Allergy Shots and Asthma Update

 Are you considering allergy shots but need more information before you start an allergy shot treatment plan? Keep reading to discover my experience with receiving allergy shots.

 It has been a while since I wrote about my allergy shot appointments. Life has been busy and my appointments for the allergy shots have been pretty much the same. The last three allergy shots, had me experiencing the same side effects as the previous allergy shots. That is a good thing as I was worried about my asthma symptoms. My asthma symptoms, thirty minutes after receiving the vials of allergens for allergy shots, were mild. I also experienced some burning in my arm, where I received the seasonal allergy shot. 

 It was allergy shot number 6, that I learned that my weed and grass allergy shot was causing the burning in my arm. That makes sense as it was the weeds and grass that tested high, when I did my allergy testing. I decided to have the allergy doctor test my son, so I could get him started on allergy shots. My son also has asthma and for the past couple of years, his asthma gets severe when things start growing here. My son has missed several days of school due to his asthma.

Allergic To New Mexico

 After my son had allergy testing. the doctor looked at the allergy shot testing results and said, "you are allergic to New Mexico." The allergy testing caused some huge hives and redness on my son's back. For the allergy testing, the nurse pricked my son's skin with many different allergens. Things like weeds, grass, trees, plants, mold, and animals. When I compared my son's allergy testing results to mine, we are pretty much allergic to the same items. He also scored higher on most of the weeds and grasses. I also discovered that the type of mold that my son is allergic to is not the one that you find in your home. That explains why my son did not experience mold sickness when we had mold in our home.

Severe Asthma Symptoms After I Traveled

 My asthma started to get out of control after I traveled to see my mom. My asthma was so bad that I had to sleep sitting up on the couch for several nights. My asthma symptoms had not been this bad since 2018 when I discovered that a dairy allergy was causing my severe asthma.

 Many things were causing my asthma to be out of control. While I was visiting my mom, I stayed at my brother's home. My brother has a cat and the cat was peeing on the carpet. So my brother was cleaning the carpet on a daily basis with a chemical cleaner. Then when I returned home, I became sick with a miserable cold. My husband also had a cold, so I think him kissing me caused me to catch his cold. Then there were the nearby forest fires that caused poor air quality.

 So many things were triggering my asthma. Every time I had to cough, I struggled to breathe. So for two weeks, I had to do nebulizer treatments for asthma and sleep sitting up. Once I felt better, I had my 6th-month allergy doctor appointment. The allergy doctor reminded me about using my allergy nasal spray. I also got some not-so-good news at my allergy appointment.

Sixteen More Build Up Allergy Shot Appointments

 I had allergy shot number 8 the week before my appointment with the allergy doctor. I thought that I had only 4 more Build Up Allergy Shot Appointments but the doctor looked at my chart and said that my build-up phase was a year-long, instead of the typical 6 months. Due to my asthma, the other allergy doctor decided that it would be best to do my allergy shots every 2 weeks instead of once a week. I was glad that I was on a slower build-up treatment as a couple of the allergy shots caused me to have some breathing issues with my asthma.

Air quality is improving but weeds are growing

 I am still having seasonal allergy symptoms that are triggering my asthma as the weeds are growing here. The air quality is improving as the firefighters are starting to get the forest fires under control. The forest fires may be far away from my town but the smoke and pollution drift over here. So I have been staying inside for the most part.

The worst part is having to exercise indoors. Exercise has been shown to benefit those with asthma so I make sure to exercise every day. I just can't run outside with the poor air quality. If you have asthma check out these Ten Tips For Exercising With Asthma. I am so looking forward to the day when my allergy shot treatment allows me to run outside again. 

 My allergy shot treatment will be a rough ride but at the end, when my seasonal allergies are cured, it will be so worth the misery. While the allergy shots will not cure my asthma, they will cure my seasonal allergies. Seasonal allergies are a big trigger for my asthma, so it will be a big layer removed from my asthma causes. You can read more about my allergy shot treatment plan HERE.