Bad allergy weekend

Big apologies for not posting in so long.  I really suck at this!  I had a pretty bad allergy experience this weekend which I will explain below.  I also had a few dreams since my last post involving my allergies, but I can't remember them anymore other than in one many people were very curious about/concerned about me and blowing my nose.

The bad allergy weekend - Allison and I went with some friends to stay at a cabin and my allergies were horrible the whole time.  Something about the cabin (no idea what) set off my allergies badly, and outside ragweed and probably other things bothered me too.  I didn't want to ruin the weekend/make Allison leave so I suffered through it.  I couldn't really do much, and so people would check-up on me from time to time.  I had one of the longest sneezing fits I think I have ever had.  One of our friends was there for it and he said he thinks it was 147 sneezes long.  Anyway, I am home now but still feeling pretty allergically miserable.

 Here is a little Q+A:

 Q: YOu wrote a while ago that paper products bother you. So do you mean that you can't touch paper or it makes you sneeze? How do you avoid these things because they are everywhere? Is is a strong reaction? 
A: Touching things dosen't bother me.  Mostly its any paper dust I think makes my nose react.  Something about newsprint seems to set my allergies off a bit too.  Its strong enough to be noticable, but not as bad as say pollen or animal dander, etc.

Q: Now that you're years older since you started this blog, do you still have issues with colleagues making comments about your allergies? If so ,can you give some examples?
A: Not much of a problem, especially compared to HS and undergrad.  I'll more get comments at some public places - like all my sneezing is seen as disruptive at the movies, I'll get weird reactions on mass transit, etc.  At work people I think are pretty used to it.  Sometimes someone might say 'there she goes again'  or ' I wonder how long til she stops sneezing'  but that's about it.  
Q: You said before that someone you knew somehow sabotaged you/your allergies before you were going to meet up with a guy I was interested in, and your allergies got so bad that it screwed it all up. What happened that day, can you describe the date?
A: I might have made a prior blog post about it.  It was back in HS when I was still trying to like guys (I thought I was Bisexual for a time).  Someone who was jealous and wanted to date him I think somehow got pollen or something on my jacket without me knowing.  As the date when on I was sneezing a lot and my eyes got all watery and red, I kept having to wipe my nose and go off to the bathroom when my fits were going on.  It really interfered with the date and he seemed kind of turned off by it all.  We didn't go on a date again, although he never went out with the girl who did it to me as he had no interest in her - He didn't know anything about it and I didn't find out til after the fact anyway.

That is all I have for today.  I'll try to post a bit more often but its hard to remember to do.  I am always happy to chat online however.  Skype and google hangouts are the best ways to get in touch with me, or via e-mail.  sneezykate@hotmail.com should get you to me on any of those.

Thanks for sticking around to keep reading :)

Finally a Post and a bit of Q+A

Sorry it has been so long.  Things got crazy between the internship, and school happening again, etc.  As a quick summary for the internship - my allergies were making me miserable and I was having all sorts of problems and people having issues.  One of the people in charge realized how bad it was for me, so he was able to get me moved to something where I am not around animals at all, so I am doing better there now, and much less embarrassing.  Out of control allergies in a mask really sucks!

Ragweed season is still making me pretty miserable overall though.  I have a little bit of Q to A, so here we go:

Q:  Have you gotten any more information about what you will be doing? From what you do know about the job what do you think will be the biggest obstacle regarding your allergies?
A: I guess the above answered that. 

Q: Has your job started Kate? How has it been?
A: Also, see above, lol.

Q: I was just wondering how you cope when you start sneezing in a situation where it is difficult to leave - have you ever had a bad experience for example at a wedding, during an exam, on a plane etc?
A: Yes, its happened a number of times over the years.  Mainly I just have to sit there and let it happen.  Sometimes all the sneezing is disruptive to others, and I usually get very embarrassed.  It hasn't happened often, but occasionally for one reason or another I can't keep my snot totally under control and it grosses out other people.  That's the worst.

Q: I'm wondering, if maybe you're a little a too embarassed about your allergies? I don't doubt that some people are terrible and unreasonable and just don't behave like adults, but I feel like you're a little too sheepish by it? If you could say something like " I can't control it, you're being an ass." And act less embarrassed, people would mock you less? I almost feel like because you act so meek about it, people feel more like they can mock you for something you can't control.
A: Not really sure how to reply to this.  I'm embarrassed by them, that's just how it is.  And they ARE pretty embarrassing!  Its also hard to reply much when I'm in the middle of an allergy attack, etc.

Q: I"m wondering how your parents reacted to this, and if they were supportive? I know they don't have allergies, but it can't be easy to watch your happy, athletic, popular kid's life suddenly decline due to remarkably severe allergies. I'd imagine it depressed them, too.

A: They have been pretty ok about it.  Concerned and all that.  They took me to lots of doctors and lots of tests over the years. 


I hope the answers were interesting.  I want to note that with the new way yahoo chat is, its hard to tell if someone is online or not.  I am still using it, so feel free to say hi there.  I am also on skype (just type chat, no video or voice), so you can message me on there too also at sneezykate.  E-mail works too, but I tend to like chat better.  As always, please give me feedback and more questions!

Embarrassing week

I wanted to make a quick post as a check-in.  Allergies have been very bad.  Tree pollens are very high, and really affecting me.  I don't have any questions to answer, so please ask me some if you can.

A few embarrassing/gross things from this last week or so:  While walking down a crowded hallway, I had a sneezing fit come on very quickly while my hands were full carrying things and it was very snotty and people were grossed out and some were laughing.  I was dozing off in class (allergies keeping me from getting much sleep), and apparently my nose was dripping but I didn't realize cause I was half asleep and there was again laughter at me and people being grossed out.  I was working on a project with someone and my allergies were getting so bad I went into the bathroom and she came in after 20mins to check on me and I couldn't stop sneezing and she got worried I guess and other people came and wanted to call the ambulance and so this group of people were watching me sneeze and sneeze non-stop for so long. 

The last embarrassing thing was my doctors appointment.  He had 2 others in to look at me too.  Lots of observing my allergies and asking questions.  They wanted to look in my nose again and that is always problematic, so that was a long snotty embarrassing mess.

Sorry I am not going into too much detail.  It feels embarrassing to just write it out.  I'd probably be ok chatting about it one on one if you want to know more.

Ragweed sucks and Q+A

Sorry it has been so long since I posted, its just hard to get myself to write sometimes. 

Its ragweed season now and I am extremely allergic to it.  Most years I at least have some good days, but this year my allergies have been really bad constantly since ragweed started.  I haven't been able to do much at all, and I'll be a bit delayed in getting all my stuff done for school.  I haven't been out much but I tried to go to a BBQ yesterday, and again today for the holiday, but it ending up being a bad idea.  My allergies were just so intense, and I really embarrassed myself, and got a few mean comments.

Because my allergies have been so bad and I haven't been able to do much, I even more than usual would like to chat with anyone to break up the boredom.  Yahoo, Skype, or e-mail is best.  I am also trying to use FB chat a bit.

Here is some Q+A:

Q: Have you ever noticed if your allergies have led you to develop any habits or certain movements, actions that other people wouldn't do? Like in order to prevent embarrassment or to help yourself deal with allergies. 
A:  The big ones are carrying around lots of tissues, and running off to the bathroom often.  A few others:  sitting in the back of class/movie/etc, or near a door.  Sit often with a hand casually over my nose and mouth.  That's all I can think of right now.  There probably are others I just don't realize.

Q: You said that if necessary friends/family will explain to others about your allergies if you can't at the moment. What do they say, how do the people respond, and do you add anything on when you are later able?
A:  Usually just something like 'she has bad allergies'.  People usually don't say too much in response other than 'oh, ok'  sometimes someone might act concerned or feel sorry for me, or sometimes people will say 'are you sure she isn't sick?'.  I don't say anything.  I find it embarrassing to talk about my allergies at all face to face so I try not to do it at all.

Q: How did your allergies affect your job choice? If you didn't have them would have gone to a different job? How will they affect things after you get your phD?
A:  I really am not sure.  I never thought about it.  I always had an interest and skill in biology, so I probably would be doing something in the field no matter what.  Maybe without allergies I might have thought about being a vet or doing outdoor research.  I am not sure how it will affect things after I graduate, but it has been affecting things so far, so I bet it will keep affecting me.  I know I wont be able to do any thing directly with working with animals.  I hate when I have to wear a mask when my allergies are bothering me, but I'll just have to keep dealing with that.  Otherwise, I guess it will depend on the specific situation of any job offer/job I try to get.

Q: How often do you get an attack in front of people? What do people unfamiliar with you say about your symptoms?
A:  It happens often, much more than I'd like.  Most are kind of surprised, some show some concern, a few act grossed out and a few can be kinda rude.

Q: Have you ever sneezed on someone and what happened?
A:  Yes.  Luckily its only ever been someone I was dating, and maybe a really close friend a few times.  Not much happened.  Some have found it funny, or not a big deal.  One girl I dated was pretty mean about it, but that was a bad relationship in general.

Q: You've said that people (and roomates) have been either mean or uncaring/ not understanding in the past- can you go into more detail? What do people say usually when they see your allergies? And how do you respond when people are not helpful or are rude?
A: That first one is a long response because there have been a few of them and there is probably many details to talk about.  I'd be able to answer that better in a chat, as a back-and-forth chat helps me recall more details and to organize my thoughts better.  I'd be happy to have a chat with you about it.  The second question I kind of answered above in two other questions.  I usually don't respond at all, as it will just make me more embarrassed.  I'll just try to leave/end the situation as fast as I can.

As usual, I'd love feedback on my post/answers.  Thanks!

People reading my blog, and some Q+A

First, I wanted to say sorry I have not been online much in the last few weeks.  I was a bit busy with stuff, but the main reason is that my allergies have been horrible.  I haven't been able to sleep well, and I haven't been able to do much.  Also, I can't believe how snotty my nose has been getting, its out of control :(.  I hate being so congested and so snotty at the same time.

I wanted to post about something I found a bit weird.  Now, I know there are some people who 'like' sneezing, and I do not have an issue with that.  What is weird to me is that sometimes people say 'oh, you have to watch out for those people, they might harass you and be mean to you', etc.  I have to say, in my online experience, they have been some of the nicest people I have had conversations with.  I have no issue with what preferences people have, we are all weird in some way.  As long as you don't force something onto someone else/as long as they have a choice, I have no issues with anything people 'like'. 

I have to say that I have been treated pretty badly online at times by 'normal' people (actually its always been a guy).  Some guys have been very rude and insulting to me:  just meeting me online and making horrible assumptions or trying to order me to do stuff/tell them things, etc, and acting downright mean.  I block all those people right away.  I have never had a problem like that with someone who 'likes' sneezing, so I just wanted to get it out there that people in general shouldn't be pre-judged.

All that being said, I have always hopped that this blog would help me run into people who have allergies as bad as mine so that I have someone to chat to that really understands.  I ran into someone once, but she didn't have much interest in chatting, she just wanted me to join her in some kind of plan she had.

I do have a few questions to answer:

Q: Have you ever been at a restaurant and when the person comes to take your order are unable to tell them what you want because of sneezing?
A: I don't think that has ever happened.  If my allergies are that bad, I am probably not going to be out.  I have had times where I have had to finish a sneezing fit before I could give an order.

Q: Have you ever been told you're disrupting a class with allergies?
A: so many times. It was a bigger problem in high school.  In college I could sit near and exit and just leave most times I needed to.  I have actually had to take some tests in a different room than the rest of the class.  Besides being called disruptive, many times some students have laughed at me because of my sneezing fits, which just made t more embarrassing for me.  Sometimes the whole class would be focused on my sneezing fit...ugh!

Q: Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night from sneezing and do your allergies ever wake Allison up too?
A: It happens often when my allergies are bad.  I have woken her up too.  When my allergies are bad, that's why I tend to try to sleep in another room so I do not disturb her too much.

Q: You've said that some people are rude or not sympathetic at all- on the other hand, are people ever too pitying? What's that like?
A:   In some ways it might be worse, cause I can't be mad at them because they are trying to be nice.  The worst is when they try to be helpful but make things worse.  The main issue is that its much more attention than I want, and that's embarrassing.

As usual, please keep the questions coming, and feel free to IM or e-mail to say hi and chat.  I could use the company when I am like this.

Flying, new sneezing, and Q+A

(sorry!  I thought I posted this on Sat, but I discovered tonight that I forgot!)

Yay, I am posting for the second time this month!

Monday early morning I am flying back to Seattle for a week to be with my family.  The sucky part is that flying really messes with me cause of my congestion.  I get horrible sinus pain and pressure.  It takes about a day to recover from it.  It hurts as much as having a migraine, and makes me feel nauseous too.  It also makes my ears hurt a lot, and for a day or two I feel off-balance and like my ears are stuffed with cotton. 

Yesterday I discovered a new way of sneezing, lol.  I felt a sneeze fit coming and I was trying to hold back sneezing til I could get to my tissues, and I suddenly started sneezing these really quiet high-pitched sneezes.  I found I could make them happen when I need to sneeze.  The good thing is that they are quiet and they are not snotty at all.  The bad thing is that they just keep going with no stop to them until I let myself sneeze regularly


And I already have two questions, so here we go:

Q: What would you say your worst allergy symptom is...the congestion, sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes etc..?
A: It would have to be the sneezing.  Its just crazy how much sneezing I do, its what draws the most attention to my allergies and is the most disruptive, both to me trying to do stuff, and to other people.  It can be really tiring too.

Q: I am sure you have had many terrible allergy days but can you pin point one that was worse than all the rest, and can you tell us about it?
A: I can't think of one that was the worst vs. another very bad allergy day. I'd probably need a bit of prodding and real-time questioning to get that exact, but I can talk a bit about a bad day in general.  When I have a very bad allergy day, I wake up with a long sneezing fit and my eyes are all goopy.  I am just really out of it all day.  Its hard to focus, and I have so many long sneezing fits I am wiped out.  My congestion is really bad and I feel the pressure in my nose and all in my sinuses.  My ears can also feel clogged, and my nose is constantly runny and snotty.  My nose and eyes are all itchy and red, and my eyes r swollen and watery, and I just don't have the energy or ability to do really do anything.  Sorry if I am kinda vague, let me know if you have any follow-up questions.


Be sure to comment and ask questions and feel free to message or e-mail me!  Enjoy the holidays!

Sneezing room and an allergy dream

When I was in high school I used to always wish something I called a 'sneezing room' existed.  They are small rooms, sound-proof, with a small bench or chair, a few boxes of tissues and a sink.  This way I could go in there, not be disturbed when I am having an allergy attack or sneezing fit, and noone would see or hear it.

Last week I had a weird dream about my allergies.  My nose was really long, longer than my arm.  My nose was being very drippy, but I couldn't do much about it because my nose was too long.  Everyone was telling me that if I sneezed, it would stop.  I told them I didn't want to sneeze, but they kept doing things to make me start sneezing, then right as I was about to start sneezing they all told me not to sneeze and someone would grab and squeeze closed the end of my nose.  It was very uncomfortable for me, and then when the feeling of needing to sneeze went away, they person would let go of my nose.  Then when it started dripping again, they started to tell me to sneeze again, etc.  That cycle went on a few times before I woke up.

I had another allergy dream recently but I can't remember it.

Please be sure to send me questions to answer, and feel free to contact me to chat on e-mail or yahoo messenger, or possibly skype.

Not much to post/dream bits

Its been so long since I posted.  I don't know if many people read this anymore since I haven't been getting many comments or questions lately.

Ragweed has been starting up around here and I am severely allergic to it, so its making me pretty miserable

I recently had 2 bits of dreams that had to do with my allergies.

In one dream, people were trying to figure something out that was very important.  I figured it out but every time I tried to tell anyone I would start having a huge allergy attack and I was unable to communicate.  Once I would give up, the attack would stop, only to start up again if I tried telling someone what I knew.

In another, during part of a dream I was in a house and I was sneezing non-stop, and when I would go outside the sneezing would stop but my nose would start running/gushing like crazy.  If I went back in, the running would stop and the sneezing would start again.

That is all I have for today.  Let me know if you have any questions, and feel free to comment or drop me a line.

Quick post and one Q+A

Sorry its been a bit since I posted.  I was planning on posting about once/week, but I got really sick with pneumonia and I just am getting over it now.

My allergies haven't been bothering me too much lately.  Through Jan and usually most of Feb I usually do better since there isn't pollen to deal with, the heating systems no long have a bunch of dust sitting in them to get stirred up, and all the holiday scents and such are gone.  As long as I can avoid the other allergens that randomly pop up, I do ok for this time of year compared to the rest.

I just have one question to answer today:

Q: What symptom of your allergies do you find most difficult to deal with?
A: Sneezing is usually the worst.  Its the one that is the most obvious to people.  If I didn't sneeze all the time, it would be easier to deal with my allergies, and to hide it from others.  Its very interruptive and it can be really embarrassing at times, and it can get pretty tiring.

Thats it for today.  Please leave me comments and/or questions, and feel free to say hi on yahoo chat if I am on.

What my allergy attacks are like

I have been asked a number of times over the years what happens as a bad allergy attack comes on.  I never really was able to give a good answer in the moment like that because I am not being too self-reflecting when an allergy attack comes on, and I never thought much about it except in the moment someone asks me that question and I have nothing ready to say.  I figured here I can think about it and write it all out.

Often times I am experiencing allergies to one extent or another anyway but what I'm writing about is when I end up being around something that gives me bad allergy attacks, and my allergies haven't already bothering me that much. 

First I start to get this tingle/tickle deep in my nose, then I start to get a tickle in the back of my throat and my nose starts getting stuffy.  the tingling in my nose starts to spread and the stuffiness gets worse.  My nose and my eyes start to feel not itchy exactly but like they are going to be itchy.  The tingling/tickling and the stuffiness in my nose keeps getting worse and eventually I have my first sneezing fit.  Once I have my first sneezing fit, its like the floodgates open.  My nose starts to get runny, my sinuses start to get stuffy, my nose starts to get itchy, my eyes start to water and I have more sneezing fits.  If it keeps going, it all gets more and more and my eyes will also get itchy and red and my ears might start to clog up.

Ok, I think that's a pretty good explanation of what happens.  Let me know if that makes sense.

Weird Tangent:  I have recently read the The Hunger Games books, and although they were really cool, I just want to mention one thing that struck me as slightly weird.  In the 2nd book, at one point Katniss mentioned how she was crying and her nose was running and someone ripped some moss hanging off a tree to give her to blow her nose.  I read that and thought 'ewww!'  Can moss actually be used like that???

As usual, any questions for me to answer or if you want to chat, just message me.

Ragweed is trying to kill me :(

OMG the last few weeks have been the worst ever!  Ragweed just seemed to explode here!  I was already doing pretty badly and with my nose having become all over-sensitive to everything, its making it the worst its ever been.

I have been useless for even doing the most basic stuff and I have been having to call in sick so many days and I can barely get any work done from home.  I haven't been able to do anything enjoyable, and I am not sleeping well at all.  I am a total mess

Allison isn't doing that great either with ragweed.

Ugh, it took me forever just to write this up.  Sorry the post is so short.  As always, ask me anything you want and I'll try to reply in a new post.  I'd be happy for chat company too, if I am able to reply.

I can do it! (kinda)

I have never really been able to hold back my sneezes before.  Yesterday I figured out how to!  I can only do it for about 10 secs though, but it might be enough to help me get away from certain situations. 

Its not totally unnoticeable however.  I discovered that if I start to hitch before starting to sneeze if I close my mouth it stops for a sec, then the hitching starts again.  I can do it again a few times before the sneeze overwhelms it.  I can usually do it for 3 times, and I was able to do it 4 times once.

Early Dec update

Allergies been acting a bit weird lately.  When I wake up, my eyes are usually kinda goopy from allergies.  lately though they have been VERY goopy.  So much that some days my eyes are stuck closed because the goop kinda dries on my lashes and glues my eyelashes together I guess.  It makes dealing with my allergies when I wake up even more of a hassle. 

Another thing is my sneezing has been a bit different.  Instead of longer fits with breaks in between, lately alot of times I have been getting only a few sneezes but then maybe 1 min tops before sneezing again, and the whole time in between I feel right on the verge of sneezing.  This can go on for a long time.  I do get that sometimes but it's been happening alot lately.

Needing to sneeze

If you notice I am catching up on posting today :)  I had some half-finished posts and I figured I should get them done.

I think many people don't realize that I almost always have a need to sneeze.  It can vary in intensity, but it is always there to one level or another.  Its like a tingling or tickle deep in my nose and it spreads when I actually am going to start sneezing.  It can spread really slow or really fast or at almost any speed.   I don't like it super fast because then I am not ready for the fit.  Its best when it spreads slow enough so I can get ready for it and even get away by myself before the fit starts.

The intensity of the tickle depends on how bad my allergies are at the time.  On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being sneezing, I often am around a 5 or 6.  It can be a bit distracting sometimes but as I mentioned at least it helps me sometimes be able to keep track of when I am about to start sneezing.  If its in the winter and I am not around anything I am allergic to at all for a while, it gets as low as a 2.  When my allergies are really bad it can sometimes never go below a 9.

From what I have been told, most people sneeze and that feeling of needing to sneeze goes away for a while.  For me it doesn't.  No matter how much I sneeze, that feeling of needing to sneeze is still there.  It is usually lessened for a while after a fit at least.  Its like sneezing fits just give me partial relief.