Are these allergy symptoms?

[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.