Allergy Ignorance
***updated***
There are levels of allergies... many many levels of allergies. Not only what one might be allergic to, but the intensity and how their body reacts. My allergies don't even scratch the surface to what some people face day in and day out!
I am allergic to cats, among several other things. But the cat allergy is my most prominent and it will get me every time. This isn't new news. I've always been allergic to cats since my youngest memories. But in the past year to year and a half my allergies have taken a turn and now I'm more sensitive than ever. And I can already tell that fall allergy season is getting started. All my triggers seem to build on one another and it doesn’t take much to set me off. In the last couple of days Carie and I have noticed symptoms and just tonight Ellie has noticed as well.
I simply avoid cats as best as I can. I can't even walk into a friend’s house for 10 minutes to pick up A or E from a play date without getting a reaction. The kids would love a cat (really, they would really love any 4 legged cute creature) but they know that we cannot have even one or many kittens. They soak up kitten love whenever they are able to. And that is great! I wish I could love on some kittens too! I sacrifice every now and again so they can check out the kittens up for adoption. I feel bad that I cannot give them a kitten.
But the ignorance regarding allergies just floors me. And I wish I could just take a simple little pill to resolve all my symptoms. I wish it didn't take days to recover. If it were only a few hours of feeling like crap I wouldn't care.
Cat dander is carried with the person that was holding, touching, cuddling, and playing with said kitten and deposited wherever the person goes. It is not just simply on their hands. It is on their body, in their hair, and every particle of clothing. Thank you for cleaning your hands, I do appreciate that effort! But don't at all think that the concern has been resolved. Don't think that bringing cat dander in my home every day isn't happening. Don't think I haven't already noticed the effects.
A few years ago that small amount of cat dander wouldn't have bothered me. Now all I have to do is sit or stand next to someone who has been around a cat to get a reaction.
Yeah… I’ve talked with an allergist about options. The thing is... avoidance works! Once a few things get ironed out and settled down I’ll consider my other options. Until then, I cannot commit to those expenses. But I might have to sooner than later now that we'll be exposed to it daily.
**Edited to Add**
Yeah, I've thought about how it might be beneficial to have a cat in the hopes that I could build up a tolerance. The thing is, with my reaction I become asthmatic like. I've always reacted this way. In my relatively recent (in the last year) allergy testing it was concluded that I was not asthmatic in the least. Those tests came back much better than I expected! But when I'm having a reaction not only do my eyes itch terribly, my nose gets all runny, and I sneeze like crazy. But I also have difficulty breathing. I wheeze terribly and you can hear it from the other side of the room. I remember having to go outside... often... at my Grandparent's house at Christmas time to catch a break. It was way too hot inside, which isn't a good combination with cat dander. Luckily it was often bitter cold outside and my lungs loved it. I volunteered to go on any and all errands that had to be run just to get out of there.
And cleaning... a clean home is really really helpful. However, cleaning right before someone with any kind of allergy like this comes over doesn't help. I know it sounds odd! But what happens is the cat dander is really just stirred up and more active. It actually makes the situation worse. Kind of like dusting when you are allergic to dust. Thankfully that is primarily Carie's duty!
There are levels of allergies... many many levels of allergies. Not only what one might be allergic to, but the intensity and how their body reacts. My allergies don't even scratch the surface to what some people face day in and day out!
I am allergic to cats, among several other things. But the cat allergy is my most prominent and it will get me every time. This isn't new news. I've always been allergic to cats since my youngest memories. But in the past year to year and a half my allergies have taken a turn and now I'm more sensitive than ever. And I can already tell that fall allergy season is getting started. All my triggers seem to build on one another and it doesn’t take much to set me off. In the last couple of days Carie and I have noticed symptoms and just tonight Ellie has noticed as well.
I simply avoid cats as best as I can. I can't even walk into a friend’s house for 10 minutes to pick up A or E from a play date without getting a reaction. The kids would love a cat (really, they would really love any 4 legged cute creature) but they know that we cannot have even one or many kittens. They soak up kitten love whenever they are able to. And that is great! I wish I could love on some kittens too! I sacrifice every now and again so they can check out the kittens up for adoption. I feel bad that I cannot give them a kitten.
But the ignorance regarding allergies just floors me. And I wish I could just take a simple little pill to resolve all my symptoms. I wish it didn't take days to recover. If it were only a few hours of feeling like crap I wouldn't care.
Cat dander is carried with the person that was holding, touching, cuddling, and playing with said kitten and deposited wherever the person goes. It is not just simply on their hands. It is on their body, in their hair, and every particle of clothing. Thank you for cleaning your hands, I do appreciate that effort! But don't at all think that the concern has been resolved. Don't think that bringing cat dander in my home every day isn't happening. Don't think I haven't already noticed the effects.
A few years ago that small amount of cat dander wouldn't have bothered me. Now all I have to do is sit or stand next to someone who has been around a cat to get a reaction.
Yeah… I’ve talked with an allergist about options. The thing is... avoidance works! Once a few things get ironed out and settled down I’ll consider my other options. Until then, I cannot commit to those expenses. But I might have to sooner than later now that we'll be exposed to it daily.
**Edited to Add**
Yeah, I've thought about how it might be beneficial to have a cat in the hopes that I could build up a tolerance. The thing is, with my reaction I become asthmatic like. I've always reacted this way. In my relatively recent (in the last year) allergy testing it was concluded that I was not asthmatic in the least. Those tests came back much better than I expected! But when I'm having a reaction not only do my eyes itch terribly, my nose gets all runny, and I sneeze like crazy. But I also have difficulty breathing. I wheeze terribly and you can hear it from the other side of the room. I remember having to go outside... often... at my Grandparent's house at Christmas time to catch a break. It was way too hot inside, which isn't a good combination with cat dander. Luckily it was often bitter cold outside and my lungs loved it. I volunteered to go on any and all errands that had to be run just to get out of there.
And cleaning... a clean home is really really helpful. However, cleaning right before someone with any kind of allergy like this comes over doesn't help. I know it sounds odd! But what happens is the cat dander is really just stirred up and more active. It actually makes the situation worse. Kind of like dusting when you are allergic to dust. Thankfully that is primarily Carie's duty!
Labels: Medical
posted by Sonya at 11:26 PM
3 Comments:
That sucks. I have a friend who is allergic to cats like that. Every time she comes over I clean like crazy, even though I know it's not really going to work.
I have allergies to other things, like pollen, dust, etc. They were really bad for a few years but lately they haven't bothered me as much.
Not fun. Sounds like shots may be in the future?
I am mildly allergic to cats, but nowhere near the level that you are...
I didn't use to be though, it started happening once I wasn't exposed to them (my mother has always had cats and I started developing the allergy when I moved away for university). The answer in my case, according to a doctor? Having a cat.
It might seem ironic, but it seems the exposure to them gives me the tolerance that I need in order to not become fully allergic. Sure, I sneeze every once in a while, and sometimes I get itchy, but it's really helped.
What I'm trying to say is, maybe the exposure to the cat dander you're referring to will eventually build up your allergen defenses enough that you can start to tolerate it. After all, anti-allergy shots are nothing more than allergens in low doses.
And thankfully, you repeatedly said "cat dander", not cat hair, which is what most ignorant people think is what makes us allergic. How not so!
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