DD newly allergic to beloved cat

[ThreeLocusts]

DD(19) started getting badly swollen eyes and stuffed nose in September. Eye infection and sinusitis followed. After much back and forth cat allergy has been confirmed.

We've had the cat for over 4 years and DD loves him, plays with him and strokes him often. She's got high functioning autism and ADD and needs the company as she struggles socially at university (she actually studies in a town down the road but comes back home many evenings).

She's been prescribed a 'nose douche' with sea salt and steroids to calm the sinusitis, situation to be reviewed in December.

Any advice on how to treat, manage or mitigate this allergy? It breaks my heart how she starts sneezing and rubbing her eyes on reaching the living room. Or do I need to tell DD to get used to her dorm?

Can’t she just take antihistamines?

I take fexofenadine, partly for mild hay-fever these days, but also for visiting my family, most of whom have cats! I do my best to keep the cats out of my room if I'm staying over.

Get some petal cleanse to wipe over the cat and look at a few air purifiers.

There is also now a food called live clear which reduces the allergy which is in the cats saliva.

Also get her to wash her hands after touching cat.

Allergy eye drops are good too.

Yep prescription strength Fexofenadine which is 180mg plus whatever cheap one helps them. I have numerous cats, a dog and copious house mites whilst being allergic to the lot of them.

Wait, why does the allergy co incide with her starting uni? That seems odd, no?
How was it diagnosed?

Lots of advice here - https://www.cats.org.uk/help-and-advice/caring-for-your-cat/cats-and-your-family/cats-and-allergies

I left for college at 18 and couldn’t tolerate the family cat when I came home at Christmas so just a four month break from regular exposure.

Having constant allergies is miserable and allergy tablets not without risk longterm.

keep Cat to certain rooms, DD not to put face near cat, wash hands after stroking, hard floors, sticky roller for chairs cat prefers, antihistamine, air filter for main rooms the cat hangs out in. Works ok for us.

I'm allergic to two dogs and a cat. I'm struggling even with fexo. Been looking at an air purifier for the sitting room which is the worst room for it.

Really? So what about the people with hayfever, who take antihistamines every day for 6m? I take up to 4 prescription stregth Fexofenadine every day for most of the year, plus I am allowed to take Piriton as well. Neither the allergy specialist nor the dermatologist have any concern regarding this. I also took Piriton continuously for several months while pregnant. My obstetrician suggested this, and was confident it was safe.

OP, has your dd tried antihistamines?

Just because Fexo is 'strongest' doesn't mean it will be the right one for you. It does nothing for my insect bite reaction, for example.

You can combine Piriton, or any of the first generation 'drowsy' antihistamines with any of the second generation 'one-a-day' antihistamines, but you should not take multiple first gen antihistamines together, nor multiple second gen antihistamines together. You can take up to 4 of the one-a-day antihistamines every day. Work your way up to 4 over a few days, rather than suddenly taking 4.

Funny you should say that because I used some piriton the other week in the morning and I think it worked better than fexo. I have different inhalers too 🙈

Same thing happened to a few people I know, including my dd. Its allergy desensitisation. You build up a tolerance to what it is you are allergic to by exposure - similar theory to live vaccine. My dd just takes antihistamines when she is home.

There are many very effective OTC antihistamines which will not make your DD drowsy. She should take them daily and be taught how to deep clean her room to ensure that dander build up is minimised.

That happened to me, too. Grew up with cats, all fine. Went away to uni, no cats for several weeks, came home for the hols and sneezing, itching, sore eyes, the lot.

To have an allergic reaction to something, you have to have been exposed to it at least once before.

Anyway - I take antihistamines. Cetitizine daily, but Piriton if it's a bad attack, because it works. Wash my hands well after stroking a cat. Do not rub my eyes (not always easy to avoid.) And eye bath can help if they're bad, or various eyedropper and sprays are available. Wash face if it's bad. Also nasal sprays. Vacuum, dust surfaces, don't let a cat on my bed. I get hayfever, too (always have), and if it's a bad hayfever day, I have to avoid the cats, because I will react worse than usual. Mostly, as long as I've got antihistamines and am good about washing hands etc, it's fine.

We had a break of 11 months between having cats (pre dog) it was hell and for 3 weeks I couldn’t lay down the rhinitis was so bad and we thought they would have to go back.

I haven’t learnt not to touch my eyes, I don’t let them rub around my neck as that is bad same if they touch me with my claws.

I used to take piriton nightly for my dust mites (by allergy clinic) but came off them as there are now links to increased dementia risk. It is a case of finding which ones work best for the individual.

Have you tried Pacagen? It's a spray that you spray around every 3 days, and eliminates 98% of cat allergen-inducing particles. It works brilliantly for us.

My son grew up with cats and dogs. Went away to university. I now make sure I've piriton in because he suffers.

Wow, thanks, I'd almost forgotten that I posted and now find all this advice! Plus confirmation that irregular exposure can have this effect.

@Aparecium @Iizzyb Tbh I'm not sure why the ENT doc said no more of the antihistamine, topical steroids instead. But I suspect it has to do with DD being rather vocal that they make her drowsy.

She's fussy about meds, unfortunately. If anyone has advice on what antihistamines are least likely to cause drowsiness (and not suspected of raising dementia risk...) or non-medication-based solutions, I'll be grateful.

My DH had an allergic reaction to our cat despite having cats when he was younger. We bought a very high quality air purifier which really helped him. As well as antihistamines to start with. He built a tolerance again and is fine now.

Not heard of that , thanks for sharing

Older antihistamines like chlorphenamine (Piriton) are more likely to make you drowsy and extended use might have an increased dementia risk. However,, I find them most effective for a bad attack, so do use them when that happens. (Also, a bad attack makes me tired anyway, so swings and roundabouts with the drowsiness.)

Next generation are things like cetirizine (e.g. Zirtek, Piriteze), which I take daily, or loratidine (Clarityn), which some people swear by, but I find ineffective. Mist pharmacies and supermarkets will do own-brand cetirizine and loratidine. Fexofenadine (Allevia) is now available without prescription, and again, some people find it great, but I didn't find it sufficiently different to justify the price difference. There's also acrivastine (Benedryl Allergy), which again, I don't find worth the price, though like fexofenadine, it does work.

There are also various eye drops and nasal sprays. You will need to experiment a bit to find what works for you, because different people find different ones work better or not.

I’ve been on Zyrtec 4 a day, every single day for 30 years now. No concerns
not a drowsy one and not linked to dementia

My friend adores her cat, has severe allergy, but takes antihistamines so she can keep her....

Honestly, fuck of with this bollocks.