Allergies? Or Coronavirus??

This post is in no way intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new healthcare regimen, and never disregard medical advice or delay seeing help because of something you read on this website

Let me tell you about last weekend.  The skies were sunny.  The temperatures were summer-like. The Man of the House cut the grass for the first time this year.  The breezes were blowing.  The pollen was flying.  And me... I somehow managed to not take my allergy medication or use my daily asthma-control medicine on Friday night.  Which meant that I was sniffling, had a scratchy throat and was feeling a little tight chested

I'm not going to lie.  I. Was. Freaking. Out.  Even though every logical part of me knew it was allergies, that didn't stop the Coronavirus panicked portion of my brain from going on marathon trips to "what if" town.

No one wants to needlessly worry they may have Covid-19 if it's nothing more serious than spring allergies.  On the other hand, no one wants to brush off early symptoms of the virus as being "just allergies", potentially putting others at risk.

First of all, whether you think it's coronavirus, a cold, or allergies - you should already be following CDC guidelines to help reduce the spread of the illness - including social distancing, hand washing, and disinfecting commonly touched surfaces. Having said that...

How do we know whether our symptoms are allergies or Covid-19?

The biggest clue seems to be the presence of a fever (or lack thereof).  In most cases of the novel Coronavirus, there is a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or more.  Seasonal allergies typically don't cause a fever.

I found the following chart very helpful in easing my concerns about what I was experiencing.

 For example, along with some mild asthma symptoms, I had sneezing, sinus congestion, but no fever.  Clearly allergies!

A little Zyrtec, regularly using my asthma medication, and a day of rain to wash away some of the pollen had me feeling good as new.

If you are a allergy sufferer, take your allergy meds.  Make sureyour asthma is well controlled.  If you have symptoms that may be related to Covid-19, or if you have any doubts, talk with your health care provider or local department of health.

Stay home.  Stay safe.  Better days are coming.

Saturday Coffee: Maybe This Week We Should Have Tea with Honey

Grab a cup of coffee (or whatever your beverage of choice is right now)  and let's talk! 

Despite all of my efforts, I ended up catching whatever the Man of the House and the Male Offspring had last week.  I won't say that all the things I was doing to boost my immune system were a waste though.  While they were both sick for the better part of a week, my symptoms peaked and started feeling better after a couple of days.  And I don't think I ever felt as bad as they seemed to.  So... whether they had some minor flu that my shot helped protect me from, or all the Airborne and Vitamin C helped is unknown, or maybe it was just a nasty cold.  I'm just glad I didn't have it worse!

This flu year has been a bad one.  No doubt about it.  My own mother is still dealing with residual effects from an especially nasty case after 2 weeks!.  However, I also think that the media is doing a bang up job of scaring the daylights out of us and sharing all the very worst of the stories. 

I'm not surprised that emergency rooms are flooded.  I think people are so scared by what they're seeing on the TV every evening that they are rushing to the ER with the flu when they would usually go to their primary Dr.  It's important to be aware, take precautions like getting a flu shot, hand washing, and knowing when to seek medical treatment.  Just don't allow yourself to be controlled by fear.

The weather we've been having around here probably doesn't help much either.  One weekend it's cold and icy.  A few days later it's pouring rain.  And a few days after that it's 60 degrees.  Mother Nature is on a meteorological roller coaster!

I hope all of you are staying healthy.  If you should happen to get sick - I hope you have someone in your life like my wonderful hubby.  The Man of the House stopped on his way home from work to pick up ginger ale, cough drops, and some sherbet for me.  He's a keeper!

Have a great weekend and a wonderful week.


With Love,

Flu Paranoia

I admit it... all this media coverage about the flu outbreak is getting to me.

When I go to the gym CNN or FoxNews is always on the TVs.  And they are always ( I mean always) talking about the latest flu statistics.  With nothing else to do while on the treadmill than listen to this, my mind starts reeling off into the possibilities...

Anyone in here could have the flu and I wouldn't know it.

What if the last person on this treadmill had the flu and didn't wipe down the handles after they finished?

Yes, it's gotten bad enough hat I wipe down the machine before and after I use it. 

It's not just at the gym either. 

The other day I returned a movie to the RedBox and began worrying about who might have used that touch screen before I did.

Especially since the machine was right outside CVS.  I could just imagine sick people stopping to get all their flu survival med and a few movies.  That one had me scrambling around inside the car searching for some hand sanitizer.  Ugh...

And before you even get started - yes, I know that a flu vaccine is probably a good idea.  Especially with my level of paranoia.  Let's just say I have some personal issues with the flu shot dating back to the year they gave us shots at work and I still ended up in bed for a week with the flu virus.  It's my baggage to deal with.

In the mean time, I'm stocking up on hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, and vitamin C.