Tag Archives: advice

What Are Your Respirator Mask Recommendations?

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I’ve concluded I need a reusable respirator mask that I’ll wear more often.

The allergist that had been dealing with me (I’ve stopped seeing him for various reasons) told me to get an N95 mask to wear whenever I’m around airborne allergens – like when I’m cleaning, gardening, etc. He wasn’t entirely clear how often I was supposed to be wearing it, but it’s supposed to help reduce my permanent rhinitis and my eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) symptoms.

My recent throat infection horribly flared up my EoE and made me realize I need something to reduce infections and filter allergens… on a regular basis. There was also a wildfire less than ten miles from my house, at the tale end of my infection, and it really brought the point home. My EoE is still completely flared up.

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Supplements Carry Risks Too

Don’t get me wrong, I am not just blindly wanting you to follow “Big Pharma” down the rabbit hole of taking more drugs and needing drugs to counteract the side effects of those drugs. Actually, I am all for all sorts of different combinations of lifestyles. If you love taking pharmaceuticals, then go take your pharmaceuticals and I’m so happy that they make you feel better! If you love taking supplements, then please go take your supplements and enjoy your life! If you love combining the two, then go do that too and enjoy feeling better! Woot for feeling better and managing our symptoms the best way we know how!!!

Anyway. Now that that is over, here we go. The point of the post 😛

Some people don’t realize that supplements can carry just as many risks as pharmaceuticals can. In fact, I would argue that, because of the state of “common knowledge” they are more dangerous. Why do I say that? Simply because people read an “all natural” label and are willing to pop it into their mouth without learning anything else about it… leading to potentially deadly consequences.

Wait, did I just say deadly?

Yes, yes I did. Continue reading →

Day 3 of Digestive Distress and I am so Far Out of My Element – Please Help!

When I was trying to determine what “severe diarrhea” was defined as, medically, I couldn’t find anything. Seeing as how I have suffered from the exact opposite problem my whole life, I don’t exactly have a reference point. The Linzess says to stop taking it and contact your doctor if you have severe diarrhea. It’s to treat IBS-C. I see problems with this, in that most people that need medical intervention for constipation probably don’t really understand what qualifies. However, while I was trying to find a definition, I did find that you should seek medical help for diarrhea lasting for more than 3 days in an adult.

Today, I woke up completely exhausted, and decided to skip classes to recover my strength (my stomach didn’t hurt at 6am). Then I woke up again at 11a, and realized that my stomach hurt again and I was still exhausted. Sadly, I seem to once again have very watery diarrhea. Tuesday, when I had the watery diarrhea, was a Linzess day, and so is today. But I seemed to have adjusted to the Linzess and it wasn’t causing any problems for a week or two so I don’t know if that’s causing it or if it’s a coincidence? Ugh.

Tuesday, I had one non-watery diarrhea episode, and three watery diarrhea episodes. Yesterday, I had one non-watery diarrhea episode but could barely eat anything at all so nothing was in my system to pass through my intestines anyway. Today I have so far had one and I can tell in about two minutes I will need to rush to the restroom again for another episode of watery diarrhea. Does this count as three days? Why is medical intervention necessary after that long? I don’t have any signs of dehydration above anything that is normal for me (my lips are chapped, but they are almost always chapped; my skin isn’t dry and it is still completely elastic). I’m doing my best to drink fluids, but my belly is upset so I can’t do it too quickly or I feel like I’ll vomit. I see my GI doc on Wednesday. I just need to know  if I should be calling my doc tomorrow morning or if I might be okay over the weekend. My Urgent Care centers can give IVs, so I don’t think I’ll have to end up in the ER if i get dehydrated. I’m just worried and very confused. Any advice?

How to Clean with a Moderately Severe Dust Allergy

I’m allergic to dust. Yes, you read that properly, dust. Everyday house dust. (Read post 1 and 2 about this allergy.) As you can imagine, this makes things very complicated. Doctor’s orders say I’m supposed to stay away from dust, especially airborne dust, which also means keeping my house as dust free as possible. Do you see the catch?

Cleaning is very complicated due to the dust issues. First of all, let me emphasize the importance of good air filters if you have a dust allergy or sensitivity. Air filters are CRUCIAL!!! They are also necessary when cleaning. airfilterI have two different types of air filters, three filter units total. I have two Winix True HEPA filters, and love them. After we got them, we cleaned thoroughly, and it took significantly less time for a dust layer to accumulate. They also automatically sense air quality and will adjust the fan speed as necessary (if on “auto”) and can be put on a quiet “sleep” mode for overnight. We have one Winix on the main level of our house, and one in our bedroom. We also have a small Holmes HEPA mini-tower air purifier (I bought it from Target about 5 years ago). We buy the best filters we can for the Holmes, and it runs 24/7 in the office. All the air filters run 24/7. I’m not getting anything for these links, but these are the ones we use and I definitely recommend the Winix ones.

How to Clean and Dust Your House When You’re Allergic to House Dust

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