ORLANDO, Fla. – My eyes are actually itching as I’m beginning to type this article for you all, no kidding! My right nostril is clogged and I’ve sneezed at least half a dozen times since my alarm went off around 3:30 this morning.
Allergies are going off the rails in Central Florida, and if I’m feeling it, I’m sure you are too.
In the last couple days, have you woken up with absurd sinus pressure, watery eyes, a scratchy throat? Or all of the above? It has a lot to do with the weather we’re experiencing and the record we’re going to try to set later today and through the weekend.
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Typically we associate runny noses and coughs with the rapid changes in weather we just experienced. Going from freezing cold to spring-like warm can do a number on our immune systems.
In this case, it has nothing to do with the cold! Unless... maybe you want to take a trip to the doctor’s because you’ve got some other symptoms to go along with what you thought were allergies... oops!
For a lot of us however, we’re reacting to Florida trying to move quickly into a springtime pattern in the midst of winter! Warmth has blanketed the peninsula and humidity has also shot right back up to its traditional levels now that our arctic invasion has fully moved on.
As a result, trees are trying to bounce back from the cold, as well as other vegetation. If you notice, we haven’t been the windiest or the rainiest either outside, so pollen is accumulating everywhere we look. It accumulates on our cars, in our cars, in our offices, on our clothes, on our hair, even if we can’t see it. We’re breathing it in the moment we step outside, and maybe even indoors too if you don’t have the greatest air-conditioning system at your workplace.
The pollen count is HIGH right now in the greater Orlando area. The air quality ratings across the board are also very poor. So, if you were suffering from flu-like symptoms or a genuine cold as we recovered from our wintry spree, the allergens in the air are not doing you any favors. This is going to stick around for a bit too, so let’s look at a few ways to combat all these frustrating sensations.
TAKE FREQUENT SHOWERS! I use all caps here, because the morning and evening shower in this case might not cut it if your allergies are severe. Peak pollen hours typically occur around the lunch hour and into the early afternoon, when none of us are quite getting in the door to clean up and relax for the day. We’re usually at our busiest! Most of us anyway.
Perhaps look at a pocket saline spray? Something to irrigate your nostrils with routinely alongside simply blowing your nose. Supplement with both of them, as blowing your nose won’t quite get rid of the allergens that are already causing your sinuses to feel off the fritz.
Believe it or not, simply wearing sunglasses can help tremendously. This will help to keep the itchy and watery eyes at bay.
Switch the air-conditioning mode in your car to fully recirculated. If you look down at your dash, you should see a symbol of your car and an arrow circling the inside. If this light is OFF when blowing your air conditioning, you’re pulling in air from outside and as a result blowing whatever pollutants or allergens right inside. Once you select this, your cabin air filter kicks in and you can keep a circulation of fresh air inside the cabin with you.
Which goes right into my next pointer of replacing air filters as frequently as you can. Now, don’t go and replace them daily or every other day. But if you haven’t checked your home air filter or cabin air filter in your vehicle in... you can’t even remember, now is a great time to get that looked at.
Consider changing outfits if you have a period of time spent indoors and have a change of clothes on you.
Last but certainly not least, you can always reach for an over-the-counter allergy medicine. I wanted to leave this for last, as this is the end all be all if you really cannot overcome the reactions you have during your day to day. There are plenty more options, but if I listed them all here we’d be reading for the rest of the afternoon!
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