Is hayfever really that bad?

[kungfudumpling]

DH gets hayfever. Every year he's a mess for the whole of June. Constant complaining, loud nose blowing, groaning noises and takes three showers a day. As a non-sufferer, I find it really hard to be sympathetic. In fact I give him no sympathy because it irritates me that he makes such a big fuss about it, especially because it doesn't seem to stop him playing golf (ie deliberately spending 4 hours surrounded by the thing he's allergic to).

Is hayfever really as bad as he makes out? AIBU not to be nicer to him?

I used to get it so bad in my twenties I was non functional. One time I remember I had to take a tablet, spray my nose, put in eye drops and take to my bed with two tissues up my nose.

I’m not so bad nowadays thankfully. My kids are currently really suffering though ☹️

It affects different people differently. My DH gets mild hay fever, not so bad he takes antihistamines but has a bit of a runny nose and sore eyes on a very high pollen day. I get horrible hayfever when I can be dosed up to the eyeballs and still have hugely swollen eyes, a running nose, inhibited breathing and hives throughout the summer.

when we had been going out about 18 months he made a passing remark that I didn't know how much he suffered from hay fever - there was a very long silence until he caught my eye and my look of utter fury and he has never made that mistake again.

And roll on a generation and our adult daughter has it far worse than me. She is on prescription drugs but even so she can be ok at the coast or up a mountain but normal suburban/urban or country settings and she can't stay outside for more than 10/15 minutes at a time. She is seeing a consultant atm and hopes that injections might sort it out.

I wheeze - sneeze - can’t breathe - have itchy bloodshot eyes - headaches - poor sleep
thats with 2 different high dose anti allergy meds
despite that I love the summer

My DS has it v bad. He's only 11 and this is his third year of it. It's awful. I feel so sorry for him. He's so weak, tired, itchy eyes, runny and blocked nose. Each year is getting worse for him. He's a swimmer and swimming makes it worse. It's miserable. He was so bad with it last week we thought he had bad COVID or flu. But it is literally 'just' his hayfever. 😟😟

He does need to take antihistamines in advance of symptoms, so before the usual start of his symptoms in June. It's harder to get on top of it once full blown symptoms have started. He should also try wearing sunglasses outside, if he doesn't wear glasses normally.

The golf is a non-issue really. Being outside anywhere, apart from the seaside or up high mountains, is pretty much the same. Parks, gardens, verges, fields all will be producing pollen. A short trimmed golf course might not even be the worst place for pollen.

It can be absolutely awful. I had a boyfriend years ago who regularly had to get up in the middle of the night and shower as that seemed to give him some respite to sleep a while.

I have an occasional sinus allergy to something we haven't quite nailed down yet as it's so random but when it comes on I get a taste of what hay fever can be like in terms of streaming eyes, constant sneezing, can't breathe; only usually for a few hours for me, I wouldn't be able to cope with it for days or even weeks at a time.

So to sum up, YABU.

It's miserable. Mine isn't as bad as it used to be but I spend most of Spring feeling g like I have the beginnings of a cold due to tree pollen then, in June when the grass pollen soars, feel like I've been sprayed with pepper spray.

I can't take antihistamines without intolerable side effects so rely on nasal steroids and cromoglycate eye drops for control.

I have had it bad in the past, so much so it's triggered asthma attacks and once being so blocked up I could barely swallow.

The worst part is - all this constant fighting off pollen totally drains your body of energy, I felt like a zombie and so tired out from it.

So I do have sympathy for sufferers, it's not just the itchiness and streaming, it can feel much worse.

My poor DS is 19 and has always suffered in May and June. Right in exam season. It ruins his early summer.
He is away camping (one of his favourite things to do) with his GF because they have finished uni and it's cheap at this time of year. He rang me today and can hardly open his eyes despite daily AH, nasal spray and eye drops.
It's hard to not do the things you love at the time of year its best tondo them. I have sympathy for the golf tbh.
He also would love to work outside as a garden designer or conservationist but thag won't really be an option for him. Awful awful condition.
I have had midl symptoms for the first time this year which have passed now which must have been tree related.

Fexofenadine - it’s the only way. I feel 90% normal on it. And I’m overjoyed you can now get it without prescription .

And as for still going out/golf/whatever - you sort of feel militant towards the bloody cause - a case of ‘you’ll not stop me!!’ - which isn’t a bad thing maybe? I don’t know. It’s hateful all round really.

My DD has it and I would wish it on anyone.
Blocked nose, itchy, runny, swollen eyes. Scratchy throat achey and tired all the time.
Be nicer.
The golf thing- it’s his choice I guess. Would you want to give up something you love just because it made you feel a bit rubbish? I still encourage DD to do the sport she loves. It’s good for her in other ways.

It's horrific. I first got it as a teenager (whilst I was doing my GCSEs of all times!) and it knocks me for six every year. It's so irritating. Feel like I want to itch my eyes out!! Awful. I take cetirizine every day from about Easter until September and still it's horrendous when it starts to wear off in the evenings.
My partner gets it really really bad and it can cause him quite severe asthma attacks. It's something that should be treated very seriously

Can I recommend medibee pollen capsules to any fellow sufferers. It's the only thing that worked for me. Ideally you take them all year round, but the year I started taking them was actually in the summer and the effect was startling, they improved my symptoms within days. They've quite literally changed my life.

Things I had tried prior

Antihistamines including prescription only.
Eye drops
Steroid nasal spray
Olbas oil, Vicks etc
Air filters
Deioniser
Windows closed at all times
Immediate clothes change when entering home and an immediate shower
Vaseline up the nose
In nose filters
Infra red nasal probes
Anti allergic bedding
A sheet over the bed only removed before bedtime to stop pollen settling
Special pollen removing washing liquid
Special wipes for my cat to remove pollen from his fur
Steroid cream for itchy skin
Special air freshener that is supposed to remove pollen from the atmosphere
A humidifier next to the bed to help with dry throat
Locally produced honey
Inhaler for wheezing

I'm sure there were more, my hayfever made me desperately ill. Medibee has pretty much fixed it. I haven't taken a single antihistamine yet this year and am having very very mild symptoms here and there but nothing much. I've even done some gardening tonight after work. That just wouldn't have been possible in the past.

It may not work for everyone but it's worth a try if you are struggling.

It’s an immune response, so it can vary in severity.
It really can make you feel like you have the flu (I’ve had this once or twice)

I had it unusually bad last year, it was relentlessly miserable.

It’s not like a cold , I use a nose spray ( on prescription ) use eye drops and also have antihistamines, also on prescription but they make me drowsy so only use as a last resort
it’s awful , but can be managed

Thank you.might try that for my son :)

It can't be that bad for your DH if he goes out golfing all day. Except for work and running the DC around, I've been inside my house with the windows closed and the air filter on maximum. I am frightened of going outside because I know I will feel even more ill than I do now.

I regularly fall asleep at work. A couple of years ago, I fell asleep while taking a sip of water and split the whole glass over my keyboard. My colleagues know to let me sleep for a few minutes so I can recover enough to drive home safely.

My eyelids crack and bleed. When it gets really bad, they swell and gum shut overnight and have to be coaxed open with wet cotton balls. At the same time, my nose is both streaming uncontrollably and so blocked that I have terrible headaches from the sinus pressure.

My lips are cracked and my throat is sore from snoring so hard at night. That's when I can breathe well enough to sleep, which is mostly because I use inhalers.

In short: yes, yes it really is that bad.

My eyes swell. Not the skin but my actual eyeballs swell. They stick out past my lids.

I sneeze until my nose bleeds.

I cough until I lose my voice.

My nose is either running or blocked meaning I can't breathe properly adding to the coughing and voice issues.

Mix all that with not sleeping due to all the above and yes it's fucking horrendous.

I've found an antihistamine that works though but others or pregnant ladies aren't as lucky.

All these symptoms remind me how I feel about summer in general. People who don't suffer with hayfever or heat are lucky!

Hayfever/urticaria/heat sufferer/hater here 👋

It's awful, particularly at the moment as I'm pregnant and can't take my usual meds. My DH cut the grass, came inside, and my eyes started streaming and I started sneezing and coughing. He had to put his clothes in the washer and shower and wash his hair before I could be in the same room as him. It also starts off my asthma.

It isn't even just the eyes, coughing and sneezing, it's also my skin! All my exposed skin is irritated and peeling. My scalp, around my eyes and in my eyebrows, nostrils, my mouth, chin. It's itchy as hell! I can't dry my clothes outside too.

And I'm by far not the worst. I know someone with such bad hayfever even someone cracking a window can lead to them fainting.

You can take more
Obviously under GP advice but I've taken 4 cetirizine a day since I was 12 for hives. Have you tried fexofenadine now it's OTC?

It can make you feel really shit. Fluey and achey etc.

Many people just get a snuffly eyes and itchy nose but for some it genuinely feels like being ill for months.

Does your DH have any autoimmune diseases or other issues that affect general immunity? If so, it can feel worse as his body may be fighting several things at once and it's draining in the kind of way that the first day of a cold is - achey and fatigued etc.

It's so annoying and itchy and sore round your eyes. But no idea why he's playing golf if it's that bad 😂

Fexofenadine is the only one that worked for me. I'm on it March - September when I'm not preggers 😂