I'm Miserable!! Cold? Allergies?? Don't Know and Nothing Works!

I'm right there with you.. the past month has been horrible. I've been taking Claritin for a month with very minimal relief. I'm 35 weeks pregnant - and I'm limited on what I can take. I may actually switch and see if Zyrtec helps better. Normally, I take Claritin twice a day, flonase, and over the counter sudafed to help get me through this time of year (but I can't/won't/don't want to take all that). My husband who doesn't really have allergy issues has been struggling this year too and finally broke down and is taking Claritin also - with good relief.

Try: Sudafed, with "pseudoephedrine." 12 hour, non-drowsy.
You have to ask for it from the pharmacist because it is kept behind the counter.
That is the only thing that works for my Husband who is just prone to sinus issues.
Try it.

It is probably some sort of seasonal thing.
Last week in my State, MANY adults and kids, were having things like that too... it was per our weather. It also affected me too.

AND try a "Neti Pot" to flush your sinuses. Follow the directions. You can get it from drugstores or places like Whole Foods. That helps to cleanse the sinuses.
Or try a Saline Nose spray. Too.

Or try Allegra. That is good too. I like that and Claritin.

Also keep in mind, that if it is seasonal triggers and/or things like dust/pollen per this time of year... then it can get on clothing too. But it is not visible to the naked eye. So once you come home, take off your clothes and change into something else. This is a tip I read about in "Prevention" magazine.

Go to the doc. I'll bet you have a sinus infection. Believe me, you don't want to play around with that. I had to have sinus surgery, and I wouldn't wish that on any decent person!

Good luck!
Dawn

Drink gallons of water and take an enormous amount of Vitamin D (ask your pharmacist, but like 1000s of mg). Every doctor I know recommends Mucinex, but I didn't think it worked for me. Also I use Sinex nasal spray. It's not good for you, but I don't care. And I find that the allergy/cold medicine that says it will last for 12 hours absolutely does not work, but the ones that are for only 4-6 hours do better. Good luck!

My sister has terrible sinus issues several times throughout the year. She uses the neti pot religiously and it does provide her some relief. It's not that expensive and it can be used over and over and also used along with medicine for additional relief. I would be careful taking 2 medications at the same time if it's not on the advice of a doctor or pharmacist. Some allergy and cold medicines have similar or same ingredients and you could be taking too much by doing both at once.

Try mucinex it works great! If that does not work then Doc cause it is an sinus infection!

PS claritin has to be taken everyday over a period if time to work...

Claratin can take a couple weeks to start fully working. Benadryl works soon after you take it.

I'd go to the Dr to see what they think it is. Good luck!

Since you've tried various things and they didn't work well, it's time to see the doctor. Sorry.

It can be hard to know. When I get a cold I take Zicam, because it doesn't make me drowsy and controls the symptoms enough for me to function. But when I went to visit my children in the South last spring, I ended up with some sort of miserable allergy. (I had company; allergens were rampant there!) I don't often have allergy problems, but I can tell you that the cold remedy didn't cut it at all! Since I was headed back home in a day or two, I tried the allergy-type Zicam, and it kept me from expiring until I got back to familiar territory. That's about all it did, too.

The only things that help me are saline nose spray and sinus pressure point massage.

Zyrtec and Allegra work better than Claritin for me. This time of year I also take a (real) Sudafed during the day and a Benadryl at night. I also use Ibuprofen for sinus pressure.

I find that different allergy medications work better depending what type of allergen I'm suffering from.
Claratin works best for me in the spring, but Allegra works best for me in the fall - different pollens happen at different times of the year.
Benadryl does work anytime, but it's hard to function when drowsy so it's good for night time use.
A neti pot and rinsing your sinuses out with warm saline solution can help wash the irritants out and you can use it as often as you want.
A lot of cold medicines just don't do anything for me and many doctors say they are kind of worthless.
Drinking an echinacea tea is soothing and can help boost your immune system.

I have found something is growing around here and nothing helps! I don't know what the deal is, I have never had allergies this bad. I was just up in Madison, nothing changed so whatever it is it is up there too.

I am >< this close to actually seeing an allergist again.