The dreaded pollen season is finally upon us, and if you’re one of the lucky ones that never have to worry about coughing and sneezing for the entirety of spring, consider yourself lucky! Sadly, not everyone is the same way. There isn’t much you can do if you have a pollen allergy except try to minimize how severe your allergic reactions get during the spring. You shouldn’t be avoiding going outside and enjoying the delightful springtime weather because of your allergies. Below are a few things you can try to do every day to minimize the severity of your allergies to avoid a huge allergy attack at the end of every day. Some of them might sound a little extreme or unnecessary, but those with really bad pollen allergies understand the importance of going to these crazy extremes!
WASH FACE/NECK ASAP
The best thing to do immediately after coming back from being outside in the pollen is to shower and change out of the clothing you were wearing. Sometimes, however, showering immediately isn’t the best possible option. So the best thing to do whenever you get inside is to wash your face to get any pollen off of it. You can even take it a step further and wash your neck or arms or any other parts of your body that were exposed to the air to make sure you’re not inhaling any of those sneaky little pollen particles. Wash your eyes and nose and scrub your face to make sure you don’t get a late reaction.
NO RE-WEARING CLOTHING
This is another very important way to avoid pollen allergies and the spread of pollen in your room or house. As soon as you get home, take a shower or change out of your clothes and put them in the laundry or washing machine immediately! You may be forced to do a little extra laundry this pollen season – or have to rotate through more outfits – but it’s worth it to avoid any severe allergic reactions! Avoid sitting around in your “outside” clothing for too long, especially in areas like your sofa or bed where you spend lots of time otherwise.
DON’T TRASH THAT MASK YET
Covid may not be at the top of your worries anymore, but if pollen is now, dig out those ancient masks from the pandemic and make good use of them! If pollen makes your respiratory system go crazy, masks are a great way to prevent that! If masks can prevent a deadly disease and pandemic from getting worse, they can certainly stop you from having to breathe in pollen particles and having a sneeze attack! Just make sure to wash the mask immediately (if they are reusable), or trash them as soon as you come home to avoid the spread of pollen inside your home!
STILL GO OUTSIDE!
Sounds counterintuitive, I know, but sometimes exposure is the best way to cure oneself of allergies! We’ve all heard of immunotherapy, which is exposing someone to larger and larger amounts of what they’re allergic to in an attempt to change their immune system’s natural response to said allergen. By still going outside every day and exposing yourself naturally to the pollen around you, you may feel your allergies getting worse, but as time goes by, you will begin to see a difference! Speaking from personal experience, I notice as each year goes by, my allergies become less extreme, as I make sure to go outside every day and get my daily (and not fun) dose of pollen.
