I’m temporarily fostering a cat, I’m allergic but not like deadly allergic. He didn’t bother me at all the first few weeks but now it’s starting to bother me. It’s mainly in the morning, my eyes are puffy , I’m congested, and I have a cough. It usually goes away by midday. I wash my sheets and pillow case every 4-5 days and am constantly cleaning as well as spraying him w anti-dander spray . I live in a small studio so it’s Impossible to keep him out of my bedroom . Any tips? I hate allergy meds because they make me so tired but I hate looking like an alien lol
Anonymous2021-04-05T06:46:07Z
Try smaller doses of Allegra, Claraten or others, like half child’s dose, see how you react to that.
I had to do the Claritin in child’s chewable half doses so I didn’t get overly dry or react to the medications.
All I can suggest is putting a fan in the window drawing in fresh air into your sleeping area if you can. Vaccine and clean by wiping down surfaces daily, fabreeze allergen helped me out a lot.
There are two types of antihistamine or allergy medications, first generation and second generation. The first generation (Benadryl) are the ones that make you drowsy and the second generation (Allegra, Claritin, Zyrtec, etc.) are non-drowsy. I would recommend taking one of the second generation allergy medications in the morning when you get up, some people have a preference for one that works better than others for them. You could try leaving your pillow in the closet or somewhere the cat can't get to and then pulling it out when you go to bed. You can also cover your comforter with a blanket that the cat can go on during the day and then pulling it off at nighttime. Its hard to avoid their hair and dandruff but anyway you can prevent it from getting near your face should help! Washing your face with cold water once you get up could also help with the puffy eyes and wash off any hair or dander that gets on your face during the night.
Most of the newer types of allergy meds do not cause drowsiness. I take generic Zyrtec or on really bad days, Allegra. You might also try Flonase or Nasacort spray. It often takes a combo of different allergy meds.