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If avoiding triggers is not possible, easing the symptoms is the next best thing to do in order to fight hay fever. You can take nasal corticosteroids. They prevent and treat the nasal inflammation, nasal itching, and runny nose caused by hay fever. These are usually safe long-term treatment options for most people. Side effects can include an unpleasant smell or taste and nose irritation, but the effects are rare. Some of these medications need to be prescribed by your doctor, but a few are now available over-the-counter. They usually work best when taken every day, at least during the seasons or times when you are likely to have allergy symptoms. Check with your doctor or pharmacist to figure out which is a good choice for you. Popular brands include Flonase, Nasacort AQ, Nasonex, and Rhinocort. You can also take antihistamines to help with your hay fever symptoms. This medication can come in pill, oral, liquid, chewable, melt away, nasal spray, and eye drop forms. They help with itching, sneezing, and runny nose by blocking histamine, which is a chemical released by your immune system that also cause the signs and symptoms of hay fever. The pills and nasal sprays can relieve nasal symptoms while the eye drops help relieve eye itchiness and eye irritation caused by hay fever. Examples of oral antihistamines include Claritin, Alavert, Zyrtec Allergy, Allegra and Benadryl. You can also get prescription antihistamine nasal sprays such as Astelin, Astepro, and Patanase. Do not consume alcohol and tranquilizers when taking antihistamines. Do not use or combine more than one antihistamine unless they are prescribed to you by your doctor or allergist. Avoid using heavy machinery, and use caution driving when taking antihistamines. Avoid taking sedating antihistamines if you will be driving. Most people can safely drive if they are taking non or low-sedating antihistamines, such as Zyrtec, Allegra, and Claritin. You can get decongestants as over the counter medications such as Sudafed and Drixoral. You can also get them as prescription liquids, pills, or nasal sprays. There are many oral decongestant prescriptions you can get, but be warned they can cause increased blood pressure, insomnia, irritability, and headache. Decongestants should only be used temporarily and not every day. Decongestant nasal sprays include Neo-Synephrine and Afrin. You should not use these for more than two or three days at a time because they can actually worsen your congestion. The leukotriene modifier also known as Singulair is a controller medication and should be taken before any symptoms occur. It may also reduce asthma symptoms. A common side effect is headache, but in rare occasions, it has been linked to psychological reactions, such as agitation, aggression, hallucinations, depression, and suicidal thinking. This medication comes in tablet form. It is important that you seek medical advice right away for any unusual psychological reaction you notice while on this medication. Atrovent, also called nasal ipratropium, is a prescription nasal spray that helps relieve a severe runny nose. Some side effects include nasal dryness, nosebleeds, and a sore throat. However, rare side-effects include blurred vision, dizziness, and difficult urination. People with glaucoma and an enlarged prostate should not use this drug. This medication, also known as prednisone, is sometimes used to relieve severe allergy symptoms. However, you must be cautious when using this medication since long-term use can cause serious side effects such as cataracts, osteoporosis, and muscle weakness. This drug is only prescribed for a short period of time and may require tapering doses. If your hay fever allergic reactions do not respond to other medications, and you cannot avoid exposure to the allergens, your doctor may recommend allergy shots, also known as immunotherapy. Instead of fighting the allergic reactions, the shots instead change the immune system to stop reacting to the allergens. The shots consist of diluted allergy extract which are administered frequently in increasing doses until a dose is found that helps you maintain your allergies. These are then given with larger time periods in between. The series of shots take place over a period of three to five years. The goal with this medication is for your body to get used to the allergens causing the allergic reactions so you will eventually not react to them anymore. The allergy shots safe with very small side effects. The most common is redness or swelling at the injection site, and can happen right away or within the first few hours. These should go away within 24 hours of the injection. You can also get mild allergic reactions similar to those you normally suffer from because of your hay fever. In rare cases, you can have a severe allergic reaction the first time you get the shot and again with later doses. Patients are always monitored when they get allergy shots. The symptoms of a severe reaction, known as anaphylaxis, include wheezing or difficulty breathing, hives or swelling of the face or body, irregular or rapid heart beat, throat or chest tightness, dizziness, loss of consciousness, and in extremely severe cases, death. If you experience any of these severe reactions, call 911 and seek medical attention immediately.
Take nasal corticosteroids. Use antihistamines. Consider decongestants. Ask your allergist about leukotriene modifiers. Try Atrovent. Use oral corticosteroid. Get an allergy shot.