I'm quite confident that my use of flonase for 3 yrs, OTC meds, singulair, and 14 yrs of allergy shots are longer cutting it for me.

So I've decided to make an appt. with a natureopathic MD b/c I'm desperate for a cure or some better relief.

I spoke with her on the phone (very nice and seems knowledgable) and she said the problem is that everyone is only treating symptoms and not the main cause (which could be food allergies/ I have none that I am aware of). So after we meet, she will order a blood test that tests for 95 different foods. She didnt go into detail but also mentioned acupuncture and possible herbs, maybe a colon cleanse.

She also told me allergy shots are really not the answer either.

I have my doubts, but any time my doc every gave me a new pill to take or spray to try I was so postive that it would work wonder for me, but I have been let down every time b/c they do nothing!

It only seems logical to find the root of the problem, but if money is in the medicine how do these ppl actually make a living? I've never actually met someone personally who tried this approach, but it seems everyone would rather pop a pill instead and still complain that it does nothing and live with that.

If anyone has ever tried alternative therapies I'd love to hear about them, but if not I'll tell you all about how I am doing in the next few weeks!

good luck. I've only been dealing with sinus infections for 4 months, and I already fell like I've been through hell. I've pretty much been sick for 3 out of the last 4 months. Food allergies?? That would be interesting. How could you develop allergies late in life?
Lately I've blamed an abcessed toothe for my infections, which is very possible. I got it pulled 3 days ago, more antibiotics, but still not completely well. New symptom came on the day I got my tooth pulled- sore throat. Dont know/can't tell if its related. I just feel poisined. If something comes up please post any info. Grapefruit seed extract, elderberry, and silver colloid are some homeopathic things you can try. Good luck, John

John,

I'm sorry to hear about those sinus infections. I told this natureopath that I was diagnosed with chronic left maxillary sinusitis -- "No," she remarked. You just don't have sinusitis unless due to some severe structural problem. Mine stems from allergies, and I'm dying to know what is causing them b/c I am a very healthy eater -- a bodybuilder, in fact!

Who are you seeing now for your sinusitis? I don't know much about your symptoms, but those sinus washes such as netipots and neil med's rinse (just use baking soda and salt) help rinse away the mucus. It may not cure the problem but neither do meds and you've read my take on them.

If you have allergies, as I do, I'm not sure I know enough about allergy shots to say give up on them. Many ppl think b/c you have allergies with an over-active immune system that that's a good thing...not at all. So the shots are supposed to help you build up a tolerance to the allergens. I've also heard that ppl with environmental alergies are more susceptible to food allergies which is very scary and not normal for the immune system at all. I've also been reading about NAET for food allergies, if you're concerned. I hear that food allergies can cause almost everything from simple stuffiness, sinusitis, to anaphalayxis. Most ppl dont know about food allergies IF they have them b/c the symptoms are mild -- and i guess they can always remain that way maybe depends on the person.

Nowadays it seems like u have to be your own doctor b/c none know yourself better than you do, obviously. There was someone who was have random eye swelling and throat swelling up, and the doc told him to take allergra! i also find it disturbing how alla of these allergy meds have potential 2 cause respiratory infections under "side effects." This cant be good to an already disturbed, out of whack immune system.

Sorry this has turned more into a rant than anything. But I will keep you posted if anything good comes out of this.

Stay Healthy!

Am surprised that you've been on the shots for 14 years! It's usually a 5 year regimen. What sort of doc are you going to? And you can develop allergies at any age...they come and go. If you have food allergies, then the injections won;t be helping you. I have a cousin who's allergic to corn and gets the usualy sinus issues whenever he eats it...not the stomach type problems most associate with food allergies. So it could be anything. If you're going to an ENT, I'd switch to an allergist or an inmmunologist (which is what I did).

yes 14 yrs...so you can imagine how ridiculous this seems! I have been going to an allergist since I was 8, and he retired about a year ago, so I am seeing a new allergist (who supposedly is very good b/c it took me 5 months to get an appt with him) He retested me for only a few things: dog cat mouse cockroach mites and pollen, whereas my allergist from back in the day tested me for like 50 things! I even inquired about food allergies, but he didnt say much. Im just so thrilled this natureopath wants to take a blood test, it's the first thing that's actually made sense to me.

My allergies usually get better throughout the day. Upon waking I am at my worst. So clogged I cant get the junk out even with my sinus rinse.

Last week I saw a NEW ENT; that's sright I had septoplasty before and max opened but from looking at my old xrays this new guy said he saw things the old ENT should have done HMMMMM? So I'm seeing him next week with the updated xrays!

See i feel like this naturopathy is my last hope b/c everything else has proved to do nothing, only very little for the symptoms. I feel no different taking my Alavert one day and not taking it the next. It's not normal to live life being allergic to common things like pollen, dogs etc...it may be common in this society but it's not normal at all. That really freaks me out to know that something is really messed with my body/immune system, and it really bothers me to know that my alergist never considered testing me for food allergies, considering how long ive been on shots.

i know that it's not hopeless b/c I really have faith in the natureopath and if all else fails I can always move b/c Maryland is so polluted and gross. Yeah I could always develop new allergies but maybe not if I get to the source of the problem.

thanks for listening.

Maryland is so polluted and gross.

What? I live in Maryland too, you think where we live has something to do with our sinus problems?

:confused: :eek:

HI
I have heard that the supplement quercetin is meant to be good for allergies as it helps the body not to react so much to the histamine. You should research it as it is a while ago that I investigated it.

Hara,

Yeah, I hear what your saying because the whole thing is quite frustrating and especially when dealing with it your whole life as I have. It is even more frustrating when the things that are supposed to help you provide little or no relief. I'm in the same boat as you regarding the shots and the medications, and I have steadily gotten worse of the years rather than better. Anithistamines do help to a degree, but the shots however seem to make me even more sensitive to the things they are injecting. I dread when my doses are raised because that means I have to be without my antihistamines for three days, and that is never a good thing because I am severly allergic to so many things. Lets just say I've freaked out the allergy nurses on more than one occasion with my reactions.

I am also allergic to many foods, and this being confirmed by a blood test. While most of my food allergies affect me intestinally; severe cramping, diarrhea, bloating, constipation, vomitting, some cause me to break out into hives, some cause the roof of my mouth to itch, and some cause problems with my ears. I wish I could say that food allergies were the cause of my environmental allergies but unfortunately they are not because after giving up the food that I am allergic to, I'm still a mess! I will say that there are certain concomitant foods that will react with whatever you're allergic to, and cause your symptoms to be worse than usual. For instance, I'm not allergic to melon or squash, but give them to me during ragweed season and I'm liable to go into anaphylactic shock. So in my opinion food does play a major role with allergies, but there is no way that I believe it to be the cause of my allergies. I believe my mom smoking when she was pregnant for me, and smoking for the whole time that I lived with her was a contributing factor to my crappy immune system. Really there is no other explaination because she has no allergies, and my dad has very few. The good thing about my immune system is that because it's so busy fighting off allergens 24/7, cold viruses rarely make their way in! LOL If I get sick once a year it's a miracle. There's really no payoff though because I deal with allergy symptoms day in and day out. Hey maybe someday they'll come up with a way to erase ones immune system and start over?

I wish you the best of luck in your quest for homeopathic relief. My mom always says I should eat local honey everyday because of the pollen factor, but I say, how is that going to help with my allergies to cats, dogs, dust, mold, trees and weeds? I've cometo the realization that there is just no cure for the immune system mess called allergies. After 33 years, thats my conclusion.

I'm not against Naturopaths, but she is flat out wrong saying you can only have sinusistis if you have structural problems. Yes, allergies are the root cause of your sinusitits, but severe out of control allergies can turn into infections. So definitely follow up with your new ENT.

As far as natural therapies, I've had accupuncture, and am thinking about getting it again. It didn't help so much with my allerges, (like making me allergy free) but it helped my sinuses tremendously. I used to get really bad headaches, and for 3 months afterwardsI didn't get any. Now it seems to be wearing off, but the headaches still aren't as bad as before. And my drainage improved.

I also tried some homeopathic medicines, again the one for allergies didn't seem to do much, but the one for sinus congestion totally unblocked my ears. But still, I have had little need to take it since my sinus surgery.

What? I live in Maryland too, you think where we live has something to do with our sinus problems?

:confused: :eek:

Who knows? One of my friends lived in White Marsh all of his life 9all of his life he had allergies/sinusitis, and he moved to Orlando last year and feels fine lol. Someone told me once if you live in MD you can live anywhere, and I believe that's true!

[QUOTE=sneezydiva]I'm not against Naturopaths, but she is flat out wrong saying you can only have sinusistis if you have structural problems.
[QUOTE]


Well I don't know what to think anymore....What makes one person allergic and one person not? Neither one of my parents have allergies. My mom just gets sinus headaches but I never get headaches...just the congestion PND and allergic symptoms, which is enough though.

They say give shots 5 years, well I gave them 14 lol maybe Im just an exception.

The more I reaserch allergy meds the more ticked off I get at their side effects and the fact that they are probably weakening our immune system, especially the whole flonase nasal spray family. Singulair seems to be the more logical b/c it blocks Leukocytes; of course, side effects can include URIs and much more. Why do allergy meds carry a risk for URIs if they are intended to help manage our symptoms? However, I'm so thankful for Neil Med sinus rinse!

Have you done any research on NAET? They have an entensive list of testimonals, but it sounds too good to be true. But at this point so does everything else.

You very well could have structural problems, that's why you should follow up with the new ENT regardless. But she is right about allergies playing a role, and possible food allergies. My ENT tested me for food allergies. And I found I was allergic to eggs and tomatoes, 2 foods I refused to eat as a kid. It's funny how as adults we lose touvh with our bodies. All I was saying is, that you can have sinsusitis without structural problems. I just found her statement strange.

You very well could have structural problems, that's why you should follow up with the new ENT regardless. But she is right about allergies playing a role, and possible food allergies. My ENT tested me for food allergies. And I found I was allergic to eggs and tomatoes, 2 foods I refused to eat as a kid. It's funny how as adults we lose touvh with our bodies. All I was saying is, that you can have sinsusitis without structural problems. I just found her statement strange.


I was floored too. Sorry I didnt want to sound like I meant you were wrong. I'm just trying to keep an open mind about everything. B/c I had a septoplasty and right maxillary opened, but this new ENT said from my old xrays that the old ent should have done more to help me breathe better, so im going to follow up with new xrays. I was looking at the darn things and I see the same white blob thing in my right maxiallry sinus as before AAh!

What type of sinus surgery did u have?

Oh that's okay, I know you didn't mean anything by it. And I didn't mean to say you shouldn't see the naturopath. despite her weird assertion, she has some good ideas. Just follow up with the ENT also.

I had functionl endoscopic sinus surgery and a turbinate reduction.

Good luck to you, I am in the same boat as you are , but for a different problem, contact dermatitis. I tried to find an MD that was also a Naturopath, to no avail. Please let us know how you are doing.

i had my appointment on friday. it seems she is trying to relate my allergies to something bigger, so she is doing a complete blood panel, metabolic panel and somehting for thyroid disorder. i think she is on to something with thyroid maybe b/c my allergist always feels my thyroid for a goiter (but u dont always have to have one right?) she told me birth control pill increases nasal inflammation, so I'll be going off that as well. 1000 mg vit C 3x a day and some natural nasal spray.

btw she wanted to take a food allergy blood test (tests 95 diff foods) but it costs 175!! (she said it goes to seattle and takes about three weeks) are there any other tests u can do that are a little more affordale??

That's actually a good price for that many foods tested. I only got about 2 dozen foods tested and it would've been $500 if insurance hadn't covered it.

I have investigated the NAET treatment and am seriously considering it. There is a doctor in my home town that recommends it. I have changed my mind twice because I am still so skeptical. I just wish I could talk to someone who has personally had it done successfully. I think the whole treatment (about 6 weeks) will cost a bout $1600.00, which would be well worth the money if it helps me. I have allergies and asthma. This early spring time weather we're having in the midwest is causing me to have symptoms already. My chest is tight and I have this little tickle in my throat all the time. We're moving to a new house in 2 weeks and the lot has cedars and oaks everywhere! I am currently taking Advair and Singular for asthma and Nasacort for nasal problems. I took allergy shots for 4 years and after being retested, they literally could not tell they helped me at all. Very frustating!
Cindy

That's actually a good price for that many foods tested. I only got about 2 dozen foods tested and it would've been $500 if insurance hadn't covered it.

sneezydiva,

did they ever test u for thyroid disorders? i thought i stumbled on one of your posts that said that....teh whole thyroid thing worries me, but it must be linked somehow b/c my allergist always feels my thyroid during my appts. i think she is testing me for free t3 and t4 and tsh.

I have investigated the NAET treatment and am seriously considering it. There is a doctor in my home town that recommends it. I have changed my mind twice because I am still so skeptical. I just wish I could talk to someone who has personally had it done successfully. I think the whole treatment (about 6 weeks) will cost a bout $1600.00, which would be well worth the money if it helps me. I have allergies and asthma. This early spring time weather we're having in the midwest is causing me to have symptoms already. My chest is tight and I have this little tickle in my throat all the time. We're moving to a new house in 2 weeks and the lot has cedars and oaks everywhere! I am currently taking Advair and Singular for asthma and Nasacort for nasal problems. I took allergy shots for 4 years and after being retested, they literally could not tell they helped me at all. Very frustating!
Cindy

I'm considering looking into that as well as soon as i find out everything with my blood work....i wish u so much success! maybe u dont hear about it b/c it actaully works rather than all of those meds which barely cover the symptoms!

sneezydiva,

did they ever test u for thyroid disorders? i thought i stumbled on one of your posts that said that....teh whole thyroid thing worries me, but it must be linked somehow b/c my allergist always feels my thyroid during my appts. i think she is testing me for free t3 and t4 and tsh.


Yes, and my results were optimal, even by the newer stricter standards that were recently adopted.

ive heard of quercitin helping....

ive heard of quercitin helping....

are u talking about the spray or pill?

I have gone through the NAET treatment and am very happy with the results! I did it a year and a half ago. I had severe year round allergies. The mornings were the worst time of day for me. I had to schedule my day around a half hour morning routine of sneezing, blowing my nose etc.. before my allergies would calm down enough to focus on anything else. I was taking OTC allergy meds every day for close to two years before finally inquiring about the NAET treatment.

I had heard many radio talk shows on it and finally looked into it as a last resort. It was a bit pricey. My first appointment consisted of about a half hour of testing me for different allergies. My second appointment was to give me the results and to decide if I wanted to continue on. At that time it was recomended that I stop eating carbohydrates for awhile while taking acidopholous. This was to control the overgrowth of yeast they found in my system which is thought to contribute to the allergies. This was the hardest part, but well worth it in the long run.

The average person goes for approximately 10 treatments. I believe I went for 11 treatments. Those with more severe allergies of course need more treatments. Each one needs to be approximately 4 days apart. I decided to go once a week. Each treatment consists of me holding the allergen in my hand (it was in a glass vile) while laying on my stomach on the table/bed. The therapist would push my feet without the allergen, then have me hold it and she'd push on my feet and then an accupuncture treatment was done on my spine. The whole thing lasted less than 5 minutes. The next week I would go in she would test me to be sure the allergy had cleared. If not, I would repeat that allergy treatment and if it did we would go on to the next. She treated the vitamin and nutrient difficiencies/allergies first, then went on to foods and other things like trees, dust, etc..

Since about a month into my treatments I have not needed to take allergy medicine once which has been heaven for me. I found it well worth the price because I no longer suffer from the constant sinus infections, sneezing, runny nose, etc.. I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about!

Thanks so much for all that information! I know a few things I am allergic to, but allergists don't usually check for food allergies, so who knows? I am allergic to dogs and trees and grass just to name a few. I usually have acute symptoms in the spring but more continuous chronic symptoms year round. I have asthma but my symptoms are mild persistant which means I don't have asthma attacks, but a continuous inflammation. I am moving to the country in a week and would love not to have to worry about the trees out there. I also have 3 dogs and will not part with them. I am really considering NAET. Thanks for your reply.
Cindy

the pill, i had no idea there was a spray

the pill, i had no idea there was a spray


Nasalcrom nosespray is actually synthetic quercetin. My allergy doctor said this would've have been the miracle cure for allergies, if they could've figured out how to get it to last more than 4 hours.

Have not read all of the posts, so hope this is not a repeat of what someone else has said. I am ecstatic to say that I am a poster child for natural therapies to treat allergic reactions. Was allergic to many foods, pollens, chemicals, fabrics, etc., and at one point a few years ago my asthma inhalers and steroid nasal spray quit working. I then discovered chiropractic care. My chiropractor is very well versed in treating allergies and cured my asthma which was due to allergies. He was using NAET which worked wonders for me. He now uses something similar though even better that I don't recall the name of. My accupuncturist has also been instrumental in clearing the last little bits of allergic reactions on a few things that weren't cleared 100% by the chiropractor. She didn't always even need to use needles. She would sometimes prescribe a flower essence or homeopathic drops. I don't know how any of the above worked, though they gave me my life back. Hope this is helpful. I am of the same mind set as your naturopath, that traditional medicine usually treats only the symptoms of allergies and not the underlying cause.

I have gone through the NAET treatment ...

I'm so glad to hear it has been successful. So far my doc has given me vit C and simalase, ordered blood tests which all have been normal; she also gave me stinging nettles w/ querectin and i still feel crappy as ever.

Alright, here is my take on the subject. I suggest that you get some information on doctors. If you have a friend who works in the healthcare industry, ask them if they know any good ENT doctors. I changed my doctor, and he immediately did a turbinate/septum reduction. Now I get 90% less sinus sinus infections and I can get by without ANY allergy meds. Of course, there is the occasional day (mind you, I took meds 2x a day before surgery) where I might take an Allegra D, but that is only when pollen counts are high.

Before the surgery I would go to a friend's house who has cats.. and within an hour I would not be able to use my nose to breathe at all. Now I could spend the night at a person's house who has cats and almost not notice that there are cats.

I would also try buying a filter/fan combo and leave that running all day long. You can spend the big bucks on a nice one, or rig one up yourself. All you need is a box fan and a filter (hepa and electrostatic work great).

Final point is that you NEED to get your nose worked on. It will make all the difference in the world! The healing process can get pretty gruesome though.