Need BBB medical advice! Months long congestion from new dust allegry?

[almostmom]

Update:

I did flonase and zyrtec for 4 weeks, and symptoms didn't change at all. Possibly the slightest bit better, but still a nasally voice, occasional dizzy/head fog spells that felt like the first day of a bad cold, occasional dry tongue, sinus headaches... I called my doc (it's the NP that I see, who has only been doing this work for a year, which makes me question her expertise, but she seems smart and confident...), and she said I could stop doing the flonase (I can breathe fine, the congestion really seems to be deeper, in my cheeks, and obvious when I talk), but keep taking the zyrtec since my test showed I was allergic to dust. She then suggested I try amoxicillan for 2 weeks, to see if it is a sinus infection. 6 days later, no relief, and I actually felt worse (some naseau to add to the dizziness), so I stopped taking it, which was a good decision as i was feeling terrible on it, and no relief from the symptoms. Now 2 weeks later, still taking daily zyrtek, still sound like I have a cold, occassional dizzy/brain fog feeling, some face pressure (again, like when you have a cold) a little nasal nose-blowing congestion (like 5 times a day?) but easy smooth breathing. I got an air purifier for my bedroom. But really, the symptoms have barely changed, so I think there must be something else going on!

NP says next step is a CTscan. Is that really necessary? I definitely want to figure out what this is, but feel like I'm flailing, as is my NP.

Thoughts?

Thanks--



I would love the opinion of all of you with allergy experience, or other medical insight:

I have been congested for a couple months now. Not too bad, but I hear it when I talk or sing in the car, have nasal back drip, and have a fatigue and headaches that set in maybe once a day that feels like a cold is coming on. But I haven't developed a cold, and the symptoms have stayed mostly consistent, starting to now get slightly worse, but barely. I have the congestion when home/working, and when I was on the beach in Maine for a week, mostly outside, lots of fresh air. I went to my primary since I'm headed into a minor surgery soon, and didn't want to have that be an issue when they put me under. They suggested trying Zyrtec. So I did try it for a few days, but then was headed to the mountains of Utah, so thought I'd see if that changed my symptoms without any meds. I was much worse there, really congestesd, especially at night, blowing my nose more, feeling like I might just actually have a cold (but I don't think I did). When I got back home, the intense symptoms of Utah subsided, but still, congested, blowing my nose once or twice a day, headaches, occasional fatigue that I could push through and get over, or nap through. It's annoying to always sound congested, and the slight headaches and fatigue are getting to me.

So I decided to go to an ENT. They did an allergy test, and looked up my nose (fun). Didn't see signs of a sinus infection (though I still think that might be the culprit), just lots of mucus (sorry, kind of gross i know). The allergy test came back saying that I am allergic to 2 common types of dust mites. And so she said I should do Flonase and zyrtec and that the dust allergy is probably what's going on.

But I'm not convinced. I've been doing flonase for 5 days now (I know, it takes time) and am waiting to go back to the zyrtek - I'd rather take one med than 2 if I can help it. But no relief. Still having headaches that feel like they are coming from a cold or my sinuses, still congested, still feeling a bit run down sometimes. I'll stick with it for another couple weeks.

I just have a hard time believing that I all of the sudden developed a dust allergy (I know allergies can develop suddenly) and that it triggered these symptoms in 3 very distinct places - MA, ME, and UT with no relief when I am outside hiking or in different locations. The doc says dust is everywhere, which I get. And I do have carpeting in my bedroom. But nowhere else in my house (though we do have area rugs). And my mattress is a couple years old and latex.

Anyway, for any of you with allergies, or any with medical insight, I'd love to know if you have an opinion on what's going on!

Thanks SO much--

[MSWR0319]

Sounds like allergies to me!! I'm currently feeling the same way and I know I'm in the middle of an allergy flare. The fatigue and heaviness in the head drive me nuts! I have no idea if your problem is dust or other allergies (did they test for pollen allergies?), but I can tell you that just a nasal spray more than likely isn't going to cut it. The nasal sprays and the meds treat different symptoms. You really need both to at least get it cleared up at the very least. I prefer Allegra over Zyrtec, as Zyrtec tends to make me drowsy and doesn't work as well. Another option is Xyzal which is similar to Zyrtec but does not cause as much drowsiness. I have to rotate between the two every few years because my body gets used to it. I hate taking meds, so I understand your hesitation, but you aren't going to clear up with just a nasal spray more than likely.

[NCGrandma]

Lots of personal and family experience with allergies of all sorts, unfortunately. What you describe certainly sounds like my experience with dust mite allergies. As your ENT said, dust mites are everywhere. If you were allergic to certain pollens, you would expect that you wouldn’t encounter them at the same time in ME, MA and UT, but dust, sure!

Re: the meds: I assume that your ENT told you to take both Zyrtec and Flonase, not just one. They act in very different ways, so the combination is usually more effective. Also, Zyrtec is one of 3 popular OTC antihistamines (others are Claritin and Allegra). Many people find that one of these is much more effective than the others, but there’s no good way to predict in advance which will work. (In my allergy-prone family, different people take different ones.)

Re: the stuffy nose problem: in addition to meds, we all use saline nasal spray regularly, which helps a lot. We prefer the Simply Saline brand that comes in an aerosol-type can — unlike the small plastic bottles of saline spray, the Simply Saline products contain no preservatives so they can be used as often as needed. Be sure to read the ingredients—almost all the SS products have only water, salt and baking soda but they made one that contains eucalyptus! (For some of us, that would be awful!) The first time you use these aerosols, they seem weird because the spray is stronger than the little plastic bottles, but it’s well worth getting used to!! (But do use it over the sink at first )

Re: carpet in the bedroom: probably nothing you can do about that in the short run except vacuum really often, but when I moved from a carpeted place to one with hard surface floors, my dust allergies improved a lot!

Sorry to go on at such length, but you sounded like you’re new to the wonderful wacky world of allergies... and unfortunately, all my family are experts...


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[lizzywednesday]

As a fellow allergy sufferer, take both meds. I know you don't want to, but do it. You'll feel better faster.

I find I need to take Zyrtec at night so I sleep off the fogginess. While I despise nasal sprays, I did take a nasal spray for allergies once for the short-term and the symptoms cleared with the long-acting pill. (I especially hated the one I took because it stank of flowers, so that meant everything I ate or drank also tasted like flowers. *shudder*)

When I'm having a bad flare, it's because I wasn't taking anything before allergy season, and if I don't take anything, I end up with a sinus infection. (I treat it with nasal saline, either the spray-can kind or a neti pot, and I drink a lot of water and tea.)

[twowhat?]

For your own home, you might try applying food grade diatomaceous earth and working it into your bedroom carpet (wear a dust mask and gloves, sprinkle it on the carpet, rub it in to distribute, let it sit undisturbed for a day and then vacuum up what you can with a good vacuum with HEPA filter.) It will kill the dust mites. You may have to re-treat every so often.

I hate carpet....we have carpet in the bedrooms and even though we vacuum frequently, I KNOW there's all sorts of crap in the carpets.

[boilermakermom]

You need to take both the Flonase and Zyrtec. They work differently but combined they provide great relief.

You can develop allergies at any time in your life; they do not have to originate in childhood.

Also, make sure your diet is not heavy with mucous causing foods. If it is, that won't help at all.

When I start to get nasal symptoms, I drink a lemon/ginger/honey tea a few times a day for a week or so and avoid the foods I know trigger mucous for me, and I see quite a few symptoms subside.

Also, make sure you have a good vacuum and use it daily. Change your bedding, mattress pad and pillowcases to linens approved for dust mite allergies.

[almostmom]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences! This is what I needed to hear as this is my first experience with any allergies and I know nothing about them. And good to know about using both the spray and the pills. The NP did recommend that, but I thought I'd try one first (she's pretty new to the office and the field, so I didn't totally trust her advice. But now I see that it was correct). Do you do flonase twice a day? That is what she recommended, but I don't like it and would love to do it just once...

I will pick up the simply saline. I did get some spray at CVS, but haven't used it yet as I didn't want it to conflict with the flonase. And I know I should do the wash that goes in one nostril and out the other, but I'd like to avoid that as well if I can!

But glad to know, I guess, that these symptoms are consistent with regular allergies so I don't need to look further. It was a blood allergy test, but it tested for things like pollen and I was not allergic to that or anything else.

I can't imagine vacuuming daily. But I'll keep it in the back of my mind. And I will look into my mattress pad and other linens and pillows. Ugh.

[almostmom]

But I did just read that latex mattresses are naturally resistant to dust mites, so that's good!

[ellies mom]

When I first start Flonase each season, I take it in the morning and evening for maybe a week and then I drop back to once a day (mainly because it takes me a bit to remember that I have fall allergies now). I had a lot of the same symptoms you do. I always felt like I was coming down with a cold or something. Adding Flonase to my daily Zyrtec was absolutely life altering.


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[bisous]

So...I actually had something that sounds like what you had. I had it for a long time. It was pretty low grade. I noticed it mostly on Sundays when I led the childrens music group and otherwise during the week it was only mildly annoying. I thought it was either mild allergies or a perma-cold or some kind.

When I was diagnosed with pneumonia that winter I took a zPac and low and behold, my “allergies” completely went away. I felt better than I had in several years.

Now I was never examined to rule out a sinus infection but I think that’s what I had. Now nearly 2 years later I still feel amazing. No need for allergy meds of any kind. I can breathe, talk and even sing!