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Pollen is in the air, which brings about the terrible reality of allergies (ew). This can be a runny nose, sneezing, coughing, scratchy throat, itchy or watery eyes, headache, or overall tiredness. Most nights lately, I’ve been accompanied with a bunch of tissues and a plethora of medicine. The next morning, though, I feel fine! Allergies are tiring, and I know life would be easier without them. Throughout the years, I’ve managed to find ways to soothe those allergies so I don’t wake up feeling just as miserable as I did the night before.
Avoid Extensive Time Outdoors
If your allergies are caused by pollen in the air, it could be best to avoid environments that have heavy pollination. While the weather may be beautiful, is it worth it for hours of sneezing? If you feel your allergies taking a toll on you, close those windows and stay indoors for a little while.
Keeping a Clean Space
Along with pollen, dust is a huge contributing factor to allergies. It’s everywhere! In your vents, on the fan, on any surface imaginable. Give your home a nice wipe down, and it should help alleviate those sniffles. You may also consider an air filter or an automatic vacuum to do some of the cleaning for you!
Humidity is Your Savior
At night, I like to turn on my humidifier to help with that congestion. I own a humidifier (due to my many house plants) and you can use it with or without essential oils! If you like essential oils, eucalyptus will be your best bet for congestion. However, be weary, some essential oils can be toxic to pets. Taking a bath or a shower can help too, as the warm water will fill the air with vapor and clear your sinuses.
Sitting Up in Bed
When going to sleep at night, it’s best to sleep on an incline to avoid a sore throat. When you have heavy sinuses, laying down can allow what’s in your nose to drip back to your throat. That can cause coughing, more congestion, or a sore throat. Make sure you are sitting up at night to let gravity work its magic.
Staying Hydrated
Sick or not, staying hydrated is key to your physical health. Neglecting your body’s needs will come back to bite you, so you want to make sure to drink lots of fluids (not soda though)! Water, hot teas, and juices with electrolytes will greatly help soothe those symptoms.
Medicines, Nasal Sprays, Sinus Rinses, and VapoRub
These seem like the obvious option. At the first sign of a sickness, we gravitate towards the medicine cabinet for the first thing that will fix all our problems. While the tips above will help alleviate allergies and the effects it may have, medicine is the sure way to help. Find a medicine that is geared towards your needs, and only take the recommended dosage on the bottle (it may be best to take your allergy medicine at night, since most medicines last 24-hours). You can also try alternatives like nasal sprays, sinus rinses, vaporub, and vitamins! There are different allergy medicines, feel free to do your own research or ask your doctor for recommendations.
Talk to Your Doctor
Your doctor is there to help you! If you find your allergies being so severe that you can’t go a day without allergy medicine, or you find it getting worse with time, it could be worth it to go to a professional whom you trust and get an official diagnosis. They can perform an allergy test to see what exactly you are allergic to, and/or prescribe you with the right option moving forward.
Allergies are a pain, but they don’t have to hinder you from daily activities. Taking care of yourself is necessary, and when you feel sick, you have to take the time and care for yourself. Say hello to spring but goodbye to seasonal allergies!
