Tips for the Hayfever Sufferers

Rantorama · 01-06-2006 7:49pm #1

Today has been the first day all year I've had very bad hayfever

Anyone recommend tips/best treatments they have used.

Thanks in advance.

im...LOST · 01-06-2006 8:34pm

Rantorama wrote:

Today has been the first day all year I've had very bad hayfever

Me too!!!

angeldelight · 01-06-2006 8:37pm

One Zirtek tablet after breakfast and it doesn't bother me at all. It's a non-drowsy antihistamine so won't affect driving or anything, I used to use Piriton but had to take it few times and made me really sleepy, couldn't do without Zirtek now!

Smileylynz · 01-06-2006 8:38pm

Piriton, , Hope I spelt that right, Excellent Tablets, Cheap too, Get them n any chemist! They dont make me drowsy, but nearly made the girl I work with fall asleep yesterday!!!

Dudess · 01-06-2006 8:38pm

NASAL SPRAY!!! One of the best things ever invented! You can get them over the counter or (I think) stronger ones on prescription. Pay attention to the dosage, mind. You can't just use it whenever you start to feel itchy/stuffy/streamy. Use antihistamines in conjunction with it. I, and others, have found that using antihistamines on their own is a waste of time, money and energy. My GP agrees.
There is also an injection. However, I wanted to get it one year but my mum, who's a nurse, advised against it because of the level of steroids it contains.
This was before I started using the wondrous NASAL SPRAY!!
In my experience (and it's not modest, if I may say so), nasal spray + antihistamines = winning combination!
(Go for a non-drowsy antihistamine - I recommend Zirtek - and, again, don't pop them whenever the feeling takes you. Might seem obvious but it has to be said. Also, you don't want to be relying on them. But you shouldn't have to worry about that anyway because of the magnificent NASAL SPRAY!!)

I love you, Nasal Spray. You save my summers!

The_Conductor · 01-06-2006 9:28pm

I suffer from bad hayfever.
I was prescribed Neoclarityn (the big brother of Clarityn) but decided I would have to stop taking them as I was going through 10 or 12 a day, along with a shipload of actifed just so I was able to breath.

I have bought a very large dehumidifier with particulate filters. I have to change the activated carbon about once every 10 days (its a bitch its so difficult to buy activated carbon here.....)

I now need nothing to get a good nights sleep (I still need a ship load of decongestants and antihistamine in work, which is a bitch).

You can get decent dehumidifiers with particulate filters for between 200 and 300 Euro (Argos and some other places do cheaper ones, but while they may work for humidity they are not great as particulate filters).

Santa Claus · 01-06-2006 9:43pm

I find Sterimar brilliant. It's a nasal spray of just salt water and is available over the counter.
A quick spray clears out the pollen that gets stuck in the sinus cavity !

cuckoo · 01-06-2006 10:50pm

Dudess wrote:

NASAL SPRAY!!! One of the best things ever invented! You can get them over the counter or (I think) stronger ones on prescription. Pay attention to the dosage, mind. You can't just use it whenever you start to feel itchy/stuffy/streamy. Use antihistamines in conjunction with it. I, and others, have found that using antihistamines on their own is a waste of time, money and energy. My GP agrees.
There is also an injection. However, I wanted to get it one year but my mum, who's a nurse, advised against it because of the level of steroids it contains.
This was before I started using the wondrous NASAL SPRAY!!
In my experience (and it's not modest, if I may say so), nasal spray + antihistamines = winning combination!
(Go for a non-drowsy antihistamine - I recommend Zirtek - and, again, don't pop them whenever the feeling takes you. Might seem obvious but it has to be said. Also, you don't want to be relying on them. But you shouldn't have to worry about that anyway because of the magnificent NASAL SPRAY!!)

I love you, Nasal Spray. You save my summers!

Word. I use Flixonaise (over the counter nasal spray) every morning, and take an antihistamine in the evening.

This summer i've been getting very itchy eyes - eyedrops (a Boots freebie when i bought some antihistamines there) help.

tabatha · 01-06-2006 10:56pm

my husband has it very bad. nothing works for him. he has been taking a table spoon of honey for the last four weeks every morning as this is suppose to help and as of yet he has no problems. he normally gets the kenalog injection every year off the doctor and it lasts all summer long. its a steroid injection. works a treat!

athena 2000 · 02-06-2006 6:21am

Santa Claus wrote:

I find Sterimar brilliant. It's a nasal spray of just salt water and is available over the counter.
A quick spray clears out the pollen that gets stuck in the sinus cavity !

^ This is one of the most simple and effective methods around. It truly works. Wetting a cotton bud or a twist of tissue with plain water and gently wiping inside your nose can be helpful for a quick fix too.

Static M.e. · 02-06-2006 9:52am

One Zirtek tablet

Agree on this works wonders for me

Orlee · 02-06-2006 10:07am

Otrivine for your nose - It's amazing!

See if you can get a hayfever injection from your GP - but you can only get it every second year.
It's a bit pricey but if you're really bad then it's worth it. I actually get blisters on my eyes from this curse and I haven't found anything over the counter that works but I suppose everyone reacts differently!

Oobie · 02-06-2006 10:28am

The zirtek isn't working today - I can't stop sneezing!

grimsbymatt · 02-06-2006 10:34am

angeldelight wrote:

One Zirtek tablet after breakfast and it doesn't bother me at all. It's a non-drowsy antihistamine so won't affect driving or anything, I used to use Piriton but had to take it few times and made me really sleepy, couldn't do without Zirtek now!

Don't pay for brand names! Go to your chemist and ask for generic cetirizine dihydrochloride - it's exactly the same stuff. Most effective treatment I've found, for less than a quid a box.

JohnDigital · 02-06-2006 10:49am

I’ve always had really bad hayfever and have been through all the prescription and non-prescription drugs. For me the nasal sprays just exacerbated the situation. Zirtek seems to be the best for me. But what I figured out a few years ago was a link for me with milk and bad hayfever. I stopped taking milk from May to August and my heyfever is at least 50% less. If I were to drink a pint of milk this morning I would be in bits with heyfever this afternoon. A bit of milk in Tea/Coffee doesn’t bother me.

conzy · 02-06-2006 12:11pm

I have a runny nose and im sneezing today:(

I took a neoclaratyn (prescription extra strength claratyn) and hopefully it will keep it under control:)

Dudess · 02-06-2006 3:03pm

conzymaher wrote:

I have a runny nose and im sneezing today:(

I took a neoclaratyn (prescription extra strength claratyn) and hopefully it will keep it under control:)

Me too.:mad: Just another point on the antihistamines: the non-drowsy ones are non-drowsy because they contain a stimulant so don't take them before going to sleep.
JohnDigital, I'm surprised you've had such a bad experience with nasal spray (in case you haven't noticed, I'm a bit of a fan

) but that just goes to show you, different treatments work differently for different people.

dabbler2004 · 02-06-2006 5:37pm

Piriton works for me, I take one every morning in the summer months (a stitch in time

), tried Clarytin but found they made me very drowsy.

Dudess, sorry to disagree but nasal spray just made me 10 times worse but like you said different strokes for different folks

My name is Mud · 02-06-2006 6:00pm

Rhinolast nasal spray works a charm for me

tk123 · 02-06-2006 8:24pm

Rantorama wrote:

Today has been the first day all year I've had very bad hayfever

Anyone recommend tips/best treatments they have used.

Thanks in advance.

You're lucky - I've had it since April on and off but today it was bad which sucked cos it's my birthday! I've been taking Zirtek on the mornings when I have symptoms but they haven't been working in the last week or so. I'm planning on getting the hayfever jab next week - i've been putting it off since I heard you get it in the a$$ :rolleyes:

ChityWest · 02-06-2006 8:35pm

Happy birthday ! I find piriton stops it everytime - take one a day for a week or two and then it's gone till next year. No drowsiness and pretty cheap too.

tk123 · 02-06-2006 8:51pm

Thanks!!

I can't take piriton - it gives me crazy palpatations when mixed with my thyroid medicine.

Rantorama · 02-06-2006 9:05pm

This morning I put some vaseline on a cotton bud and put it in and around my nose, i was O.K. today

But be sure to do this early in the morning,before the spores get up there,or it will be all day sneezes:mad:

Aspiration · 03-06-2006 12:31am

I've tried Zirtek, Clarityn and Piriton and they don't work on me. I can't take nasal sprays because I get nosebleeds... so does anyone have any other suggestions? I haven't talked to my doctor bout it yet, as i've just gotten used to all the sneezy and puffy eyes with years but I mean, if I can stop it, of course that'd be great too?

GAAman · 03-06-2006 12:41am

i get it really bad for a few days a year i dont take anythin but at its worst try dabbin a bit of vaseline around the entrance of the nostril and the lip underneath your nose

It catches the pollen and stops it goin up and buggin the hell outta ya!!

melekalikimaka · 03-06-2006 10:22am

yeah i get it really bad, i get athmsa from it and sometimes a rash. i take neo claritin and if i start getting really bad a quick shower clears me up a bit...well maybe thats me with the skin allergy aspect but it helps my eyes alot too

Supercell · 03-06-2006 10:47am

Xyzal - Non drousy, no streaming eyes and nose, has transformed my summers. Needs a docs prescription though.

Oobie · 03-06-2006 11:28am

Piriton knocks me out but it works. I can't drive for ages after taking one though because my eyes won't stay open.

rugbug86 · 03-06-2006 11:40am

im immune to the drowy effects of piriton.

i can't use nasal sprays cos they make my nose bleed so i tend to take 2 piriton, a clarityn and a prescription hayfever remedy from america, early in the morning, and i'm fine for the day. but if it gets really bad, i just take more piriton.

mtr · 26-05-2007 6:53pm

Hiya, I tried goats milk with my usual medication and I found the goats milk made me less congested in the head and my eyes watered less. I would have a couple of glasses a day. It was suggested to me by a farmer. He said that goats eat the bushes that people have allergy issues with. You can get the milk in the local supermarkets.

I am going to try honey as well this year with my porridge. I have been told to use unprocessed honey. Is that the same as the honey that comes from Ireland in a jar in the shops? Is organic honey unprocessed? Any suggestions?

The medication I take is xyzol. It is presribed, but nothing else works for me.

*Angel* · 26-05-2007 7:05pm

Aspiration wrote:

I've tried Zirtek, Clarityn and Piriton and they don't work on me. I can't take nasal sprays because I get nosebleeds... so does anyone have any other suggestions? I haven't talked to my doctor bout it yet, as i've just gotten used to all the sneezy and puffy eyes with years but I mean, if I can stop it, of course that'd be great too?

I use to try loads of them and they wouldn't work, but I think the problem was I didn't give them a long enough try maybe just a week or so. I gave piriton a proper go couple weeks taking it every morning (in the summer just) and it worked great and i'm still relying on it! It gets rid of the puffy eyes too.

Tips for the Hayfever Sufferers

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