I’m a sensitive girl.
I cry when I watch or read Little Women. Every time.
Exposure to the wrong plant and certain animals gives me a dainty rash on my wrist.
I don’t imbibe much alcohol as I feel its effects rather quickly.
Now I can add Zyrtec to the list of sensitivities I enjoy. I took Zizi (aka Africabike) to the Stop and Shop on Saturday to pick up a few things, including a new allergy medicine. I popped my first pill later that day, and I took a nap at about 6:30. I like to nap, though, so I thought nothing of it.
Yesterday after a ride on Trixie (aka my sleek road bike), I popped another Zyrtec. My allergies were acting up, as they are wont to do this time of year. I felt relief for a few hours. Neal and I took the dogs for their walk in the woods, and I could have fallen asleep while I waited for Tilly to sniff out the day’s news. I held up through dinner, then curled up on the couch to read a little Lolita. Out I went! I managed to get into bed, but I slept from about 7 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. After waking up and listening to the owls talk about their plans, I drifted back to sleep.
I’m guessing this isn’t the allergy med for me! I’m going to try the local honey and vinegar remedy next. The way I see it, if I keep experimenting, eventually the pollen will pass and so will the allergies.
Try using a Neti pot with salt water to physically rinse out your sinuses. It is a weird feeling and takes some getting used to, but helps. Also, Stinging Nettle with quercitin capsules help. I have heard good things about local honey but never tried it.
I found that Clarinex was the only thing that worked AND didn’t toss me on my rear. I take one every night before bed and suddenly I can FUNCTION during the day. I still have to take Sudafed from time to time, but there’s nothing like waking up and still being able to breathe even on the worst pollen days.
When I didn’t think it was working, I had to take a break because of a temporary mixup with my insurance. I felt the effects within 24 hours–not a happy reminder of what life was like before the prescription. Thank goodness things worked out in the end!
The honey remedy usually doesn’t work unless you start it BEFORE allergy season. The way it works is it builds up your tolerance to the pollen beforehand, so when the stuff is in the air, you’ve already been exposed and it isn’t a shock to your system. I have also found that (for me at least) it has to be truly LOCAL honey. Like, from my town or maybe one town away. Geissler’s sells one that’s from Farmington, and it really doesn’t help me as much as the stuff from the guy down the street. But then, I’m sensitive to just about every kind of pollen in the air. *sigh*
So that’s Clarinex (NOT Claritin). Good luck!
I had the same reaction to Zyrtec. I’ve heard that either it works *really* well for you, or it knocks you out completely. Seconding Divine Bird Jenny’s comment re: Clarinex, it’s the only thing that works reliably for me as well.
Zyrtec almost made me fall asleep three times on a 10 minute drive once. Unfortunately, back when it was prescription only, I had to prove several times to the insurance company that I couldn’t take it before I could renew a prescription for something else. Very infuriating because I just didn’t take it and then came back to the nurse and said it made me tired.
I can’t take the allergy meds either. I drink a ton of water. It helps a smidge. I’ve heard that if you eat a small teaspoon of local honey a day that it helps with allergies too. I’ve never tried it though.