Throughout the first few months of 2021, I’d been checking the date on my phone constantly. Are we really THIS far into the year? When you get into a routine, it’s easy to lose track of time; Just when you think you’ve gotten the hang of everything, nature throws you a curve ball and it hits you straight in the face– Surprise! It’s allergy season!
For those of us affected by seasonal allergies, the itchy and watery eyes, puffy face, headache, and sore throat combination is all too familiar. Some of us simply suffer through the symptoms, while others scour the web for old wives’ tales in an effort to get some relief. We’ll stop you there – Our friends at Next Level Urgent Care have put together their tried-and-true tips for managing allergy symptoms::
- Pre-treat: If you’ve been through a few allergy seasons before, chances are, you know when you tend to start experiencing symptoms. If that’s the case for you, begin taking an anti-histamine daily, around 2 weeks before your allergy season starts. Antihistamines help prevent inflammation and ease allergy symptoms.
- Don’t forget decongestants: For many allergy sufferers, antihistamines are the go-to. But, if you’re having trouble breathing through your stuffy nose and need some quick relief, you may try a decongestant. Decongestants help to relieve nasal congestion quick, but are best for short term use {check the medication label for timeline recommendations}. Just be sure to talk to your doctor about approved decongestants for bedtime use as some can actually keep you up at night.
- Get allergy tested: While allergy season tends to coincide with high pollen levels, if you’re not allergic to pollen, you won’t have to worry about tracking pollen levels to determine whether or not you can enjoy a Spring day outside. Allergy tests are quick, easy and will give you an overview of what your triggers are so that you can track and avoid them.
- Change your air filter seasonally: Whether you’re allergic to pollen, dust, pet hair, or any other allergen circulating in the air, a well functioning air filter is crucial to mitigating your symptoms. You may even look into an air purifier with a HEPA filter if you suffer from year round allergies.
- Consider allergy shots: For those who experience long and uncomfortable allergy seasons or who struggle with allergies year round, consider talking to your doctor about allergy shots. Allergy shots are effective at reducing sensitivity to allergy triggers. While they do require a 3-5 year commitment of monthly injections, the injections are small, pretty painless, and the long term results are incredible!
We hope these tips provide you with some relief this allergy season!
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About Alexis Breeze
Alexis Breeze graduated with a degree in Culinary Management from the Art Institute of Houston. However, after working in the food industry, she realized her skillset was better suited to the world of business and marketing.
Alexis joined the Next Level Urgent Care administrative team in 2018. She divides her time between two important functions, internal marketing {employee relations} and external marketing {customer relations}. As Director of Employee Relations, her work to develop a strong culture of appreciation and cooperation resulted in Next Level being named one of Houston’s “Best Places to Work” by Houston Business Journal in 2019. Her innovative ideas for creating work team cohesion have resulted in dramatic increases in staff retention rates. The balance of her time is spent working with marketing staff to create compelling, customer-focused blog content and digital marketing pieces. In this role, she has honed her skills in social media advertising as well as web design.
Learn more about Alexis at her website, www.littlebitalexis.com.
