Hay fever - is there anything I can take while pregnant?

[roarfeckingroarr]

Antihistamine isn't allowed when pregnant / breastfeeding. I want to scratch out the pollen from my nose with wire wool it's so bad and has been for months. Is there anything effective you can take?

Nasal sprays.

I took loratidine. It was 14 years ago though, don't know if the advice has changed .
Good luck!

Full showers morning and night (as in hair washing) to rid the pollen
there’s allergy wipes nowadays too they are helpful

Flush out your nose - google nasal douche.

I can’t remember what it’s called now but I was prescribed an anti histamine for morning sickness when pregnant with my second. It began with P. It made me so dozy, it wasn’t actually safe because I also had a two year old and kept falling asleep in the day!

GP here. This isn't personal medical advice. Start with the general stuff like regular showers, vaseline under the nose etc.

next safest are nasal sprays. not true that antihistamines are banned, it's more nuanced than that. have a look at this www.medicinesinpregnancy.org/Medicine--pregnancy/Hay-fever/ and you can follow the links through to individual advice on antihistamines. Most doctors use this site to risk assess for meds in pregnancy.

but almost certainly a pharmacist won't sell them to you knowing that you are pregnant so wear a big coat to hide bump, get someone else to buy or buy online, if you've made your own risk assessment and are happy to take them!

Haymax spread all around your nose is quite good but other than that I've not much to suggest. Some/any antihistamines will probably be perfectly safe but they don't routinely test drugs like that on pregnant women so they don't have the data to refer to, to tell you it is safe.

What? You can take Piriton and Claritin when pregnant.

I am pregnant and taking loratadine and Beconase nasal spray - midwife has said both of these are fine. The advice seems to have changed since I was last pregnant two years ago when antihistamines seemed much more of a big no-no

You can take antihistamins when pregnant...ask your midwife

Loratadine is fine when pregnant, it's on the NHS website

Personally I was on 3 Promethazine (another antihistamine) for bad sickness for the first 20ish weeks of my pregnancy with DS and he was fine so I wouldn't be concerned at all about taking antihistamines were I to get pregnant again

Oh, I remember this. I took cetirizine, bit don't think it was really allowed, but I had to do something.

Have you created a pollen free haven in your bedroom? It is what I found most effective. Bedlinen that had been dried indoors, ditto bed clothes. Windows closed, shower before you enter the room, and no clothes in there that have been line dried. Rinse out your nose before you go in too. Same for your partner too.

I also found chamomile tea bags steeped in boiling water and cooled to fridge temp really lovely for my eyes. I would cleanse with the cool chamomile water too. Really soothing.
Hope you find some relief. No flowers emoji, don't want to make it worse!

I had horrendous hayfever with my second (it was my third trimester) but I was told over the counter meds were ok but a pharmacist would be reluctant to sell them to me. I had to explain that I fully understood what I was doing etc but I was sold a pack. ‘Baby’ is now perfectly normal 3 year old currently burying me in teddies!

I took Lorraine and used beconase - de said it was ok

Piriton is definitely fine- it was actually prescribed by the maternity consultant I was under. He also told me I could take Beconase or other nasal sprays.

Thank you!

Only 2 months so no bump at all. Things seemed much more strict in 2020 when I was last pregnant.