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Friday, December 14, 2007
[Allergic Rhinitis]
I think I might have allergic rhinitis. Or, in simpler terms, hay fever. Which is misleading, because it's not really a fever in the traditional sense of the word.
I don't know why I never bothered looking this up before. I've always had a problem with my nose. I get "colds" easily. As it turns out, it's not a "cold" at all. When you catch a cold, your mucus would be thick. If your mucus is like water, then it's an allergy of some sort. I've known this for a while, but only seriously looked it up today.
I looked through several websites, including Webmd, MayoClinic, Wikipedia and some other sources. Most of what's said describe what I've experienced. Basically, I have an issue with dust. Many people do. If I inhale too much of it, I'd start sneezing and would suffer from runny nose for about 1 to 2 days if I don't do anything about it. If I take some meds, I would probably be okay the next morning. On the whole, I would say that this actually affects my quality of life. On days where I have to go to school (or work, for that matter) and I'm suffering from the symptoms, it would usually be a very miserable day for me because I would be very tired. Fatigue is one of the effects of allergic rhinitis.
Some interesting facts regarding allergic rhinitis is that the risk factor is higher for males, and for first-borns (according to MayoClinic). That's me. And from doing all the research, I found out that the meds my GP gave me for "cold" was actually an antihistamine called chlorphenamine. Looks like he knew all along about my problem, but didn't let me in on it.
Incidentally, chlorphenamine is considered to be an "older" antihistamine, and the effects are considered "mild". That's funny...Considering I really passed out and had "fever dreams" when I took it for the first time in secondary school. I've taken so many of it over the years that now, after taking the chlorphenamine 4 and a half hours ago, I'm not feeling all that different. Yeah, my nose's stopped leaking and I am a tad drowsy but I am still in control and could go about doing whatever I want. Hell, I typed this entire entry while "under the influence". True, it took me an hour (it's 12:45am now, never mind the timestamp), but it's because I'm chatting with YQ on MSN. I don't have to find a bed and lie down. Newer antihistamines don't have the drowsy effect, or have much less of it.
I'll be going for my annual check-up next week. I think I'll bring this up to see if there's anything else I can do for this problem. Right now, there is a set of bed-sheet that we have that I absolutely cannot sleep on, lest I suffer the effects when I wake up in the morning. I would love to be able to live my life without such restrictions.
^^^ by Locksley @ 11:46 PM.
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