After referring a few people to this product and getting some great feedback, I thought I’d share with you all, my miracle cure for hay fever.
Hay fever, or allergic rhinitis as Wikipedia refers to it, is a general allergy to Australia in spring time. Usually in individuals suffering from it, the symptoms include itchy eyes, runny nose and waking up feeling like you’ve spent the night with Lindsay Lohan, Amy Winehouse and Mike Tyson. This week I managed to actually tear a contact lense whilst rubbing my eyes due to hayfever symptoms, whilst I’m not trying to compare myself to Chuck Norris, you have to admit that’s pretty extreme.
There are many suggested ways for dealing with hay fever, the majority of which I’ve found ineffective.
- Antihistamines; commonly purchased over-the-shelf pharmacy products such as Telfast, Zyrtec, Clarityne and so on. All guaranteed to leave you feeling every more tired in the morning. While they might be effective for relief of symptoms during the day, and some may be non-drowsy, after a while I couldn’t deal with the tiredness anymore.
- Decongestants; nice in theory but I don’t think anyone wants to be tweaking for three months straight. Comes with a mild side effect of stroke due to bleeding in the brain, this may impair your ability to live.
- Avoiding pollen; this is a great solution for people who don’t breathe. Or perhaps we need to think outside the square a little, how about we modify all the fucking grass in the world so we’re no longer allergic to it? Think I’m kidding?
- Desensitising injections; I have to admit I don’t know too much about this but you have to get a lot of injections, every year… and it stops working after a few years. The first two comments on this page are gold.
- Steroids; it works, just do it. It’s called Budesonide, sold in pharmacies as Rhinocort Hayfever. Unfortunately it can get quite expensive but for most people it should only be for a few months, a few pumps up your nose each night and most of your symptoms should be taken care of for the next day. If the thought of taking steroids everyday doesn’t appeal to you, well rest assured it’s only a very, very small amount and all the information pamphlets from AstraZeneca say you’ll be fine. Really. In case you don’t believe me though, these are the worst side effects from budesonide from Wikipedia.
Budesonide may cause:
- nose irritation or burning
- bleeding or sores in the nose
- lightheadedness
- upset stomach
- cough
- hoarseness
- dry mouth
- rash
- sore throat
- bad taste in mouth
- change in mucus color
In addition the following symptoms should be reported immediately:
- difficulty breathing or swelling of the face
- white patches in the throat, mouth, or nose
- irregular menstrual periods
- severe acne
rarely, behavioral changes—when these do occur, they seem to mostly affect children.
I think I can live with some breathing difficulties, horseness and irregular menstrual swelling that will mostly affect children, ANYTHING that actually takes care of the symptoms and allows me wake up in the mornings with some energy.
Disclaimers:
- I was not paid a commission, fee or reimbursement of any kind to write this blog post on behalf of AstraZeneca Australia Pty Ltd or its affiliates.
- Whilst I may have acted in the role of fire warden during my career which included training in dealing with a chemical, radiological and biological weapons attack upon the Victorian Public Service, I am not and do not profess to be a trained or qualified medical practitioner. You should seek qualified medical advice before spraying steroids up your nose every day.
- I have never spent the night with Lindsay Lohan or Amy Winehouse.
