Allergies or Sinusitis or Mystery, oh my!
February 15, 2018 12:18 PM Subscribe
Following up on this issue. I’m on allergy meds but still suffering at work, and now I’m the only one.
After a short period of no symptoms, I started having new ones at work: primarily congestion and a sore throat, but it never materialized into a cold. Believing it was allergies, I started taking Claritin. The sinus pressure ramped up, even at home (“I’m allergic to being inside!”), so I made an appointment with my GP, but by the time that rolled around, the sinus pressure was letting up, so i passed on antibiotics (for the time) in favor of continuing to pursue the allergy route. GP prescribed an inhaler and nasal spray, recommended sudafed. Workers Comp Doctor (WCD) saw me the next day (Wednesday the 7th) and supported that course of action and set another follow-up for a week later (yesterday).
This past weekend I was snowboarding in Mammoth and had 0 symptoms while I was out of town. Back in town, I’ve again had a sore throat almost constantly, but very little nasal congestion and no trouble with my sinuses. I go to the gym and breathe fine and feel healthy. At work, my symptoms aren’t consistently terrible, and the waves are worse in some rooms than others. And the symptoms are difficult to identify. My lungs don’t want to breathe? Something triggers occasional coughing fits related to my sore throat. Discomfort makes it difficult to concentrate and get my work done.
Tuesday this week was bad and I took all the various drugs prescribed to me and only found nominal relief.
Wednesday wasn’t as bad. I saw the WCD and she said there was no wheezing in my lungs and my post nasal drip was colored, not clear, so it points to a cold, not allergies, but they’re still handing me off to an allergist to close out the case. (Note: none of my symptoms feel like any cold I’ve had in my life. Even the sore throat is higher, more localized, and a different texture than I normally associate with being sick.)
Today I feel so wretched in my office I’m sitting other places in the building until they can move my computer or arrange for me to work from home (not a long term solution).
Questions:
A) is it possible the allergy medications I’m taking are interfering with me feeling my cold symptoms?
B) if this is a sinus infection (without sinus pain), does it make sense for it to be location specific? (Bad at work, mild at home, mostly gone anywhere else, especially outdoors)
C) besides limiting exposure to the rooms at Work where I feel worst and getting an X-ray from my GP to check for sinusitis, what can I do to advocate for myself and improve my situation?
Before all this started, I had 0 allergies of any kind. I’m struggling to accept this new, low-grade misery in my life.
After a short period of no symptoms, I started having new ones at work: primarily congestion and a sore throat, but it never materialized into a cold. Believing it was allergies, I started taking Claritin. The sinus pressure ramped up, even at home (“I’m allergic to being inside!”), so I made an appointment with my GP, but by the time that rolled around, the sinus pressure was letting up, so i passed on antibiotics (for the time) in favor of continuing to pursue the allergy route. GP prescribed an inhaler and nasal spray, recommended sudafed. Workers Comp Doctor (WCD) saw me the next day (Wednesday the 7th) and supported that course of action and set another follow-up for a week later (yesterday).
This past weekend I was snowboarding in Mammoth and had 0 symptoms while I was out of town. Back in town, I’ve again had a sore throat almost constantly, but very little nasal congestion and no trouble with my sinuses. I go to the gym and breathe fine and feel healthy. At work, my symptoms aren’t consistently terrible, and the waves are worse in some rooms than others. And the symptoms are difficult to identify. My lungs don’t want to breathe? Something triggers occasional coughing fits related to my sore throat. Discomfort makes it difficult to concentrate and get my work done.
Tuesday this week was bad and I took all the various drugs prescribed to me and only found nominal relief.
Wednesday wasn’t as bad. I saw the WCD and she said there was no wheezing in my lungs and my post nasal drip was colored, not clear, so it points to a cold, not allergies, but they’re still handing me off to an allergist to close out the case. (Note: none of my symptoms feel like any cold I’ve had in my life. Even the sore throat is higher, more localized, and a different texture than I normally associate with being sick.)
Today I feel so wretched in my office I’m sitting other places in the building until they can move my computer or arrange for me to work from home (not a long term solution).
Questions:
A) is it possible the allergy medications I’m taking are interfering with me feeling my cold symptoms?
B) if this is a sinus infection (without sinus pain), does it make sense for it to be location specific? (Bad at work, mild at home, mostly gone anywhere else, especially outdoors)
C) besides limiting exposure to the rooms at Work where I feel worst and getting an X-ray from my GP to check for sinusitis, what can I do to advocate for myself and improve my situation?
Before all this started, I had 0 allergies of any kind. I’m struggling to accept this new, low-grade misery in my life.
Go to an ENT and get the discharge cultured. This sounds like a sinus issue, which can of course be complicated by allergies.
posted by answergrape at 2:26 PM on February 15, 2018
posted by answergrape at 2:26 PM on February 15, 2018
I have both chronic sinus infections and allergies and it can be super hard to tell the difference, in fact often I think it is actually some combination of both. My GPs advice is always to treat it as if it's both, because once a sinus infection sets in it takes time to clear it up so you don't want to wait to find out. In terms of your second question, for me air-conditioning is definitely a trigger, though I am not sure if it's the dryness of the air or the air quality that is the problem. In my last flare-up I would feel fine at home but the second I went anywhere with aircon it was like my sinuses were on fire, some places were worse than others though.
Your sore throat description sounds exactly like the one I get when I have a really bad nasal drip going on, usually as the result of a sinus infection.
It may be worth seeing an ENT. Mine found some narrowing of some of the passages of my sinuses which makes me more prone to infection and means more misery when I get an infection or even just a bit of inflammation.
Here's what works for me to manage it, though my symptoms aren't identical to yours. This has been worked out over time with advice from my GP and ENT.
- I do a sinus rinse twice a day, with a drop of baby shampoo added to the saline, whether I have symptoms or not
- I use a prescription nasal spray called Dymista which my doctor says is the best one on the market.
- Sleep with head elevated to help manage the nasal drip. I take a Phenergan tablet if I need to as it helps with sleep as well as being good for allergies. I also take Sudafed/Codral on a as-needs basis too.
- My GPs advice is to take antibiotics if a flare-up lasts for more than 2 weeks, and I sometimes need more than 1 course to get it under control
- I avoid dairy, caffeine and alcohol as they make things worse for me. I drink massive amounts of water and tea, often with honey (I recommend manuka if you can get it) as it helps thin out the mucus and manage the throat-gunk and pain.
Good luck! It sucks but it may take some time to get on top of if there's an underlying sinus issue.
posted by cloverthistle at 3:03 PM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
Your sore throat description sounds exactly like the one I get when I have a really bad nasal drip going on, usually as the result of a sinus infection.
It may be worth seeing an ENT. Mine found some narrowing of some of the passages of my sinuses which makes me more prone to infection and means more misery when I get an infection or even just a bit of inflammation.
Here's what works for me to manage it, though my symptoms aren't identical to yours. This has been worked out over time with advice from my GP and ENT.
- I do a sinus rinse twice a day, with a drop of baby shampoo added to the saline, whether I have symptoms or not
- I use a prescription nasal spray called Dymista which my doctor says is the best one on the market.
- Sleep with head elevated to help manage the nasal drip. I take a Phenergan tablet if I need to as it helps with sleep as well as being good for allergies. I also take Sudafed/Codral on a as-needs basis too.
- My GPs advice is to take antibiotics if a flare-up lasts for more than 2 weeks, and I sometimes need more than 1 course to get it under control
- I avoid dairy, caffeine and alcohol as they make things worse for me. I drink massive amounts of water and tea, often with honey (I recommend manuka if you can get it) as it helps thin out the mucus and manage the throat-gunk and pain.
Good luck! It sucks but it may take some time to get on top of if there's an underlying sinus issue.
posted by cloverthistle at 3:03 PM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
What are the humidity levels like at your office and at home? I kept getting sick over and over last winter (my first one in a new apartment; I also work from home), which is very unusual for me. During some desperate googling, I came multiple articles about certain germs thriving under 30% humidity. So I bought a humidifier because, well, what did I have to lose?
When I turned it on, the humidity levels were 25%. I kept it running and didn't get sick the rest of the winter. This fall/winter, I've only been sick once, which is my average.
(Not saying humidifiers are magic cure-alls. But give one a shot if you haven't already.)
posted by fairfax at 3:50 PM on February 15, 2018
When I turned it on, the humidity levels were 25%. I kept it running and didn't get sick the rest of the winter. This fall/winter, I've only been sick once, which is my average.
(Not saying humidifiers are magic cure-alls. But give one a shot if you haven't already.)
posted by fairfax at 3:50 PM on February 15, 2018
A very dry environment will also cause an increase in snot production, which can result in post-nasal drip, which might very well be the cause of the sore throat.
I second picking up a small humidifier, putting it in the bedroom, and cranking the sucker up to high starting in the early evening, so you get a blast of humidity while you sleep. See if you feel better in the morning. If you do, then you know your environment has been too dry. If your office is very dry, you will still see an improvement if your home environment is adequately humid.
posted by Autumnheart at 5:18 PM on February 15, 2018
I second picking up a small humidifier, putting it in the bedroom, and cranking the sucker up to high starting in the early evening, so you get a blast of humidity while you sleep. See if you feel better in the morning. If you do, then you know your environment has been too dry. If your office is very dry, you will still see an improvement if your home environment is adequately humid.
posted by Autumnheart at 5:18 PM on February 15, 2018
Just to follow-up on the recommendation for Dymista - that's just a combination of the two sprays I mentioned I take (Flonase and azelastine HCI). I never took Dymista because it cost a lot on my insurance, so you can just take generic Flonase (fluticasone propionate) and azelastine separately if you want. Same thing.
posted by AppleTurnover at 6:51 PM on February 15, 2018
posted by AppleTurnover at 6:51 PM on February 15, 2018
California is having a crazy early allergy season, with a bunch of stuff in bloom in the lowlands. A visit to Mammoth may have gotten you into clearer air for a few days. Many of the folks I work with (in the Bay area) are Neti-pot converts this season.
That said, it's worth getting checked out by a specialist to make sure there's nothing going on in your sinuses to pushing you over the edge.
posted by dws at 11:51 PM on February 15, 2018
That said, it's worth getting checked out by a specialist to make sure there's nothing going on in your sinuses to pushing you over the edge.
posted by dws at 11:51 PM on February 15, 2018
Response by poster: Thanks for the replies, folks. I'm having another day where I'm taking all of the meds and none of them seem to be helping. It's majorly stressful, but new ideas help me feel like I'm not running out of options.
Called my GP for the antibiotics a few minutes ago, and I'll work with a few other at-home ideas in the meantime.
posted by itesser at 3:24 PM on February 16, 2018
Called my GP for the antibiotics a few minutes ago, and I'll work with a few other at-home ideas in the meantime.
posted by itesser at 3:24 PM on February 16, 2018
Have you been checked for vasomotor response? It can have these symptoms but is easily managed with monoleukast.
posted by mrfuga0 at 6:55 PM on February 16, 2018
posted by mrfuga0 at 6:55 PM on February 16, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
You could so a sinus rinse with a neti pot and see if anything is coming out or if it helps you. My symptoms aren't exactly like yours but oral allergy medicine never helped me. My main problem has been nasal congestion and for me a combo of generic Flonase and azelastine HCI are what helped me the most. I sparingly use Afrin when I can't breath - it works great at opening everything up, but you're not supposed to take it regularly.
I think you could have a chronic sinus problem and you should see an ENT who can investigate. You could go to an allergist and figure out what you're allergic and if it might be present in your office (i.e. dust mites are the thing I'm allergic to most).
posted by AppleTurnover at 2:11 PM on February 15, 2018