The run of good weather has left me with a recurrent problem..... I am sneezing for Britain!
Until I reached about thirty I used to regret always having a summer cold. I did all my important exams with running eyes and nose...it had become a joke in the household along the lines of "No you can't speak to mum....she's off sneezing again! "
It only occurred to me that it might be hay fever after seeing my daughter with a runny nose and realising that I was seeing a toddlers version of what I'd got!
It took another ten years to also realise that my occasional breathing problems in the height of summer were in fact caused by asthma...
A visit to the doctor confirmed this self diagnosis and I came away with my first spray!
Down here in Cornwall the air is very clean compared to where I lived in Lancashire but during the height of summer the pollen counts rise dramatically in a good year!
Mostly I just sneeze. An asthma attack only happens if I am doing something energetic so this isn't much of a problem any more.
The whole subject of allergic reactions has become commonplace now but I'm not sure if we really understand it...why it happens, how it happens that we can have an adverse reaction to some things and not to others.
My daughters problems were much worse than mine and she had a day In outpatients at the local hospital when scratch tests left her with an itchy blotchy arm. She turned out to be allergic to a huge range of things.
Her breathing though rapidly improved when at six she learned how to play first a recorder and then a flute. Once a regular pattern of practicing music was put in place her asthma attacks became a thing of the past! Going to live in Summerset further helped the problem so I was expecting the same for me living in Cornwall.
I still sneeze my way through the summers of course...but it's a small,price to pay for all this glory and living so close to the sea keeps the worst at bay! Thank you God!
Posted with Blogsy
4 comments:
Join the club!
My son, daughter, and I are sneezing for the U.S.!
That made me laugh.....good to know that it's not just us!
I think the pollen count is higher then usual this year Jean. Add sore eyes and itchy skin to the equation and we have a recipe for a perfect summer. Not.
At least the bees are having a whale of a time.
I have suffered from Hay Fever for over 40 years, all year around. I didn't know that the winter sneezes etc were connected with an allergy to pollen and to dust as well. It was finally properly diagnosed as I was coming up to 60, and I'm now prescribed medication (one tablet a day) which has at long last, got it reasonably under control. If pollen is exceptionally high, as in the past couple of days, I still sneeze a bit, get sore eyes, but nowhere nearly as bad as it would be without the medication.
I tried all sorts over the years. Nasal sprays, just make me sneeze more, as well as actually stinging when applied, so soon abandoned. I found that I was allergic to some brands of hay fever medication as they contain things that upset my system, one actually made me so dizzy that I had to sit to recover from it - which meant no drivingfor 12 hours of so.
No, one tiny tablet a day, which agrees with me and I'm relatively hay fever free - thank God for medicine and drug research which can help things.
On the subject of allergies, I was always able to eat nuts, but a few years ago, I starting to feel quite ill after eating some - again, the doctor was able to diagnose a nut allergy - so now, have to be very careful to check ingredients of all I eat. The worst is home made cakes - where some people put ground nuts or things in them - oh dear...... Nothing like a violently sick person after eating a lovely, looking and tasting home made cake........ Our lunch club now has to advertise the contents of all home made ingredients as does our coffee morning. A bit big brother, but necessary to protect our users and ultimately, self protection for us as well.
Post a Comment