Butterburr and Stinging Nettle leaf, but they do nothing for me. 

[keenween]

I use local honey, teaspoon in the morning and a teaspoon at night. I also eat a little bee pollen every day.

[Vapor Audio]

I use local honey, teaspoon in the morning and a teaspoon at night. I also eat a little bee pollen every day.

Yea, tried the local honey thing too ... no difference. 

I think my problem is when I get allergies, they're violent.  I'm literally out of comission for 24-36 hours.  So herbal/holistic cures don't pack enough punch. 

Is there anything new prescription wise?  Do you think something like a 5/16" auger bit into the nasal passages would help? 

When is human evolution going to reach a point where we can tell our own immune system to stop flipping out over something that's harmless 

[nathanm]

I've been seeing an allergist lately for sinus and lung problems.  I took the Prick Test, which tests for your ability to schedule your appointment, show up 2 hours late and then make rude sexual comments to the receptionist all while yelling into a Bluetooth headset.  I only got a 72 out of 100, the doctor said my cursing could use improvement.
 
No really now, I had the test (all 800 bucks worth…argh!) and found that mold, pollen, ragweed and dust mites are the main culprits.  But it wasn't off the charts.  For some inexplicable reason he doesn't think the shots will do me any good.    Spent a whole lotta bucks on X-rays, took lots of free sample drugs (one nice part of the whole ordeal) with the most effective being Prednisone.  That stuff clears up my lungs.  But ultimately the allergist does not know what to do with me (I'm not kidding, this is what he said!) and has referred me to an ENT and pulmonologist.

The existence of a non-drowsy antihistamine like Allegra was a huge bit of I-Coulda-Had-A-V8 belated news to me.  I had no idea there was such a holy grail, but there is.  Cool.  Up until like a year ago I always associated anti-histamines with choosing to become near-dead to the world for the majority of the day.  But this stuff really works and doesn't put you in a coma.  And you can get generic too.  Sweet!  Allergra stops the sneezing, but in my case there's other crap going on.

I would try and see if you can get in on the allergy shot action.  It's not an instant fix, but it sounds like a true long term solution.  Other people in my family have reported great results with the shots.  I am hoping to try them if and when they can drill out my sinuses with a forstner bit and get things moving again.

I also have some luck with the saline nose rinse.  You can use a neti-pot , the Sinupulse pump (fancy), or go ghetto and use a plastic water bottle with holes poked in it with the pull-up valve thing on it.  It all more or less works.

Also, the Sinus Buster pepper spray ain't too bad.  It's no cure, but it's at least not just placebo water.

[Tyson]

Raw, unfiltered wildflower honey from your local area can help.  Has to be wildflower, not clover or alfalfa. 

I had really bad allergies, but most of them abated when i stopped eating grains (wheat, corn, rye, barley, oats, etc...).  My theory is that these caused low level, constant inflammation, so my body was "primed" to go into overdrive when it encountered an air born allergen. 

The other big "win' for allergies for me came when I started to take Vitamin D3, at 5000 iu per day.  Lack of D is another cause for broad, systemic inflammation, so I think it helped with allergies for this reason. 

Other than that, I've not found a whole lot of stuff very helpful. 

[decal]

I hate to tell everyone this but, it's always allergy season of one sort or the other.

[Mass. Wine Guy]

It sounds like you may have a more severe reaction than the average person. I'm allergic to pollen and ragweed that occurs in early to mid spring. I've often gotten relief by taking two or three capsules filled with crushed nettle. There aren't any side effects that I've felt. It will work or not work, depending, I think, on how severe the allergens are that day. But usually I've had good results.

[jonbee]

I think my problem is when I get allergies, they're violent.  I'm literally out of comission for 24-36 hours.  So herbal/holistic cures don't pack enough punch.
Is there anything new prescription wise?  Do you think something like a 5/16" auger bit into the nasal passages would help? 

I've had pretty serious hay fever type allergies for 51 years (grass and cats in particular). Unchecked they can knock me out, too. The one thing that works reliably for me is the cortisone inhaler (Flonase, etc.-prescription only). One or two sprays per day in season stops the problem cold. No other non-drowsy antis work for me.

[cujobob]

I have allergy problems...overall, I've had the best luck with Allegra on a consistent basis with benadryl pills (costco brand or what have you) before going to sleep. My issues revolve mostly around eye allergies with my contacts.

Btw, for anyone in the market, Costco had their brand Allegra on sale for $25 or so the other day, good price.

The Claritin type antihistamines never worked for me or for most people I know. Not sure why.

[ctviggen]

I have allergy problems...overall, I've had the best luck with Allegra on a consistent basis with benadryl pills (costco brand or what have you) before going to sleep. My issues revolve mostly around eye allergies with my contacts.

Btw, for anyone in the market, Costco had their brand Allegra on sale for $25 or so the other day, good price.

The Claritin type antihistamines never worked for me or for most people I know. Not sure why.

Claritin works for me.  I believe I tried Allegra and found I got too tired.  Perhaps I'll try it again.

As for local honey, I tried this briefly and all I got were bad headaches, while still taking antihistamines.  And that's not in pollen season; instead, that was in winter.  I have allergies year round.   What's strange is that I never had allergies until I was about 26 years old. 

[AlejandroG]

Allegra works for me. I also use naphazoline twice a day when things get ugly

[Folsom]

If you understood how allergies work, you'd know that there isn't a "magic bullet". You can make the symptoms be tame but...

The contributing factors to allergies.

Gut flora imbalance.
Over-toxification.

An allergic reaction occurs when the body has too many anti-bodies ready, and it attacks the body at the same time as the invader. (pollen or whatever)

If you can tame your immune system by reducing the production of anti-bodies, you won't get allergic responses. You do this by reducing the amount of interaction with things that make you produce anti-bodies. Most people only respond to a few things that make them create anti-bodies. The important part to realize is, in example form, I'm allergic to cheese so if I eat it my body makes anti-bodies against it and grass - which I am also allergic too. This means while I may not have a reaction to cheese, the more of it I eat, the worse my reaction to grass will be when I encounter it. (I actually am allergic to grass, sitting in it itches)

[Devil Doc]

I spent the day vacuuming, dusting and washing off white pine pollen. It's all over everything. I'm glad I'm not allergic. What a mess.

Doc