There is something in the air – it’s pollen! Have an allergy? Those pollen counts, count!

I have been a pollen allergy sufferer my whole life.  No matter what I try, I get allergy symptoms: stuffy nose, congestion, cough, and overall pollen misery.  I’ve been through allergy treatments (didn’t work), taken different sinus medications (a little help), but mostly, it is about suffering through it until the season changes.

Strangely enough, I wasn’t having such a bad time, until I heard a news report last week that pollen counts, and tree pollen especially were at record levels due to the intense rainfall we have had this year!  Does that mean it’s in my head?

Yes, the congestion is certainly in my head (chuckle)!  But the suggestion that allergies were bad this year really made it worse.

We know that there is a definite connection between what we think, and what happens.  Descartes said, “to think is to create.”  Physicians and scientists such as Dr. Herbert Benson have studied and recorded connections between mind and body.  My allergies are real, not imaginary, but thinking about how bad they are makes them even worse.

SO – what to do?  Enjoy the beautiful spring flowers and flowering trees.  Take an antihistamine my doctor suggested.  Exercise, and keep my blood flowing.  Drink lots of water.  I have also heard that blowing my nose with all my muscle and air is not a good idea; best to clear things very gentle.  Also, I’ve heard it’s a bad idea to hold one nostril to get more pressure on the other.  Hard blowing and one-nostril leverage can push mucus deeper, and even into ears and eustachian tubes, which can stop things moving and possibly lead to infections.

I’m going to think that the allergy is getting better, too, and that the pollen count is going down.  May be that will heal me a bit.

One suggestion I heard in that news report last week: stay inside.  That is just not something I can do!  I love the spring weather too much.

Do you suffer form allergies?  Let’s talk mucus!  Post a comment, please!

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