Allegra, Flonase, and Opcon A allergy eye drops.

I take Allegra (generic from Walmart) from (usually) mid-March through mid-October. The rest of the year, I'm fine without any allergy meds...maybe an actual decongestant during the winter if I get stuffy. My wife? Not so much. She rotates generic Claritin, Allegra, and Zyrtec year-round based solely on whichever seems to work best for her at the time.

Allegra and a neti pot.

Literally at the allergist right now. Michigan transplant, never had allergies before. She basically told me to move back home…

Xyzal by far!! Lasts a long time, Handles all all my symptoms with no side effects that I can tell. Safe for kids. The dose can be increased safely as it has over the counter dosing and not what prescription strength would be.

I have had decent success with both allegra and xyzal as antihistamines.

I do find doing a daily nasal wash helps at ton. I get the Neil Med kit from either Costco or Walmart.

Astelin spray really helps me. Astepro the otc has the same ingredients the generic rx version.

Many people like flonase, but I have been just going with Astelin these past few years.

I started wearing a good mask. I couldn’t tolerate the immunotherapy because it made me feel worse (like my allergies) so I had to stop taking the treatments after three months. My ENT told me to wear a mask, use a nasal rinse (like you none of the allergy meds helped me and I felt sick and depressed from mid July through November), change my clothes after being outside and rinse my hair before bed.

I had no idea I was having depression from my allergies which took me four summers to figure out.

But yeah, unfortunately a mask is my only choice, but it works and although I feel like a weird-o for a few months of the year it beats what I was going through. I still get watery eyes and I haven’t found a good eye drop that makes a difference for that yet, which is annoying, but my quality of life is so much better.

Flonase or similar

Have you tried shots??

Have you been to an allergist been tested and worked through a treatment plan?

I'll put my standard allergy advice below. It's pretty common to use nasal sprays and oral pills all at the same time as long as they are not in the same class. Not uncommon here to see people taking multiple 2nd generation antihistmine tablets with doctors orders too. Most medications are best taken daily and won't reach maximum effectiveness for a few years. Start early if you can.

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Nasal rinse is a great drug free option to help, especially when coming in from outside to wash allergens out of your nose. I like the NielMed Sinuse rinse bottle version because I can add as much or as little pressure to it by how much I squeeze. Costco has bundle deals that go on sale about once a quarter and is the cheapest place I have found to buy them. It's a good drug-free option to help many allergy sufferers but don't expect miracles.

Oral antihistamines are a common first-line treatment. While they help many people, don't expect miracles from them. Stick to a 2nd generation antihistamine due to its reduced side effects over first-generation generation. There isn't a lot of good reason to be using first-generation antihistamines like Benadryl. They don't work faster or better, have long half-lives, tend to make people drowsy or stimulated, and have been shown to increase the risk of dementia with long-term use. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/common-anticholinergic-drugs-like-benadryl-linked-increased-dementia-risk-201501287667

Nasal Steroids like Flonase, Nasacourt, and Nasonex (all available as generics) are staples in the allergy world. They are safe, and often, when taken correctly, more effective than an oral antihistamine. antihistamine. All allergy nasal sprays take a couple of weeks to reach maximum effectiveness. Taking them correctly greatly impacts their effectiveness and minimizes side effects, like taste, dryness, and nosebleeds. See the video below for some instructions from an allergist. Asterpro can be helpful to for people, it's a nasal
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5KO3GUxbHv/?igs

As far as eye drop, Zatadore and Pataday are both very effective for a lot of people and are now available OTC in the USA and safe for daily use as directed. You want to stay away from drops marketed as redness-reducing like Visine. These are not safe for daily use and won't help with the itching.

Practice good allergy hygiene. Keep your windows closed during times of high pollen or high irritation. Use AC instead so you're not introducing additional allergins to your living environment. Dry your clothes, towels, and sheets indoors vs outside in the wind for the same reason. Run the AC in your car vs windows down. Take showers after coming in from outside (definitely before bed) to wash the pollen off of your body and hair, and put on fresh, clean clothes afterward. Wash your bedding weekly in hot water and use pillow and mattress encasements designed for allergies if you have a dust mite allergy. Clean and vacuum regularly. An N95 Mask or better mask is a good tool for many to reduce the amount of pollen or dust you breathe when you're in a situation you can't avoid or in an environment of high allergen levels.

My allergist says you have to switch up your meds every 2-3 months and start it 2 weeks before you need it. I don't have a crystal orb so I just start taking in February.

I am also a huge fan of axelistine nasal spray. It's an antihistamine! There's an OTC version from the same company called asterpro.

Edited: if your nose is stuffy because of inflammation, not snot, then maybe a steroid nasal spray to like nasacort or Flonase.

I have both allergies and dry eye, so I use Pataday for the itch and Refresh eye drops for the dry eye. Montelukast and zyrtec for the other allergies.

Generic Zaditor and Quercetin with bromelian help the most for me. Nothing else touches itchy eyes.

I’m still on Zyrtec and Singulair but they don’t help my eyes on their own.

I also struggle with congestion from allergies and I relied on meds. Recently, I tried SinuSauna. It uses the science of a sauna to keep mucus from building up in your nose and throat. At first, I used it every night before bed (20 min) and now I use it 2-3 times a week. Have not suffered from congestion since using it and I am able to stop using nasal irrigation and sprays. You can learn more here - https://sinusauna.com/

It’s not about a specific medication being effective against allergens present this season, it has to do with how the medication works in your system.

Pick one daily allergy med, try it daily for 2 weeks, most take some time to build up in your system and provide maximum relief. If your symptoms aren’t controlled to your satisfaction, switch to a different daily allergy med. Wash, rinse, repeat, until you find what works for you.

Flonase

Flonase works really really well but I can’t take it anymore cause I now get side effects that don’t make it worth it.

Benadryl for me. You can't sneeze if you're unconscious. (other meds don't work at all for me)

I go back and forth between Claritin and Reactine (which I think is similar to Zyrtec possibly?) but last year I tried Claritin extra strength plus sinus and they worked like a charm for me

The problem is that different medications work better for different people for a variety of reasons.

Xyzal at night!

Allergy meds aren’t as effective for me either! There must be crack in the pollen this year.

I’ve been: staying inside, air purifier, air conditioner instead of open windows sadly.

Not a damn thing. Worst allergy season in at least a decade.

Nothing. I'm leaning into it now.

Xyzal. Follow the directions and make sure you take it (or any allergy med) at night. 

Also it sucks when it's nice out, but windows closed, air purifier on. The pollen is ending up in your sheets and on your pillow so it makes things worse. 

2 Zyrtec a day plus Azelastine (Rx) and Flonase nasal sprays help me on all but the peak days 

Dont take allergy with Zyrtec it won’t help. Make sure your taking Zyrtec constantly If you want the stronger than Zyrtec, take xyzal a much stronger version of Zyrtec (can get generic for cheap from Sam’s club), use Flonase nasal spray (Costco generic), pataday once a day eye drops. Taking this 3x combo and it’s been the most effective for me. Also, I take monteklaust for breathing

What symptoms do you have?

This must be really rough for you.

When you say you can barely open your eyes, did you mean because of swelling of the eyelids/under eye area, or because your eyes are constantly watering/tearing or because they’re sore or painful? Or a combination of those symptoms?

I’ve had a peek at your profile to get a better sense of your situation.

Sometimes other factors, especially environmental ones, can contribute to exacerbating our symptoms in ways that might not be obvious. Those things might be no problem for us normally, but when allergic reactions start they can make symptoms worse.

Do you wear glasses or contact lenses?

Do you experience any dryness or eye irritation at work other places outside of allergy season, e.g. when you get close to the air conditioning vents, steam or heat in the kitchen, etc?

Am I correct in assuming that you often ride a bicycle for transport?

Wearing sunglasses, especially wrap around styles might help keep allergens out of your eyes. If you’re riding a bike, it’s probably doubly important because particulate matter from air pollution might be contributing to your eye symptoms.

When you use Zaditor, do you feel like it doesn’t help, or it stings? Have you experienced that problem with other eye drops, including other ones specifically for allergies?

Is your Zaditor a full size bottle (which would have a preservative in it,) or single use plastic vials?

The reason I ask is because the most common preservative for eye drops (and nasal sprays) is benzalkonium chloride. (BC)

BC is a great anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agent, and it’s commonly used in laundry sanitisers, too, like Canesten laundry rinse.

BC has the side effect of being a known skin sensitiser. But, there’s a large subset of us, who have no problem with using BC on our skin, like Canesten in our laundry. But as soon as we use something containing even tiny amounts of BC on irritated mucous membranes, like eyedrops in our eyes, or a nasal spray in our nose, the BC causes irritation that we mistakenly think is coming from the allergen, or we assume the drops/sprays just aren’t working for us.

So using single use preservative free Zaditor might help? Zaditor (ketotifen) is technically not an antihistamine, btw. It’s a corticosteroid.

If single use preservative free Zaditor is still not enough, consider using olopatadine antihistamine eyedrops. I think they’re called Pataday. It comes in multiple strengths, although I believe the extra strength ones might be prescription only, and I’m not sure if it comes in a single use, preservative free form.

(I’m Australian and we have much fewer options, so I only have a passing familiarity with what’s available in America.)

I shower, including rinsing or washing my hair, right before bed. Helps immensely during pollen season.

Stay indoor and keep the windows shut.

Another vote for Zyrtec. I've been taking one every day for years. I get the generic version from Costco. The pricing on their generic OTC drugs is one of the main reasons I still have a membership

My doctor told me last week that Claritin is the most mild of the 3 and he does Allegra for hard days. I switched 2 days ago and I'm doing much better today than I was last week. I also do Flonase and pataday to help when it is really bad.

Generic Costco Allegra and Flonase as needed.

Claritin and Flonase. Non medicated saline spray as needed when things dry out. And I use NeilMed sinus rinse at least once a day to clean out the crud.

Shower before bed, especially washing your hair. Clean pillow cases quickly collect all the dust/pollen/mold that gets caught in your hair. You then lay your face right next to it. Good sleep hygiene makes a huge difference on how you wake up in the morning

Daily Allegra. If it gets really bad, I also use nasal spray in addition to it.

Daily Zyrtec, eye drops and occasional nasal spray

Shoulda had no allergies

bold of you to assume i have allergies

I get a Kenalog shot every 4 to 6 months and take allergy pills as needed, if they're needed.

I struggle with finding the right medications too so I understand. Obviously “there’s no universal answer”…

Currently I’m using xyzal nightly, which sucks because cetrizine products give me RLS.

I was using pataday but they quit working. Switched to zatidor but that only gave me extreme burning. I found lastacaft and it seems to help a little.

Occasionally, if there’s high pollen I’ll take a Claritin around lunch.

I also get a kenalog shot yearly in June but this one didn’t seem to help.

There is no universal answer here. It's what works best for you. Many people see benifit from rotating between antihistamines every few months. You may want to see an allergist to do testing and come up with a more comprehensive treatment plan if your jot able to manage on your own.

My standard allergy advice is below. Take what applies to you.

Nasal rinse is a great drug free option to help, especially when coming in from outside to wash allergens out of your nose. I like the NielMed Sinuse rinse bottle version because I can add as much or as little pressure to it by how much I squeeze. Costco has bundle deals that go on sale about once a quarter and is the cheapest place I have found to buy them. It's a good drug-free option to help many allergy sufferers but don't expect miracles. 

Oral antihistamines are a common first-line treatment. While they help many people, don't expect miracles from them. Stick to a 2nd generation antihistamine due to its reduced side effects over first-generation generation. There isn't a lot of good reason to be using first-generation antihistamines like Benadryl. They don't work faster or better, have long half-lives, tend to make people drowsy or stimulated, and have been shown to increase the risk of dementia with long-term use. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/common-anticholinergic-drugs-like-benadryl-linked-increased-dementia-risk-201501287667 It's not uncommon for people to be using more than one dose of 2nd generation antihistamines in a day, but best to talk to a doctor about your underlying health concerns before doing so. 

Nasal Steroids like Flonase, Nasacourt, and Nasonex (all available as generics) are staples in the allergy world. They are safe, and often, when taken correctly, more effective than an oral antihistamine. antihistamine. Asterpro can be helpful to people too, it's a nasal antihistamine. All allergy nasal sprays take a couple of weeks to reach maximum effectiveness. Taking them correctly greatly impacts their effectiveness and minimizes side effects, like taste, dryness, and nosebleeds. See the video below for some instructions from an allergist. 

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5KO3GUxbHv/?igs

Oral antihistamines and allergy nasal sprays often work best when taken at least a week or two before allergy season starts for seasonal allergies. They both take a while to build up in your system to reach maximum effectiveness. They are least effective if taken on an as needed basis. 

Pseudoephedrine (Not Phenylephrine which has been ruled to be ineffective) can be helpful for relieving sinus pressure. It's found behind the pharmacy counter in the US but can be purchased without a prescription. Short term use is recommended for most people unless otherwise directed by a doctor. If you have underlying health conditions make sure to talk to a doctor or pharmacist before use. 

As far as eye drop, Zatadore and Pataday are both very effective for a lot of people and are now available OTC in the USA and safe for daily use as directed. You want to stay away from drops marketed as redness-reducing like Visine. These are not safe for daily use and won't help with the itching. 

Practice good allergy hygiene. Keep your windows closed during times of high pollen or high irritation. Use AC instead so you're not introducing additional allergins to your living environment. Dry your clothes, towels, and sheets indoors vs outside in the wind for the same reason. Run the AC in your car vs windows down. Take showers after coming in from outside (definitely before bed) to wash the pollen off of your body and hair, and put on fresh, clean clothes afterward. Wash your bedding weekly in hot water and use pillow and mattress encasements designed for allergies if you have a dust mite allergy. Clean and vacuum regularly. An N95 Mask or better mask is a good tool for many to reduce the amount of pollen or dust you breathe when you're in a situation you can't avoid or in an environment of high allergen levels.