Living with Respiratory Allergies – Breathing issues

Living with allergies can both be easy and hard. It is hard when you cannot find what you are allergic to, what you cannot avoid and what then you come in contact often. Also it is hard when medication cannot fully control the allergic reactions. It is easy to live with when you can find out what it is you are allergic to and can avoid it easily, when you only come in contact with the allergen by accident and when medication works immediately to fully control the symptoms. 

I explained in my earlier blog (Allergy - What is it?) that when the body recognised any substance as foreign it causes a reaction in the body to get rid of that substance. This is a reaction we want when the invading substance is harmful like a bacteria or virus. However, if this reaction occurs when we come in contact with what are considered harmless substances, we call it an allergy. Over the years more and more people have become allergic to more and more substances. I am not sure what it says about our life styles and our food and use of chemical in daily life. 

My first encounter with allergy was seeing my mother come out in urticaria (raised red bumps that itch a lot) upon eating a Gujarati dish called patra (made with taro leaves and besan / chickpea flour). I do believe she used to react a bit to the sourness of tamarind. But I was little and did not really understand except that she was given a tablet (Foristal) which was a common antihistamine in those days in India. 

At 18 I started a nursing degree and bed making, cleaning and dusting was part of the care (unlike now when we have auxiliary workers or aides). I noticed towards the end of the first year I used to start sneezing at soon as I started dusting. My nose was itchy and it was just annoying. It is very difficult to avoid dust, especially if you live in a country like India and with a job like mine.

I used to react with breathless feeling when I used any talc or facial powder and so I by the time I reached adulthood I had given up using that totally. I also noticed that I would react badly to some perfumes used by my friends and colleagues. I had to leave the area very quickly as I would sneeze non-stop. This allergy progressed to a point where I could not use any perfume, deodorant, any sprays for body or hair. I could actually taste it in the back of my throat and it made me feel ill and wheeze. The dust allergy used to constantly irritate the mucous membranes of my eyes, nose and throat and I was having repeated infections – tonsillitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, bronchitis – generally needing about 3 or 4 rounds of antibiotics each year. 

I visited an allergist and decided to find out exactly what all I was allergic to. Well that turned even my allergist’s hair grey in a second as she conducted the tests. Dust being the already known allergen she carried out that test last. Just to let you that generally very dilute forms of the allergen are injected just under the skin and if you are allergic then that injection site will become a red raised weal. The size of the weal is indicative of how allergic you are. Thus a few days later the allergist will measure the size of the weals. This showed that there were about 7 different pollens that I was allergic to. Now coming to dust, which was left to the last, caused me to collapse even before the doctor has put the needle away. This is what is called an anaphylactic shock. I needed immediate resuscitation.

In relation to this severe allergy I tried going through desensitisation therapy but had to abandon it as even the extremely low dilution was causing difficulty and then my allergist moved away.

Around this time I also moved to UK and the change in the environment and the lower levels of dust made a big difference and I felt so much happier not having to wheeze or get repeated infections. A year went by peacefully and then wham hay fever hit me. By this time I was getting allergic to cosmetics like lipstick and mascara which caused the skin to peel and eyelashes to fall off. That got removed from my daily life fast. With hay fever I was taking antihistamine daily. The season started with the first cherry blossoms and ended when the grass died out at the end of summer. 

Fortunately, I used central heating appropriately so there were no mould issues as they also send me into a wheeze and tight chest. I found about that allergen when I stayed at some crappy hotel which had mouldy pillows and mattress. I had 3 showers and washed my hair before I realised what exactly was causing the problem. Needless to say I got no sleep and had antihistamine and inhaler a few times. During summer, life got adapted to be indoors more, keep windows closed and use a fan to keep the room cool and also I got an ioniser for my bedroom. They use very little energy and keeps the room free from dust motes. 

Cleaning was also something I had to think about. When we had the old hoover with dust bags I was unable to clean the carpets as it tended to send up dust particles in the air as soon as the bag was partly filled. It fell to my husband to do the hoovering. However, when we got the new bag less one I had no problems as the dust was always sucked in rather than spread around. Any dusting had to be done with a damp cloth so as not to raise and spread the dust about.

Also it becomes important to use the hoover on the mattress and also sofas and chairs covered with cloth to remove dust. I also found that I could not use down filled pillows and had to buy the hypo allergic ones. Since more people are aware and more products with regards to mattresses, mattress covers and pillows are made for people with dust allergies. I also changed my open cabinets for knickknacks to closed ones so as to avoid the dust gathering and the need to dust it often. 

My sister also used to get hay fever but was mainly related to grass pollen. She used homeopathic pills and they helped her. Whereas, that remedy did not make any difference for me. Then one day I saw a poster for massage at my local beauticians. So I made an appointment and during the session I found out that she was an aroma therapist. She agreed to use specially mixed oils to help my breathing issues due to allergy. I used to have a full body massage with the oil every fortnight. The effect was good. Sadly she stopped coming to the local place and it was hard to go to where she has moved her practice. However, I actually used to buy the mixed oils from her. Finally that was getting very expensive and I started buying and mixing my own oils. After a shower I applied the oil all over my body and massaged it in gently. After about 6 years I found that I no longer reacted to hay fever and actually did not need to use my inhaler either. These days I keep handy a bottle of cypress oil (which was one of the oils in the mix and works best for me) and use a drop should I feel that familiar twitching of the nose and sneezing starting.

So going from, when grass ha to be mowed at least a week before my visit to family who had gardens, I now have a garden and mow my own grass. I used to avoid going to park but now try regularly to have a walk around the park and see the changing seasons in nature. I find it a good exercise as well as relaxation method to see the flora and fauna.

The allergy caused by the perfumes and deodorants are harder to avoid as practically everyone uses them. I actually hold my breath or a tissue over my nose when I have to pass through the cosmetic section of any departmental stores. Sometimes you pass someone on the road and they have so much sprayed on that you can taste it. It annoys me often but unless someone suffers they have no idea what it is to live with this kind of allergy and so cannot show compassion. I had to always warn people when they were coming to see me and expected my office door to be shut for privacy or even in the classroom that I did not want people to wear any perfumes. Those who wore some sat by an open window generally. So you see some allergies can be managed better than others. 

Hope this helped those of you who have allergies that manifest in respiratory symptoms. I will tackle the food allergies in the next blog so as to keep the reading in discrete chunks.