It's April! And that means all of us here in blogland need to be extra careful not to get too excited about any Big Announcement posts we see today. I've seen it all... marriage, divorce, pregnancy, deep dark secrets... you name it, someone has fake announced on their blog on this day.
In lieu of an April Fool of some sort, I'll announce that I'm skipping the Resolution Review this month. Everything is going well, moving along nicely, but there's no big progress or anything really worth discussing in detail, so I will spare you all of that.
Instead I will complain about how the second (THE VERY SECOND, I am not even kidding) I hit publish on that post about how healthy I am, I was overcome with... a cold? Allergies? I don't know, because Dayquil isn't helping and neither is Claritin, and those are my go-to meds for those situations, and damn it, all I want to do is breathe, BREATHE, but every time I think I've cleared my nose out, I sneeze and then my nose clogs up again.
I'm thinking allergies, because my nose is SO clogged, and my eyes are itchy and watery, and my throat is itchy, and I keep sneezing and my nose constantly feels tickly, and that's not normally how I feel when I have a cold, and also, well, it's spring and I spent a good part of yesterday outside, so maybe there's some fresh new pollen out there just trying to kill me?
But if it's allergies, WHY ISN'T THE CLARITIN WORKING? I need it to work. NEED. My head feels fuzzy and I have several looming deadlines and it is really hard to concentrate, much less do coherent work, when my head feels like it's made out of the material they use on those wiry scrubbing brushes (it has a name, I know it does, but I can't for the life of me remember what it is... CASE IN POINT).
Seriously, what do you do when Claritin fails you? Is there some other miracle drug I should be turning to instead?
New Recipe: Greek Penne Pasta
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This recipe sounded delicious to me when I came across it, and it turned
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14 years ago
Homer is constantly plagued with nasal issues and swears by a daily sinus rinse. It's gross, but it lets him breathe easier.
ReplyDeleteAs some one who has been taken some form of allergy pills for over 25 years now it does seem that some after a while just quit working. I think your body just gets used to them. So it may be time to switch from Claritin to something else. I'm experienceing the same sysmptoms here in MI and I'm going to try Zrytec for awhile to see how that does for me.
ReplyDeleteHi - I'm usually a lurker but wanted to say that my doctor told me that it takes Claratin a few days to work. Benedryl works fast (though it makes you sleepy!). I take Allegra now but she said that and Claratin, it takes a few days of taking them for them to really start working.
ReplyDeleteClaritin has never helped me, but Zyrtec is my wonder drug! I take it daily year-round to prevent allergies. During spring here in TN, if I need something additional, I'll take Benadryl at night (when the sleepiness is a good thing).
ReplyDeleteAnother Zyrtec fan here -- Claratin never did a blessed thing for me but I take Zyrtec every night without fail!
ReplyDeleteClaritin stopped working for my son within the first 6 months. He was switched to Zyrtec the next allergy season, and it has continued to work well.
ReplyDeleteBenadryl! Sometimes you need to see if you're nose is drippy and runny or you are just stuffed up (but not a lot comes out...gross talk, I know). If it's stuffed up, your nasal lining may be inflamed, causing the lack of breathing. So you may need to find a med that works for runny nose vs. stuffed up.
ReplyDelete- Mon
Brillo pads? Is that the word?
ReplyDeleteI hate feeling like shit when it's beautiful outside. Hope you get better soon!
Also, I just read all the other comments, and now I'm feeling left out b/c I've never taken ANY kind of allergy medication.
sadly if its not working with claritin D or zyrtec its probably a spring cold - MAX out your vitamin C intake!! good luck!! and water, in whatever contents you can comfortably take. oh i wish i took my OWN advice :)
ReplyDeletei'll also recommend the sort of gross-ish nasal rinse. neti-pot. it's weird, but.. um.. effective.
ReplyDeleteNeti pot?
ReplyDeleteMy husband the allergy nurse and horribly allergy sufferer himself recommends Zyrtec. However, buy the generic (cyterizine - sp?). If you have a Costco membership it is crazy cheap there.
ReplyDeleteWhen I must, I take chlorpheniramine (generic ChlorTrimeton) for the dripping and sneezing, and generic Sudafed for the pressure behind the eyes, but I try to keep from having to take them at all with regular nasal rinses. The squeeze bottle kind seems to be somewhat more effective than the neti pot kind. But getting that pollen out of there on a regular basis is really much better than just treating the symptoms the pollen causes.
ReplyDeleteZyrtec, Zyrtec, Zyrtec. I swear by it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the daily sinus rinse (NeilMed?) is pretty damn fabulous. And gross.
I was going to suggest a NetiPot, but I see LoriD beat me to the sinus rinse thing. I don't use it for allergies, but do use it for general stuffiness. It isn't permanent for me, but I'll take all the relief I can get when I'm sick.
ReplyDeleteTwo words: sinus infection. I thought I was suffering from allergies. Had all the same symptoms you've described...tried a bunch of different allergy methods and they did NOTHING for me. Woke up one morning with both nostrils completely blocked and with a fever. Sure enough...sinus infection. Awesome. I hope that's not really the case for you!
ReplyDeleteDouble the Claritin!
ReplyDeleteZyrtec works quite well. The only thing that works 100% for me is Benadryl, but unfortunately taking it requires me to take a 15 hour nap. It KNOCKS ME OUT.
ReplyDeleteAlso, NasalCrom works really well. You can get it OTC. It's a nasal spray that you use on a daily basis, not just as needed, so it won't work instantly but after a couple days it's great.
For colds, I drink a few drops of Grapefruit Seed Extract in OJ or other juice. Works like a charm. For both colds and allergies, neti pot. It's sweet, sweet relief.
ReplyDeleteMy allergies kicked in like clockwork yesterday around 9am. Sniffling, sneezing, itchy eyes. It's fantastic. The only thing that takes the edge off for me (non prescription) is Claritin-D, the regular stuff doesn't cut it.
ReplyDeleteI like Zyrtec (or generic version there in) but what really is my saviour is Neilmed. Like the neti pot only easier. I use it in the shower every morning when it is allergy time or if I am stuffy.
ReplyDeleteI've had luck with Allegra. I also use a neti pot to clean out my nose when I go running/hiking/etc. or do anything that would increase my pollen "intake." If the stuff that's bugging you is stuck in your nose, you're probably not going to feel too great.
ReplyDeleteI hope you find something that works for you!