allergies sucking the life out of me... wake up feeling like I'm in a coma!

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mochi*

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Hi all,
I am really concerned/confused about what is going on with me.
I have never been diagnosed with an official allergy to anything, and have never been to an allergist, but over the past 5 years have had a lot of problems with my sinuses.
I'm am 28 years old, and never had allergies when I was younger, but now it seems to affect my life on a daily basis.
It became a problem about 5 years ago, when I started getting scabs in my nostrils (for no reason that I could find!) and my sinuses were dry and painful almost all the time, even though I lived in a VERY moist climate. I also seemed to be expereinced a lot of fatigue, altough it has been a while since then and I do not recall very well how it affected me back then.
However, I moved 3 years ago to a new home in a new city. A city that is coastal and also quite moist and cool.
I live in a very old house with yucky old carpet (the rent is cheap!) and it's full of dust, no matter how much I vaccum or sweep.
The thing is, I think since I moved here, (nearly 3 years ago!) I get sick more easily, feel fatigued almost EVERY day when I wake up, and am ALWAYS at least sort of stuffy!!
It's bearable most of the time, and I am not wealthy enough to move or buy a bunch of fancy air filters or anything.
But it is smetimes really worrisome, like last night, I went to bed exhausted (for no good reason) and set my alarm at a more than reasonable hour, and, although I had at least 10 hours of sleep, I woke up to the alarm feeling almost as if I were in a coma, or at least seriosuly drugged!!! I am NOT exaggerting, I really felt so heavy and exhausted that I felt drugged. I must have kept hitting the alarm (which I scarcely recall) because I woke up an hour and a half late!!!!
On top of that, I had very vivid and yucky dreams.
All day at work I felt groggy, dazed and useless. I was exhausted, and also anxious and couldn't process things as well as usual, if that makes sense: I felt slow and confused.
I was also very stuffy and my eyes hurt and my head is killing me.
I know it is connected to my sinuses, but what type of allergy makes you sleep so deeply that you can hardly get up, and when you do, you feel soooo groggy all day??
This happens to a lesser extenet pretty much every day: I NEVER wake up feeling refreshed, and i always have to set an alarm.
It is particularly bad some days (like today) and it is really concerning me. What can I do??? Has anyone expereinced this? I feel crazy!
:dizzy:
 
Allergies can exhaust a person beyond belief and they can make one not think clearly, have trouble with the eyes and the list goes on and on. It sounRAB to me as if you are allergic to something, but I am no dr. Am speaking from experience. I would suggest that you look up the Grossan irrigator on the Internet. That has helped me VERY much as well as acupuncture. My allergies can throw me off balance when I walk. After gong to the acupuncturist, I don't walk like the city drunk, have more energy and can think much better. Rugs can raise outright Hell with me, if they are new as can perfume and scent of any kind. When around these things, my lungs fill up, I can't think and am a true basket case. Hope this is of some help to you. If you have any more questions feel free to ask. My other concern is that you may have sleep apnea, if you are waking up tired all the time. I am blessed with this as well. Woke up one Christmas and had NO energy. Found out that I had had this apnea for years and it caught up with me.
 
Danabarb is right, allergies can cause a lot of problems.

You don't mention whether you're doing anything already to try to deal with your symptoms but there are some basic things that you can try today.

First of all, you should take an antihistamine every day to minimize the allergic reaction. Loratadine (generic Claritin) or Cetirizine (generic Zyrtec) are both available without a prescription, work well and are inexpensive.

Second, I wouldn't dismiss the air filter possibility so quickly. You can buy a true HEPA room air filter for $100 - $150. You should probably have one in your bedroom at least so that you're not breathing in allergens all night long while you sleep. Don't worry about all the bells and whistles, as long as it has a true HEPA filter it should be good enough to do the job.

Third, ask your doctor about getting on a prescription for a steroid nasal spray like Flonase (which is now available as an inexpensive generic), it should help with the stuffiness.

Finally, the Grossan irrigator is a good idea but there are less expensive options for saline irrigation (which will help get the allergens out of your sinuses, relieve relieve some of the pressure and improve the health of your sinuses). A simple SinusRinse bottle or Neti Pot (either of which costs about $12 at CVS or Walgreens) will do almost as good a job, or for a bit more money you can buy a WaterPik and a sinus irrigation attachment.

As long as you live in a place with yucky old carpet you may have some issues but you should be able to minimize the issues without spending a ton of money by trying these things.
 
Could any medications or supplements you are taking be causing some of these symptoms? I had this happen to me. I do have some underlying/undiagnosed immune issues, but I've found that many meRAB worsen my symptoms, as do fooRAB. Did you change your diet any since your move? If not, are you simply eating more than you used to of a certain food? Also, allergies change over time, so something you used to not be allergic to may now cause a problem. If I eat the smallest amount of any cheese, the same side of my nasal sinus all the way to my ear will swell and and be very painful.
 
Ahhhh!!
I don't know what it is!!
It has been really bad the past few weeks thoough, today I have a terrible headache and can hardly think straight, I am cranky and confused, I could hadrly wake up, what the hell is going on???
I am stuffy and tried flonase, it did nothing.
I feel like hell and I have big dark circles under my eyes all the time, and I am only 28!!!!
What can I do??? I don't have the energy or attention span to do anything! I feel dizzy and weak and tired so often, and ALWAYS feel awful and drugged when I wake up!!
 
I would go see an allergist and get tested. I have really bad allergies and know exactly how you feel.

HEPA filter unit in bedroom can help as well as laundering all bedding in hot water often. To start, I would wash bedding 2-3 times a week and get dust mite covers for pillows and mattress. It is worth the investment and time to do these things.

Are you able to have the carpets professionally cleaned? This could help too.

Do you have any animals? That could be causing problems too--or former tenants have animals?

Hang in there and see an allergist asap--you will be glad you did.
 
i'm sure the carpet is playing a big factor. One thing that i would do is get some blood work done... cbc and thyroid. What medications are you already on? I'm currently on Yaz bcp and contemplating going off of it. I love being on it, but i have had increased fatigue since being on it. I afraid though because it helps control my migraines

good luck. Let us know what you are already doing or have tried so we might be able to better help you. I also recommend a neti pot or sinurinse bottle
 
Dear Mochi! Bless your heart. You sound like me a few years ago. I was renting a 100 year old farm house. I already have allergies but they became worse living in the rental home. I could smell mold whenever I turned on the air conditioning or heat. I had all the symptoms you are talking about. I just generally felt terriable, tired, black circles..lots of problems started developing. My landlord refused to treat the mold which I am allergic to. I even bought test kits of the internet to prove it was there. I finally decided to move out. Just as I was moving out I found out my thyroid was shot. I became hypothryroid due to all the stress in my body. I don't want to scare you, most likely you won't have that happen. But I was 40 and it can happen to gals like me. But since moving out, being allergy tested and moving into a fresh clean, mold free home..my health is completely better in that aspect.

I realize that not everyone can pick up and move. But just make sure your living environment is as clean as you can make it. We replaced down filled things with other bedding. We encase our pillows and bedding in covers to kill dust mites. We have an air purifier in our bedroom. We try to clean more often. We have no animals because we are all allergic to them (thats sad because we like pets) We just do what we can to stay healthy. I REALLY feel for you. I was so miserable for so long. Don't go on in misery. I take xyzal for my allergies, sudefed and Benadryl too. Soon I will start my allergy shots again. Just have the doc figure a plan for you. But clean up your environment as soon as you can. That carpet can be hazardess. Good luck ok!:angel:
 
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