ALLERGY SHOTS - MS

[futurmil2b]

Has anyone ever taken or take Allergy shots? I had allergy testing done on Friday and of course I am allergic to some of everything.. mold, dust, pollen - out of 17 type of pollen, I am allergic to 9, dogs, cats.

Currently I am not on meds and I have pressure in my face, nose area, my teeth hurts sometimes. This sinus crap may be contributing to some of my neck/shoulder tightness. I dunno.

Anyhue, my ENT doc wants to start me on allergy shots. I am willing to give it a try.. just may help. I also feel a bit congested.. have thick mucus.. feels like its in the back of my throat. I just be feeling awful all in my face. I tried Mucinex.. it did absolutely NOTHING.

I am so tired of feeling so bad with tight, tensed up muscles, facial pressure, etc. Right leg a bit tight.. feels like a tension knot on my right but cheek - I can feel it when I sit on the floor and move my butt around a bit.

I take a small dose ativan to help with the tension and tightness.. it helps a little. I take a very small dose 1/2 .5mg once a day. I truly need it at least 2x a day which I do take 2x sometimes.. I dunno, sometimes I just want to throw in the towel.. just tired of feeling so bad. And what makes matters worst.. I have NO support from my husband - he is too self absorbed. I just feel all alone going through this.

Jay

[futurmil2b]

NO REPLIES :0(


Jay

[ru4cats]

I have been on allergy shots for 18 years! I was allergic to inland weeds and grasses, and in the spring/fall, my cats and dogs would "tip me over the edge." I was miserable when I got the skin prick test. The doc said I should get rid of the animals, and I said, "Not a chance! What's my next best option?" He started me on shots, and 18 years later, here I am! For a few years I took an extra Claratin in the allergy months and used an inhaler occasionally. Now, nothing, nadda. Definitely worth it! I guess I could try quitting the shots, but since I still have the animals, a few sticks a year are worth the cost. I was diagnosed with MS 2 years ago and will have my 24th infusion tomorrow. The allergy shots and the Tysabri have never interacted. I'd go for it.

[Leeaura]

Futurmil2b,
I'm sooo sorry you're feeling so alone. I'm a newbie and also am feeling a bit lost. I can't talk to my DH either. He's a great provider but doesn't get excited. He says MS isn't anything to worry about until it progresses to something that should be worried about. What the ....?

I was born w allergies, asthma, and eczema. I know how miserable u can feel when symptoms aren't managed effectively. I assume your ENT wouldn't want to start injections unless you had tried more conservative treatment.

Some things to think about:
Do your allergies bother u all year or just at certain times? I My son takes Clarinex and Cingulair but only Mar thru April. I def wouldn't want to take shots if I could get by w/o them.
Is your ENT also an allergist? An allergist can help you allergy-proof your home. Has your ENT done this?

I have no idea whether shots could affect your MS. Maybe someone with more experience could help there.

P.S. Do you have a couch for hubby to sleep on??

[futurmil2b]

Futurmil2b,
I'm sooo sorry you're feeling so alone. I'm a newbie and also am feeling a bit lost. I can't talk to my DH either. He's a great provider but doesn't get excited. He says MS isn't anything to worry about until it progresses to something that should be worried about. What the ....?

I was born w allergies, asthma, and eczema. I know how miserable u can feel when symptoms aren't managed effectively. I assume your ENT wouldn't want to start injections unless you had tried more conservative treatment.

Some things to think about:
Do your allergies bother u all year or just at certain times? I My son takes Clarinex and Cingulair but only Mar thru April. I def wouldn't want to take shots if I could get by w/o them.
Is your ENT also an allergist? An allergist can help you allergy-proof your home. Has your ENT done this?

I have no idea whether shots could affect your MS. Maybe someone with more experience could help there.

P.S. Do you have a couch for hubby to sleep on??

Thanks for responding. I am going to give the shots a try.. I have been feeling bad for too long. Head pressure, face pressure, congested. I tried a few things, Nasonex, Mucinex, etc.. nothing helped.

I don't have a lot of sneezing, coughing, runny nose things of that nature.. I have a lot of sinus pressure.. this is all year long. Everything I tried has not helped so therefore I think its gotten a bit worst. I plan on purchasing a few things for allergies such as bedding.. pillow cases, etc also they have allergy spray for your furniture. I really need to dust more in my bedroom.. but just don't feel up to it.

I barely do anything around the house.. its hard feeling all congested and then feeling so tight and tensed up on top of that and having menopausal issues.. its just a bit much.

Jay

[futurmil2b]

I have been on allergy shots for 18 years! I was allergic to inland weeds and grasses, and in the spring/fall, my cats and dogs would "tip me over the edge." I was miserable when I got the skin prick test. The doc said I should get rid of the animals, and I said, "Not a chance! What's my next best option?" He started me on shots, and 18 years later, here I am! For a few years I took an extra Claratin in the allergy months and used an inhaler occasionally. Now, nothing, nadda. Definitely worth it! I guess I could try quitting the shots, but since I still have the animals, a few sticks a year are worth the cost. I was diagnosed with MS 2 years ago and will have my 24th infusion tomorrow. The allergy shots and the Tysabri have never interacted. I'd go for it.

THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH. That makes me feel a little better. I pray it helps me Feels like my body is going through way too much right about now.

Jay

[webmonarch]

The allergy shots and the Tysabri have never interacted.

Me too. I'm on both Tysabri and allergy shots for quite some time now. Allergist wasn't concerned when I initially raised the issue, but did some checking, and there were no concerns from his end either.

Allergy shots are PROBABLY worth it. I still need Claritin-D most days, as well, but I can tell my allergies are less severe.

[lisa1014]

I am allergic to everything! I take xyzal and singulair daily. I have done allergy shots for several years I take copaxone and a bunch of other stuff and I have never had a problem.

I will tell you though allergy shots will not be a quick fix for your problems they will slowly help you build up a tollerance to the things you are allergic to but you sound like you need a decongestant. Also I love my neti pot. It really helps clean out all the toxins in your sinuses.

[Justsayyes]

I had allergy shots as a kid for dust allergy, can't really say if it was of great benefit or not, I'm still very sensitive to dust. Have always had allergies, grass is a biggie for me. No hayrides for me, my airway swells and itches, I can develop huge hives, really nasty reaction.

Anyway.....I do very well with Allegra and Allegra D. I've also taken Zyrtec, and have used different steroid nasal sprays like Nasonex, Rhinocort, etc. My son has allergies as well, and his pediatrician did add Singulair to the mix when his were bad (which is mentioned in the other post above). I often use generic Benedryl at night.

A good friend of mine is allergic to many pollens, and it is a problem for her because alot of fruits and veggie's affect her. She has benefited from allergy shots.

Another friend gets a shot of Kenalog every spring, and that keeps her allergies in check.

Allergies make you miserable, so I support you trying to get them calmed down.

[jojo18]

i know few details but i can tell you that my grandpa is allergic to almost every animal that has fur that exists.

he gets the allergy shots, they work.
want proof?

he has been a dairy farmer for most of his life (88 years)

[lisa1014]

I take singulair myself and had two of my children on it. I would encourage any parents giving singulair to their children to google the side effects. I had no idea it caused behavioral problems. My son was diagnosed with ADD. When I took him off the behavior issues all but went away. Just something to consider.

[JayEm]

My allergist recommended Allegra over the other OTC allergy meds, because he says the others might cause fatigue/sleepiness, and that's not a concern with Allegra.

With spring pollen kicking up, I'm using Allegra, pseudoephedrine, and Flonase, and occasionally resorting to the neti pot in the evenings. I've also had to accept that my windows have to be closed (much as I love fresh air, I prefer breathing and not needing to scratch my face off). We have dust covers on the pillows, and I keep the animals out of my bedroom. I should wash all of my bedding more frequently (I manage the sheets, but the blankets are harder to do).

Don't wear outside shoes when you come inside--that will help to keep down dust and pollen. If you're allergic to pollen, try to avoid going outside in the morning hours, and definitely get someone else to do yard work if it's needed.

I've been getting shots since March (grass/tree pollen/dust/cats/feathers); they say they probably won't start making a difference in my allergies until fall. I notice that I have more fatigue the day I get my shots. My guess is that my immune system increases in response to the shots, but that's just a guess. And my arm aches and is a little less coordinated on the side where they do the grass shot (my worst allergy) for several hours after the shot. It's been wearing off more quickly, so that's a good thing.

The shots are kind of like vaccinations--you're giving your body small but gradually increasing doses of the thing you're allergic to so that you can build up a tolerance to it. I wouldn't think it would conflict with any medications (but ask your doctor, since I don't know for sure!)

[futurmil2b]

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH.

Thanks to all that responded. I really appreciate that. Yes.. I do need a decongestant. I tried Mucinex but it did absolutely NOTHING. I am sure I have a lot of dried up mucus.

Hopefully, the allergy shots will help. I like the post about the 88 year old farmer.. that gives me a lot of hope and inspiration.. THANKS.

Jay

[JayEm]

I am a big believer in decongestants (well, specifically in pseudoephedrine). I really resent the drug addicts who started using them to make drugs, so that now you can't buy many at once, and you have to wait through the line at the pharmacy to get them.

I like the 24-hour ones. I take them in the morning, because they sometimes cause insomnia (not often for me, but there's the possibility). On days when I sleep late, I usually wake up at the 24-hour point because my nose clogged up so I couldn't breathe through it. I take the meds and then go back to sleep.

The neti pot helps somewhat with congestion as well, although when my allergies are bad, the benefit doesn't last that long.

Oh! If you can afford an air purifier, that's worth getting as well, particularly if you have indoor allergies.

[Mable]

I tried allergy shots for a while and they made me feel consistently worse. What did help was pulling up all the carpet in my house, making my husband (the carpenter) shower before he came to bed at night, keeping the house decluttered and well dusted, buying a good air filter, and nasal rinsing.

My strategy was that if I could spend 8 hours in a clean bedroom while I slept, my immune system wouldn't go nuts the other 16 hours in the day.

It seemed to work. I know you're all rolling your eyes, and your allergies may not respond so well to just cleaning up your environment, but I always kind of resented that doctors and nurses didn't suggest all this before they started the shots.