Friend's "almost CV" symptoms turned out to be hay fever

[MirandaGoshawk]

I'm posting this in case it helps anyone. Friend's symptoms were headache, runny nose, sore throat, congested face, not sleeping, but crucially, no raised temperature. He phoned a doctor friend, who asked him a few questions and suggested that he might have hay fever. After taking antihistamine tablets two nights running he is sleeping well and his symptoms have gone.

Yes! I’m the same. Felt dreadful, never had hay fever before. Thought I definitely had CV. Nope. Hay fever.

We self isolated for 2 weeks on the back of DS’s hay fever.

We were 99% sure it was just a hay fever cough as only happened mornings and evenings, but obviously couldn’t be 100% sure without testing him so self isolated anyway.

A few days out of isolation and the itchy eyes and sneezing started and within hours of starting his antihistamine, his cough magically vanished too

He had no cough or fever? So neither of the main symptoms?

I thought I was getting CV as well - awful headache, sore throat, exhausted, sore eyes - before I cottoned on that it was hay fever. Hay fever seems particularly bad and early this year.

Mild wet winter and early warm spell at the end of March have been perfect conditions for tree pollen.
Watch the weather forecast for levels. They have been high for the last week.
Also the rapeseed is early this year.

They aren't the CV symptoms - and it's not sensible to self diagnose in order to avoid isolating.

@CodenameVillanelle I knew someone would come on here and say something like that. Speaking for myself, we are all isolating - that is, my family, neighbours and friends, AFAIK. All I wanted to do was add a bit of info into the pot in case it helped someone. It helped my friend, and other people have come to the same conclusion (see the first few posts above).

I appreciated it! Even though I had already worked it out. If I hadn’t it would have stopped me panicking as I was convinced I was very unwell. Thank you.

Thank you, Down.

Cherry, not everyone with CV19 gets all of the symptoms. There have been a couple of high profile cases where people have been tested and found to have had it without realising. But I did say "almost" and point out that he has no temperature, which seems to be a requirement for CV19. But he was wondering, like all of us do probably, if he has it. No harm done trying hayfever tabs if you've had hayfever in the past and you read the info in the pack properly before taking them.

Tree pollen is particularly high just now and I am another who thought I was coming down with it before I realised what it was (it started at the back of a sinus infection) as soon as I realised I started my anti histomines & started taking beconase hayfever spray 8-1. This is the first morning I have got up without a headache,& wheeze. I get hayfever every year and I was so focused on C19 I didn't even think that was what was causing it. Your friend is not alone. P.s to pp saying cough /fever only symptoms. It's not they are the most common ones but not the only ones they will test on