I’m really not sure what is going on, but this year I appear to have developed serious allergy problems. I checked the pollen index, and it is high or really high for this region, so I guess that explains why I have been feeling itchy and congested and puffy the past few days, and my doctor said it is just seasonal allergies, but it really is damned annoying.
At any rate, concerned that it is cat dander and not pollen, I went and rented a carpet washing machine and have spent the last few hours ripping my house apart, vacuuming, moving furniture, vacuuming some more, and then cleaning the carpets. About a quarter of the way through, I realized this was a helluva lot more work than I thought it would be when I got this brilliant damned idea. I will probably still be cleaning carpets well past eight o’clock tonight.
On the other hand, they did need it.
*** Update ***
I’ve been throwing cat toys into a bucket to collect them all so I don’t suck them up the vaccum, and I just decided to count them. Counting the ones I found buried in couch cushions, behind couches, wedged behind a speaker, underneath a cabinet, in my winter slippers, and everywhere else, we are up to 62 and I still have two rooms to go. Spoiled rotten cat.
DougJ
Two words: hardwood floors. (If that’s a possibility.)
asiangrrlMN
Allergies are really bad this year. I don’t know why that is, but I’m really suffering as well. Good luck to you.
Ditto, Lesley. It’s all or nothing when it comes to cleaning house.
Lesley
That’s the trouble with house cleaning. You think it’s going to be a half hour and it turns into eight hours.
cleek
same here.
allergies are much worse than usual.
i blame Obama’s soshalist agenda.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
The apple doesn’t fall far from the German tree, does it?
schrodinger's cat
Are you humidifier filters clean? That was the cause of some of my worst allergies a couple of seasons ago.
Ron Chusid
Obviously the recommended way to handle cat allergies is to get rid of the cat (or from the cat’s perspective, getting rid of the human) but not everyone will want to do this. There are studies showing that bathing cats will reduce allergic symptoms from cat dander. Of course cats will hate you for this, and, depending upon the cat, could be physically dangerous. At least the carpets don’t fight back.
Joshua Norton
If you’re not taking Claritin, try it. When I moved to the west coast I sneezed and had a stuffed up head all the time. I mean years. I didn’t think it was hay fever or allergies because when I lived in the east coast I never had any problems. I could walk through billowing clouds of pine pollen and not even blink. Apparently there’s pollens or something in California that I’m allergic to. A daily Claritin (or the generic loratadine) has solved all those problems.
AhabTRuler
@Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse: No, I said he was a “prissy bitch,” not a “Prussian bitch”!
Oh, & BTW, we need mor thredz plz.
Oh, & & BTW, Pioneer Valley Represent! W00t!
Krista
Well, even if it doesn’t help your allergies, it was probably good to get all that cleaning done. (And yes, your father would be proud.) Carpets are awful for allergies, though.
Mike S
@DougJ: Nope. I am alergic to our cats, have hardwood through-out and live with rashes all the time.
I was never alergic to anything until I met my wife and her cats. And even then it wasn’t until they all moved in that I found out.
Josh Hueco
Whatever you do, don’t move to Texas. I swear it’s a Comanche word for, ‘God Damn, my allergies are fucking killing me!’
KRK
Well, if you’re anything like me, it could just be hitting middle age. Enjoying close to four decades of no allergy issues whatsoever leaves one ill-prepared for even the relatively mild annoyance of seasonal allergies. (See also, deteriorating vision, loss of flexibility, inability to function without a decent night’s sleep, et al.)
P.S. Get off my lawn!
JK
Interesting allergy info I recently found from the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
http://www.acaai.org/public/Home/HOME.htm
YellowJournalism
Have you ever tried a Host carpet cleaner? It’s a dry cleaner that works wonders and doesn’t damage the carpet as much as wet cleaners do. My parents used one all the time when I was a kid. Hubby and I can’t find a Canadian dealer near us, though, to even rent one from.
Mike S
@KRK: Don’t forget hangovers lasting all day to multiple days.
D-Chance.
Quote: I hope Nancy Pelosi’s kidneys fail. How about that? She needs some waterboarding, that’s what she needs.
Quote: I hope Harry Reid’s kidneys fail. How about that? He needs some waterboarding, that’s what he needs.
That’s some really mean-spirited stuff! What disgraceful hate speech! I’m personally outraged!
Oh, wait… that was Wanda Sykes at the WHCA dinner: Rush Limbaugh [says] ‘I hope the country fails.” I hope his kidneys fail. How about that? He needs some waterboarding, that’s what he needs.”
And the libs are ecstatic over the quote, given the blog reactions. I guess some hate speech is more equal and all that… interesting to compare the left’s reactions to the Sykes monologue with the reactions to David Feherty’s joke.
Even now, Media Matters splatters the fauxrage over Feherty all over its front page while totally ignoring Sykes’ hatefest.
AhabTRuler
@DougJ: You know my dream home has no carpets and baseboard/hypocaust heating. As a lifelong allergy sufferer that has been forced to exist in a world of wall-to-wall carpets and blown heat, this is what my dreams have been reduced to (and I was gonna be a rockstar!).
AhabTRuler
@D-Chance.: What is it with you? Sometimes yer sane, and sometimes yer like “durh, professional comedianne = golf commentator fur context ! 11 ! ! !”
I mean, who’s spoof are you anyway?
South of I-10
Allergy season seemed worse than usual here. I am very allergic to the trees, and when the oaks started with the pollen in March/early April, I was miserable. It seems like it has been much windier than normal here, and I was wondering if that was contributing to the problem. I did finally break down and get a neti pot as recommended by 9 out of 10 commenters on Balloon Juice. Do they have Ligustrums where you are? Those things are the root of all evil for allergy sufferers, and they are still blooming. I finally got my blueberry bushes and my crepe myrtle planted today, hooray! I picked up some sunflowers yesterday, but they will have to wait until later this week, I’m beat!
asiangrrlMN
@AhabTRuler: But see, at least he’s admitting that Rush is an elected Republican official! Otherwise, his comment makes no sense at all. That doesn’t even take into account that the Feherty piece did not read as a joke at all.
Texas Dem
I also blame Obama. His radical, communist agenda has encouraged viruses and allergies to step up their attacks on
Americans. Yet another example of how he’s making us less safe.
mt
Ugh. I have a 15 year-old Rhodesian Ridgeback with constant urinary tract infections. My hardwood floors are not amused.
jacy
This is an allegy cure that really works, even my husband’s doctor — who is very anti-homeopathic remedy — has become a convert and recommends it to everyone. My husband has rotten seasonal allergies and this has made them almost unnoticeable.
Find a local apiary and buy some local honey. It needs to be within an 11-14 mile radius of where you live for best results, but if that’s not possible, just find a local honey producer as close to your home as possible.
For the first couple of weeks, take a spoonful of honey each morning and each evening. Then you can go to a spoon of honey each day. Putting it in tea, coffee or yogurt seems to work just as well as taking it plain.
The concept is it’s like an allergy shot, and since the honey will contain the antigenic components of whatever is pollinating in your area, it reduces your allergic reaction.
My husband laughed at the idea when I first suggested it, but he was so miserable he was willing to try it and was pretty astounded that it worked so well. Theoretically you should just take a spoonful every day year round, but he forgets until he starts to sneeze, and then it takes about a week for it to work.
asiangrrlMN
Spoiled, spoiled Tunch. It’s as it should be. My boys have plenty of toys and scratching posts and a very high cat tree, but they deserve it. However, I haven’t bought them many toys lately because they are, by large, not that interested in them.
Anne Laurie
Don’t forget your neti pot — use it every night before you go to bed. Wash your face at the same time (my allergist says you’d be surprised how much pollen human eyebrows trap) and when the pollen count is particularly high, maybe take a quick shower before bed too.
‘Window treatments’ (drapes, curtains, blinds) trap tons of pollen, dust mites, etc. If you’re a mini-blind minimalist, give ’em a good washdown (the Spousal Unit unhooks them & rinses them off in the bathtub, but he’s a Virgo fusspot.) If you have curtains that can’t be washed, at least run them through a dryer set to ‘air only’. Then strip your bed, vacuum the box springs & mattress thoroughly, and wash or dry-clean everything else. Do the same for Tunch’s futon blanket, plus any removable upholstery covers, pillows, etc. If you have an air conditioner in your bedroom, you may want to shut the windows & run the box during the worst of pollen season… but make sure you keep the filter cleaned off.
Since you & Tunch have been living together for some time, you’ve probably acquired a pretty good immunity to his particular allergens. You may want to put off bringing home a friend for him until after pollen season, though. Also, if you don’t want to go full face-mask (probably overkill), make sure to wash your hands & face after every grooming/petting session, especially if you’re using the furminator. In fact, especially if you wear contacts, you want to avoid touching your face as much as possible unless you’ve just washed your hands.
For most adults, living with allergies is a question of keeping the combined allergen load below the level that sends one’s personal histamines amok. You get to experiment and choose your own combination of ‘pets but not rugs’ or ‘rugs but not down comforters’ or ‘paying for professional cleaning services rather than doing it yourself, at least during the height of pollen (or dust) season’.
Comrade Kevin
I’m sure he would disagree. He probably thinks you’re scraping the bottom of the category known as “barely acceptable”.
jTh
Doesn’t sound like cat allergies to me, but rather seasonal.
In my experience, cat allergies diminish with continued exposure – I’ve had them but can process through them in six-nine months once living with a cat again. (That’s happened three times in my life, from awful to non-existent after some acclimation time.) But seasonal allergies come and go by nature, and therefore are more likely to be the culprit in this case.
Always good to clean though.
Dr. Rockso
The honey remedy is interesting from a immunological perspective:
Your gut has these cells called MALT cells (more specifically, GALT cells) that are responsible for attenuating your immune system against antigens found in food. These cells prevent your body from having an immune response to nutrients that are taken up by your gut.
Since honey contains pollen, and your body processes honey as food, you can help your immune system recognize pollen as a non threatening substance. Theoretically, this should reduce or remove the immune response generated from those pollen antigens (runny nose, sneezing, puffy, etc…)
This would be most effective if the bees were feeding on the pollen that you were allergic to.
MNPundit
My cat (whom I hate) has a growing array of toys but I think my family are idiots for buying them. We play fetch with hair ties and bottle caps and then when he wants a change of pace we Furminate him.
Cats do not require you to buy toys.
Anne Laurie
Little furry dust collectors! Since most of them probably aren’t washable, run them through the dryer on ‘fluff’ or ‘air’… a lingerie bag will reduce the strange noises, if you can stand the embarrassment of acquiring one (laundry section, bed&bath or similar boxstore, under $10). Then put all but a dozen or so away, and rotate them on a weekly basis. (Unless, of course, Tunch is the kind of cat who has a FAVORITE lovey that he can’t sleep without, which seems doubtful.)
Barry
Generic claritan is available from (loratadine) at a reasonable cost (~$30/year, and I didn’t forget one zero).
Try taking one of those each day.
Also, if you have health benefits, get yourself tested as much as possible. If they can find a specific cause, you’re better off.
AhabTRuler
Fixeteth.
Punchy
62 cat toys, eh? Better have a lotta batteries.
opium4themasses
Actually, the only cat toys I buy are little foam golf balls. My cat goes crazy for them.
Mnemosyne
@Ron Chusid:
There have been several studies showing that bathing your cat reduces allergens, so I think it’s safe to say that it’s proven (or at least well worth trying).
When our cats need a bath, we take them to the professional groomer — it’s easier on all of us.
Rosali
I like the Rug Doctors for rent at my local supermarket. It’s less that $20 for 24 hours and they do a good job on my rugs. I use generic, non-sudsy ammonia mixed into the water and my carpets come out very clean. I only do it once a year since it is a little bit of a hassle going back and forth to the bathroom to fill up and empty the water container but, for $20 and a couple of hours, I get clean carpets. Plus, ever since I got the Furminator, my carpets need less vacuuming.
Mnemosyne
Best cat toy ever: the plastic ring that you pull off the quart or gallon of milk or orange juice when you first open it. Or so our cat Annie says. She’ll play with that thing for hours.
ramalamadingdong
I never had a problem with allergies until this year, thinking it may be because I went from 1 to 4 cats. Claritin is a miracle drug. No problems as long as I take it.
I have counted 22 varietes of wand toys in my house, stuffed catnip things abound, along with various motorized things. The true insanity is the number of cat beds, 8 in the bedroom and 4 in the garage. Two tents, one cube, 1 wicker basket, 2 fleece donuts, 1 heated bed. Naturally everyone sleeps on my bed.
Sigh
harlana pepper
It’s Obama’s fault.
Doh!
Bill H
Molly has three toys, all of which she rigorously ignores. She stalks the house looking for rubber bands which she slays without mercy, but with great energy and a whole lot of noise. The only thing that will make her abandon a rubber band is one of those little wire twist ties; the outcome a war with one of those things is in doubt for several hours. She and the twist tie take turns chasing each other.
The greatest joy of all is toilet paper, a roll of which she can reduce to shreds down to the cardboard core in mere minutes. She prowls the house at night, opening cupboards looking for toilet paper.
Violet
Have you changed any soap or shampoo that you use recently? That includes clothes washing detergent. If you have tried something new, it could be contributing to your allergy problem. Try unscented, hypoallergenic soaps. Might make a difference.
Also, a friend of mine had terrible allergies, but this year were particularly awful. A few weeks ago she went to a chiropractor for neck pain (had never been to one before) and now her allergies seem to be gone. Apparently chirorpractors say that treatments can help with sinus stuff. Doesn’t seem to work for everyone, but it worked for my friend. Wouldn’t have believed it if I didn’t know her personally.
mt
Just curious, what type of equipment do the groomers wear when they bathe the cat? I would pay good money to subscribe to the cat bathing network. The cat that hangs out at my house is somewhat disagreeable. Too funny.
MattF
@ramalamdingdong.
I’d always gotten along just fine with cats until, one day, I got into an intimate relationship with a Cat Lady. Too damn many cats in a one-bedroom apartment.
Punchy
I think John’s allergic to Willy Pete. It’s all over the place apparently. Legit usage, of course. Of course.
PaminBB
I’m afraid to go around counting cat toys. Each of our three prefers a different type, so we have quite a collection. Most of them they ignore, of course.
As to allergies, my problem is with tree pollen as well. It is particularly bad when the landscapers come around and mow the lawn – I guess it throws all the pollen on the ground up into the air. If I’m home, I run around and close all the windows to keep it out of the house. So avoid lawn mowing, or at least protect your nose, mouth and eyes to reduce exposure.
Comrade Kevin
The toys aren’t really for the cat.
kommrade reproductive vigor
I thought I’d outgrown all my allergies until this year. The trees went into overdrive once it finally got warm enough and I’ve been sneezing a lot. Hell, the cats have been sneezing and coughing. Regardless of what’s bugging you, cleaning the place will make a huge difference.
Don’t forget to change or clean filters for your HVAC system/window AC.
gnomedad
I hope you have a laser for him (to chase, dammit, not pew-pew). Quality time.
M. Bouffant
It’s known as spring cleaning in many parts of the world.
Potential cat bathers:
I’ve had luck flea-bathing by using a standard size rubber/plastic wastebasket. Put the basket in the bathtub, fill it to kitty’s neck height (allow for displacement, of course) put in the flea dip, & dunk your feline associate in the basket.
This depends on the cat’s temperament, of course, but it does make escape more difficult.
Good luck!!
gbear
@Mnemosyne:
Cat Halley says the best cat toy is a nice big pine cone. I like the price.
Mnemosyne
@Violet:
A few years ago, my mom got to spend Christmas Day (and the day after) in the emergency room mainlining Benadryl because she’d changed detergents and turned out to be allergic to the new one. She’s not particularly allergy-prone, either, so it was an unpleasant surprise.
Mnemosyne
@mt:
From what I can tell, the groomers don’t wear any special equipment (though they probably wear gloves) but they put one of those Elizabethan collars on the cat before they get started, the one the vet puts on to keep your cat or dog from pulling out its stitches. That way, the cat can’t reach you to bite even if it wants to. And they always trim the nails BEFORE the water appears.
Robertdsc-iphone
Does the Furminator count as a cat toy?
AZrider
Maybe the cat is embezzling you…
Persia
@gnomedad: Be careful with lasers, though, they can cause eye damage. My cat’s favorite toy (which was indeed as much for us as it was for him) was a scrap of denim tied to a string, attached to an old fishing pole. Cheap, and hours of entertainment.
Tim in SF
take the cat to the groomers and have it shaved down to an eighth of an inch. once every five weeks. will help your allergies.
mt
@Mnemosyne
Thanks for the tip. That collar idea is huge. I’ve got 2 weeks before I attempt for a 2nd time to get his ass inoculated. The claws are still a concern.
Walker
This is the greatest cat toy every invented. My cat Marcus cannot get enough.
Farley
John,
I would highly recommend allergy testing, so you can find out exactly to what allergens you are reacting. I had it done in October, and I have been on shots ever since (twice a week). I feel about 50% better this year over last, and my pollen allergies were severe. And I live in the south (year-round allergy “season”). Huge improvement, and highly recommended if you don’t mind getting pricked. With a needle.
I was very happy to learn I wasn’t allergic to my dogs. Even if you are allergic to superTunch, it would be good to know exactly what your allergies are, and if you get shots you will probably be feeling some relief pretty quickly.
P.S. Detroit won. Yes.
Delia
I second the allergy testing idea. That way you’ll know what you’re dealing with.
And use your neti pot a couple of times a day. I developed asthma due to dust allergies about eight years ago. Every single asthma inhaler gives me headaches. I finally discovered that using a neti pot twice a day keeps me symptom free better than any medication.
Anne Laurie
Get a pair of the cheapest crappy pantyhose (discard with runs in ’em is fine). Tie knots partway up both legs. *After* you’ve got the collar on the cat, “scoop” him butt-first into the pantyhose “bag” — he will immediately put all four sets of claws into the nylon & get hopelessly, furiously snagged. (This is why cheap thick tights are better than the expensive sheer kind.) Then you can use the legs to wrap-belt the bag securely closed around his neck and/or midsection. You now have a panting, pulsing, furiously angry Sack O’ Cat who can be stuffed into a carrier, transported to the vets, and even injected through the nylon if necessary. Yeah, it’s traumatic for both parties, but most cats will settle down once they realize that fighting only makes the situation worse. (Pet-supply catalogs sell an expensive version of this ‘grooming sack’ but it’s overkill for what will hopefully be once-annual trips to the vet.) Of course, you need to have your cutting-through-nylon implement on hand to remove the tattered cat-sack before you take the collar off. And afterwards your cat will run & hide every time it sees you getting out a pair of pantyhose, assuming that ever happens around your place {grin}.
laxel
And so it goes.
Mousebumples
I’m a pharmacist, and I will definitely agree that I’ve had a number of patients come in saying that their allergies are worse than usual or that they’re starting to have allergy symptoms for the first time.
Benadryl (diphenhydramine) is the best medication to treat allergies. However, it makes many people tired (over half of those who take it), but taking one or two Benadryl before bed may help to some extent.
The problem with that solution, however, is that Benadryl only lasts 6-8 hours, so you would need to take it a few times a day for it to be fully effective. If it makes you tired, that’s not really an option. However, as someone mentioned above, you could take a daily Claritin (loratadine) or Zyrtec (certirizine), which are both available without a prescription. Those medications both work best if you start taking them before you begin having allergy problems, so I would recommend taking a Benadryl at night with a daily Claritin or Zyrtec in the morning for a few days. Once your problems seem to be more under control, you should be able to stop taking the nightly Benadryl.
Alternatively, Chlor-Trimeton (chlorpheniramine) is similar to Benadryl but doesn’t make as many people tired. It’s not quite as strong as Benadyrl – and it doesn’t last all day like the Claritin or Zyrtec would – but if those two don’t help your allergy symptoms, it’s a middle of the road alternative to consider.
Good luck!
John Cole
@Mousebumples: Mousebumples, that is EXACTLY what my pharmacist told me. In fact, I took a claritin at around noon, and I just took a benadryl a little bit ago.
dms
Well, perhaps it’s a factor of my having grown up relatively poor, or my ten years of ballet training during which feeling pain was pretty much the point to getting to a point where you didn’t feel pain, but you guys and dolls are a bunch of WATBs.
Christ, as a child, I lost the hearing in one of my ears, and it stayed that way for a week before my oldest brother shamed my mother into taking me to the doctor. I fell on glass in a cinder driveway while playing tag at a friend’s house, and blood was pouring down my leg. Did I go to the hospital? Nope. Stitches? Nope. Pressed a rag against the wound and waited for the bleeding to stop. Nice scars, which have faded with age. Ran into my older brother during a touch football game, the contact of which knocked me to the ground. I didn’t think I could stand, but with my brother screaming for me to do so, I willed it to happen. As an adult, was in a car accident during which my head made contact with the passenger window, such that shattered glass flew in front of my face. The impact of my head on the window broke it. Did I go to the hospital? Nope.
What kind of frontierspeople are you? You’ve got your Neti pots, et alia. Sometimes I’m really embarrassed to read your parochial experiences.
vernonlee
re 62 cat toys:
When I boarded my cat, they asked if I’d brought any of his favorite toys. I told the vet my cat’s favorite toys were plastic bags, tampons (so many pieces to enjoy!) and straws, of which I could probably scrounge a few from my car/purse. I would characterize the expression in response as a harrumph with a tsk-tsk on the side.
So at least you’re spared that.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
Washing cats is a lot easier if you have sliding doors on your bathtub.
Run the water in the tub to cat belly height and fill a large bucket with water as well: place in tub. Make sure baby shampoo and a small water scoop (a small bowl or large yogurt container) in also in the tub. Exit and LEAVE TUB DOOR OPEN. Get towels ready.
Strip down to underwear or a bathing suit.
Find cat, pick up, nuzzle, and bring into bathroom. Close bathroom door, step into tub, slide door closed.
Put cat into water. It will be displeased and may whine, claw at the corner of the tub, howl, or just stand there dispiritedly as if it has been deeply, deeply betrayed. What it will not do is claw you, because you are not restraining it in any way. It’s the door that is the enemy.
Dump water on cat with yogurt tub, apply shampoo, rub. Rinse thoroughly with clean water from the separate bucket.
Open tub door and let the cat out. It may let you dry it a bit with the towel, but once you let it out of the bathroom, it will probably sprain its tongue licking itself dry.
I’ve bathed three different cats this way without a single scratch or bite. It can be done.
AhabTRuler
@dms: No offense, but that’s just idiotic. I commend your stamina and durability, but mostly you are just lucky.
If one is reasonably knowledgeable and have first aid training, one can do rudimentary triage, but the truth of the matter is that after a serious accident, one really should see a doctor. This doesn’t always mean rushing immediately to the emergency room, but it does mean a commonsense attitude about the severity of the injury.
Betsy
I’m interested to read that so many folks are having allergies for the first time this year – I thought it was just me. I’ve never gotten them before, but this spring has my nose itching and me sneezing all the time. At first I thought I just had a really weird, long-lasting cold. Claritin helps, but not perfectly. The neti pot also helps, but again not perfectly. The two together do a serviceable job. But I’m still resentful, because I no longer can indulge in smugness over being the only one of my friends without serious allergies of any kind.
Yes, I know I deserve what I’m getting.
Betsy
@dms:
Walked to school 3 miles in the snow, uphill both ways, etc., I take it.
asiangrrlMN
@Betsy: Ditto. You said what I was going to say. Sorry, dms that we did not suffer the way you did. Hope you feel all smug and superior now.
Stoic
Yes, it’s the cat’s fault.
anticontrarian
as for your allergies, you might consider trying an allergy elimination diet to see if you have any undiagnosed food allergies.
up til my thirties, i never had a problem with them. then, once i turned thirty, they got a little worse every year, til it got to the point where i would spend the whole spring and summer sneezing, blowing my nose, and rubbing my itchy, watery eyes. i’d take drugs, but only the really hardcore ones worked.
the neti pot helped, and got me through the worst of last year. then, this year, i did the allergy elimination diet with the gf, found i was allergic to some things, stopped eating them, and have noticed a drastic reduction in my allergy symptoms this year. they aren’t gone, but i get through the day without any meds, and maybe have the occasional sneezing fit, but am mostly symptom-free.
it takes some discipline, and it’s a bit of a commitment, but the payoff is worth it.
rachel
My cat’s favorite toys were my mom’s old hair curlers, a catnip mouse and my pearl necklace.
Camcow
I’ve tried Claritin, Allegra, etc. If they don’t work for you (as they did not work for me,) try the generic version of Zyrtec. It’s a bit pricey even as a generic, but it really does the trick.
Also, I’m not a physician, but it seems to me you’ve got to build up whatever anti-allergy drug you choose to use in your system.
I was in agony the first week of tree-pollen season, but now I can forget to take my morning zyrtec and still be fine.
Bottom line is you’ve got to try an anti-allergy drug for a couple weeks to determine if it works for you.
Mousebumples
@Camcow: Pharmacist jumping in here to confirm your statement that you need to take the anti-allergy medications for a few days to see a benefit. I’d give any of the three (Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra) at least a week before you even consider giving up on them.
That’s not true so much for the Benadryl and Chlor-Trimeton allergy medications. They’re what are referred to as “first generation” antihistamines, and they’re a bit stronger than the “second generation” antihistamines (Claritin, etc.). However, they don’t last as long and are very likely to cause drowsiness. Definitely a matter of “pick your poison” – but like I mentioned above, it’s okay to take a single dose of Benadryl at bedtime when you’re starting a daily Claritin regimen.
Also, I’ve made that recommendation (a nightly Benadryl) to people who are finding that their daily Claritin/etc. isn’t working quite as well anymore. Of course, if you need a nightly Benadryl for over a month to control your allergy symptoms, you may be better off trying a different daily medication, but for a short-term fix due to a short-term exacerbation of the allergies, it’s definitely workable.
Wile E. Quixote
@Anne Laurie
“…a panting, pulsing, furiously angry Sack O’ Cat”, I kind of want to do this now just for the amusement value of seeing a cat tied into a pair of panty hose.