My Kryptonite

I consider myself a pretty tough cookie.  I believe I have a high tolerance for pain and an overall suck-it-up attitude.  I don't like negativity and whining is negativity at its most annoying.  Zut alors! I must tell you about my weakness.  Every Spring, I'm brought to my knees by my kryptonite: tree pollen.

I know that millions of Americans suffer from allergies.  Seasonal allergies, hay fever, indoor allergies, food allergies.  For most, they are a minor irritation to everyday life.  To me, my battle with allergies has been a battle of epic proportions. I suffer with allergies on a daily basis, year round.  However, the Springtime brings me to my knees.

My journey with allergies started like most over 25 years ago: Ignorance.  As a child, I was diagnosed as allergic to dairy products.  One doctor told me that since I recently had the flu, my body mistakenly made antibodies to milk, too.  My childhood is filled with many colds, ear infections, eye infections and a lot of overall sickness.  I have permanent hearing loss in my right ear.  Did I ever see an ENT as a child? No.  Did I ever see an allergist as a child? No.  To be fair, I think the medical community didn't know that much about allergies back then.  Looking back, it is easy for me to see that I had problems with airborne allergies in addition to the dairy issues.

Around 18, I entered the next stage of learning: Ignore-ance.  I was told by an eye doctor while getting a contact eye exam that I suffered from allergies and my eye lids were inflamed.  Was I sure I didn't want to consider glasses?  And block my beautiful face?  Doc, you are crazy!  My senior year of high school, I had severe nose bleeds.  Talk about embarrassing!  Running from the classroom while blood is pouring everywhere.  This resulted in a trip to the doctor, prescription of Clarinex, and a recommendation ofwq1 saline rinse for the honker.  Did I ever fill the prescription more than once?  Of course not.  Later that year came sever tonsillitis. Solution: yank 'em out.  Did I see an allergist or consider regular medication? Nope, not me.

Then came a new locale and enlightenment.  In my mid twenties I moved around some.  I moved back home to Ohio for about a year then decided to try my luck in Tampa, Florida.  Sunshine, rain, heat and LOTS of tree pollen.  My second Spring in the Tampa area brought a level of misery that sent me running to my primary doctor for relief like a crack addict searching for a high.  Doc, you gotta give me something!!  This brought a prescription for an antihistamine, a nasal steroid and antihistamine eye drops.  I considered seeing an allergist but what would testing do?  Tell me which exact tree pollen made me sick?  What good would that do if I couldn't avoid the pollen?

But then something wonderful happened: I got pregnant!  Pregnancy brought a huge relief to my allergy symptoms.  Then, when my beautiful baby was not yet a year old, Spring brought me to my knees.  I broke down, saw an allergist and got tested.  I discovered that I was allergic to many things but severely allergic to tree pollen. (I could have told him that!) The doctor told me I had asthma.  "How could I have asthma and not know it, Doc?"  "Jessica," he said patiently, "wheezing is not normal."  He also informed me that I showed a food allergy: soy.  Since I outgrew my milk allergy and I didn't have any gastrointestinal symptoms, I completed ignored this fact.  (Ok, so a little ignore-ance can go a long way.) I also discovered there was a treatment that could allow me to be symptom and medication free.  But there was a catch.  I had to get weekly shots for at least 5 years and possibly for the rest of my life.  Who has that kind of time?  I had a baby, who I was nursing full time.  I worked a full time job.  The doctor's office was over 20 minutes from my home and I would have to wait 30 after the shot before I could leave the office. Also, it was expensive.  My insurance would only cover a portion of the costs.

When my daughter was two, I decided to but my money where my mouth was.  I had relocated my family to Jacksonville for my job.  I had another bad Spring.  I must mention that I am a property manager.  I support my family by managing large apartment complexes.  This is a job that requires many hours, usually more than the customary 40.  I have to frequently go outdoors and my property was covered in mature Oak Trees (my most severe allergy.)  I can't call in sick everyday for three months straight and I can't do my job well if I only stay indoors.  I was suffering in all areas of my life and I said ENOUGH!  I made an appointment and started allergy shot treatment.

Then another miracle: I got pregnant again.  Now Doc says I'm not that far into my treatment and they cannot continue to increase my dosage as scheduled.  I would have to stop the shots and stick with the medication treatment.  At this point, I was looking at around $200 per month in medication and doctor copays.

2011 is going to be a new year for me.  I'm moved my family back to Tampa for a new job.  I got retested for allergies in January.  I tested allergic to 41 out of 44 possible allergens.  In this: many food allergies: soy, wheat, dairy, corn and tomatoes. My new doctor remarked, "I'm surprised your not presenting sicker than you are."  "Its not Springtime yet, Doc." Truth be told, I began to realize that my "Normal" was relative.  Since I was so sick in the Spring, I didn't realize that I was living a restricted, sick existence year round.

My solutions: first of all a complete diet change.  I've gone Paleo.  More on this later and how it has completely changed my life! I also started allergy shots again.  I have eliminated other elements in my home that can contribute to dust mites and when my dog passed away last year, we have not sought a replacement.  The Doc says that it will be 6-12 months before I start to see a significant relief to my symptoms. So in other words: I'm still screwed this Spring.  Just last week, I made an emergency appointment with my allergist asking for more relief.  I am taking three antihistamines per day in addition to asthma medicine, nasal steroids, and optical antihistamines. Doc's answer, "You are pretty much maxed out on medication." I broke down and cried in her office. 

I am optimistic that allergy shot therapy will work for me. In the mean time, I just have to survive my kryptonite.

Who doesn't want to be Wonder Woman?

The thought to start a blog has slowly been seeping into my brain lately.  Of course, I had to argue with myself first.  How will you find the time? Does anyone want to listen to you rant? What will you write about? Blah, blah, blah. Boy, do I ask a lot of questions!

Anyway, back to my point here. Who doesn't want to be Wonder Woman?  When I was in preschool, we used to love playing games that involved popular TV shows at the time.  Dukes of Hazard was one of my favorites.  I, of course, always wanted to be Daisy.  I had her hair and Dad always wanted to name me Daisy.  What other qualifications did a girl need? Sharing Linda Carter's surname made me a shoo in for Wonder Woman. I must confess, almost thirty years later, I still fancy myself as Wonder Woman.

Not that I'm a super hero.  Not that I have super powers. Not that I'm perfect.  Just ask my husband, he'll tell you.  To me being Wonder Woman involves being the best I can be at everything I apply myself.  On a rational level, I know this is impossible.  Join me as I try to get it all right. But wait...Oops, I forgot my cape.