Allergies affect over 50 million Americans. Although some allergies are seasonal and cause mild symptoms that will go away over time, they can affect your ability to lead a quality life by affecting your work, exercise routine, and limit your diet or environmental interactions. Although you can handle some allergic reactions at home, it is crucial to seek expert help. The East Hampton allergies specialist can help you identify your allergies and understand how to manage the condition. It is common to experience skin, ling, and nasal passage symptoms with allergies, and here are some common ways to alleviate the effects of an allergic reaction.
Use Antihistamines
You can ask your doctor about antihistamines to block the histamine effects in your body. Your doctor will give you oral antihistamines like loratadine (Claritin), fexofenadine (Allegra), cetirizine (Zyrtec), or levocetirizine (Xyzal). These medications will alleviate symptoms like hives, sneezing, runny or stuffy nose, and itchy, watery eyes. Additionally, you can avoid such symptoms from occurring when you take the medicines before you come to contact with your triggers. The good news is that most antihistamines are available in local stores or pharmacies near you.
Use Nasal Corticosteroids
If your allergic reaction causes swelling in your nasal passages, you can consult your doctor about nasal corticosteroids. They are steroid nasal spraysthath minimize nasal passage swelling. They include budesonide nasal (Rhinocort Allergy), triamcinolone nasal (Nasacot Allergy24HR), and fluticasone nasal (Flonase). Additionally, the sprays can relieve itchy watery eyes, stuffy nose, runny nose, and sneezing.
Get Decongestants
When you are experiencing a stuffy nose, you can turn to decongestants for short-term relief. The medications minimize the inflammation in your nasal blood vessels opening up the airways to relieve the congestion. Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed PE) and Oxymetazoline nasal (Vicks Sinex) are the most common oral decongestants you can get over-the-counter. But you can also get the Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed PE) through a doctor’s prescription.
Consider Oral Corticosteroids
You might benefit from an oral corticosteroid like prednisone when enduring severe allergy symptoms. Your doctor can prescribe medications to minimize inflammation and avoid your allergic reaction becoming severe. However, take an oral corticosteroid with caution or under your doctor’s surveillance since the medication can lead to severe side effects.
Invest in Mast Cell Stabilizers
Some cell stabilizers like cromolyn sodium (NasalCrom) can help you relieve some allergic symptoms. They prevent the release of inflammation-causing chemicals such as leukotrienes and histamines. This helps avoid and beat allergic symptoms like itchy eyes, runny nose, and sneezing.
Epinephrine
This is an injection-based medication mainly beneficial when you have a life-threatening allergic reaction like anaphylaxis. Your doctor can prescribe the drug to prevent the condition from becoming life-threatening if your chances of severe allergies are high. Remember, anaphylaxis can lead to constriction of your airways, throat swelling, and expansion of your blood vessels, leading to a severe reduction in your blood pressure. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate and understand your risk factors for severe allergic reactions. The injection will improve breathing and restore your blood vessels to improve blood pressure and ensure your heart and brain receive blood efficiently. Consider anaphylaxis as an emergency care issue.
If you often experience allergic reactions, knowing your triggers can help you learn how to manage your symptoms. Work with the allergy specialists at Richard L. Nass, M.D., F.A.C.S for help diagnosing your symptoms and understanding the proper allergy treatment columbus ga for you.