Are these allergy symptoms?

[ny biker]

For several years, I've had chronic sinus and nasal congestion, particularly on the left side. Much of the time it is just inflamation (no mucus). It is usually not fully congested, and it comes and goes. For example if I'm sitting and working or watching TV for several hours, I'll notice that it goes from partially blocked to totally clear and back to partially blocked. It's worse at night when I'm lying down, and in the morning I do have to blow my nose a lot to clear things out (everything is totally clear with no signs of a bacterial problem). There are no other common allergy symptoms like sneezing and itching or watery eyes.

It got worse last fall. I tried a decongestant which helped a little. Then I stopped taking that and switched to Claritin for a week, and that cleared it up. After I stopped taking the Claritin, the symptoms were not nearly as bad as they had been prior to taking the medicine. In the past few weeks they've started getting worse again.

I thought maybe I was allergic to something indoors like dust or mold, but now I'm starting to doubt that. I'm concerned I might be having problems with nasal polyps (I have asthma) but from reading about them it doesn't really sound like my symptoms fit that problem.

I have a prescription for Flonase but have not filled it yet. I don't want to start taking another maintenance drug without knowing why I need to take it. I'm going for a physical on Thursday, so I'm wondering if I should ask for a referral to an allergist or an ENT specialist while I'm there.

As for other allergies, the asthma is mostly exercise related. I have minor issues with hayfever -- my eyes itch a bit in the spring but I'm able to have the windows wide open during the peak of pollen season with no sneezing or other symptoms. I had allergy testing done a few years ago (prick tests for common allergens) with negative results. I do have problems with contact dermatitis so I have to be careful with cosmetics, lotions, stuff like that. I've had some wicked problems with poison ivy in the past (which I recently learned is related to an unpleasant reaction I had last year after eating cashews, but that's another story.)

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and advice.

[OakLeaf]

My thoughts: see the ENT.

It's normal for your breathing to switch from nostril to nostril; it's usually a three-hour cycle, and if one side is partially blocked because of congestion or inflammation (possibly in combination with a deviated septum; no one's sinuses are exactly the same on both sides), it can become completely blocked when the turbinates swell to switch to the other side.

It's odd that you can identify some definite allergies (hay fever, cashews, skin reactions to various things), and that an antihistamine helped, but that you tested negative when you were tested. Did they do the intracutaneous titration, or just single dilution pricks? Do you know what they tested you for? Might want to either see a different allergist, or choose an ENT who has an allergy practice.

IANAD, etc., etc....

[Eden]

Sounds like allergies to me. I only get the itchy eye stuff when the pollen (for me it is mostly trees) is at it's absolute worst. Then I get itchy eyes, itchy mouth, itchy inside my ears........ Otherwise my allergies tend to be kind of transient too. If I'm already suffering a little, contact with another even minor allergen can really set my nose off and it can come and go pretty quickly.

If you can control it with the Claratin, IMHO just do that. I have a prescription for Flonase too. I only take it when I really need to. Even though it is relatively safe it is a steroid. Continuous use can put you at risk for stuff like problems with the tissues in your nose, and eye problems including cataracts. One of my teammates who used it for years is now dealing with that. Since eye problems already run in my family (my grandmother and my aunt and uncle all have glaucoma - my dad not yet) its something I don't like to chance with.

[Zen]

There are some high pollen counts right now.

[griffiths]

Could well be allergy problems going on here especially as asthma is also a form of an allergy.

If you have allergies you have adrenal dysfunction. Allergies result from a lack of antihistamine and antileukotriene epinephrine and anti-inflammatory and immune modulating corticosteroids.

Best way to strengthen the adrenal glands is with adaptogenic herbs such as aswhagandha, jiaogulan, suma root, schizandra berry all which restore normal adrenal function.

[Kiwi Stoker]

I started having blocked noses at night, constantly sore throat from stuff running down, raised rashes on my hands, watery and itchy nose- yes allergy.
I tried all medications and sprays but you cannot take nasal sprays for more than 3 days or the symptoms return.
I saw the netti pot thing at the chemist but it took 3 months before I'd go and buy it to try. I use the bottle which you "squirt" gently saline water up your nasal passages rather than the one that looks like a tea pot. All I can say is that now I only have to do it once a week and I don't have symptoms at all.
It doesn't cost a lot and being drug free is a bonus so I would reccommend giving this a try.

[ny biker]

I started having blocked noses at night, constantly sore throat from stuff running down, raised rashes on my hands, watery and itchy nose- yes allergy.
I tried all medications and sprays but you cannot take nasal sprays for more than 3 days or the symptoms return.
I saw the netti pot thing at the chemist but it took 3 months before I'd go and buy it to try. I use the bottle which you "squirt" gently saline water up your nasal passages rather than the one that looks like a tea pot. All I can say is that now I only have to do it once a week and I don't have symptoms at all.
It doesn't cost a lot and being drug free is a bonus so I would reccommend giving this a try.

A neti pot made the rash on your hands go away?

I don't have any post nasal drip, it's mostly an inflammation problem, which is why it seems strange. Also I can't see any pattern of when it gets better or worse to try to figure out what I would be allergic to.

[OakLeaf]

A neti pot made the rash on your hands go away?

Makes sense to me. Either the rash could've been part of a systemic reaction, or reducing her total allergic load could have made her less sensitive to contact allergens.

Have you done a challenge diet for food allergens? It usually takes four days to get them out of your system, and the reactions come on slowly for some people. It's a huge PITA but it's really the gold standard for figuring out if you're allergic to any foods. Serum antibodies and skin tests can give you a place to start, but the former is notorious for false positives and the latter for false negatives.

[Kiwi Stoker]

I wish I could of figured out what was causing everything but I moved to a totally different country, totally different climate, eating totally different food, totally different plants around... I wasn't going to win. My whole system overloaded!

I do notice if I don't maintain using the netti pot.

[Chile Pepper]

When my younger son had the prick test, he had a reaction to the control but not the specific allergens, showing that he does have allergies, just not to those specific things. Everyone in the family is allergic to something, and we've seen great improvement after reassessing our living space. The usual recommendations are

--no pets in the house
--no indoor plants
--no carpets
--minimal knickknacks (dust collectors)
--no stuffed animals, especially on the bed
--no smoking in the house (we are nonsmokers, so this is not a problem for us)
--no feather pillows or comforters (we do use these, but we got very clean down from the Company Store, use covers, and wash the covers frequently)
--if you have a garden, eliminate plants that are common problems for allergies

If you can't make all these changes to your whole house, at least look at your bedroom. You spend a third of your time there (sleeping), so it should be as allergen-free as possible, to give your body a break each day.

[NadiaMac]

agree with others that this sounds allergic. as noted above prick test only tests a limited number of antigens so isn't dispositive re allergies.

i also have the sinus congestion thing, year-round, much worse on one side. Regular neti pot (2X day) and humidifier use in BR help a lot. I also use flonase type spray during seasonal allergy peaks (right now) and have had good results w/ that. but if the claritin works, why not keep on with that?

[ny biker]

but if the claritin works, why not keep on with that?

Because it's expensive and I'm already on 2 medications every day and I don't want to add any more unless I have to.

I have a humidifier that's part of my heat pump system. It has no effect on my ability to breathe. Dust is not a problem either.

Honestly, the more I read the more I'm inclined to just do nothing. I don't want to go through a battery of expensive tests that require taking time off from work and I don't want to stop eating everything I like.

Thanks anyway.

[withm]

Generic clariton (lortadine) is available at CVS and Giant for a fraction of the brand name stuff. A bottle of 120 can be had on sale for about $30 I think. I've been taking the stuff for years. Works great.

[Crankin]

I take generic Claritin daily and use Flonase and the Neil Med Sinus rinse as needed. Right now, both are needed! I don't think the generic Claritin is that expensive; I buy the biggest amount possible for about $30.00 (120 tabs). That comes out about 7.50 a month.
When I was having a lot of hives and other asthma symptoms a couple of months ago, I also added in generic Zantac. I know it's for your stomach, but it has some antihistamine effect and helped calm my overreacting body down.
Almost every illness I've had is allergy based. If I keep that under control, it really helps.