Posts by Kate Garcia2

smile said:so I have poor circulation
In the winter, by late afternoon or evening, my hands turn red, purple, blue, or who knows what else.

One doctor even told me I shouldn't smoke even if I were losing my mind, because I could end up having a stroke.

Does anyone have any info on this? Any experiences?

Could you describe the episode in more detail? How does it start, how does it spread, what symptoms follow, how long after being exposed to the cold does it happen, how long does it last, and does anything make it subside?😉

Smoking with poor circulation? 😲
Absolutely not!🙄

I wouldn't be so bold as to claim this is definitely a cat allergy. Why not just run some tests? 😉

Pregnancy isn't an illness, and it certainly shouldn't be treated as one.
However, it demands to be respected as a "different state"—an extraordinary condition, if you will. Doesn't the name itself imply that? 😉
It means you don't subject a pregnant doctor or nurse to childhood rashes during the first trimester—regardless of how much some women have pushed boundaries lately (a trend that, unfortunately, hasn't slowed down in the US)—nor do you expect a pregnant woman to be lifting heavy cargo 😠 (something I've witnessed firsthand)
As for episiotomies, it’s a grim reality, but I have to agree: most hospitals still perform them routinely even when they aren't medically necessary. Take a major hospital in Washington, D.C., for instance; they seem to do it every single time.
Some of the smaller clinics in the DC area don't.
But out here, they aren't performed as a matter of course.

Andrew Wells44 said:A few years back, I had a cat. After a while, I started dealing with a runny nose, coughing, and shortness of breath. Standard allergy tests and blood work all came back negative, so I couldn't prove I was actually allergic. Once the cat committed suicide by jumping out a window, my symptoms miraculously vanished.
About 2-3 months ago, I adopted two adorable kittens from a local shelter. Everything was fine at first, but now history is repeating itself. Itching in my nose and eyes, but the worst part is that for the last few days, I can barely breathe when I wake up in the morning. It feels like asthma or bronchitis. After I finish coughing—which can take up to 45 minutes—my breathing finally stabilizes. Then, the next morning, it starts all over again. I'm currently taking Zyrtec, but it hasn't helped at all.
I absolutely do not want to get rid of these kittens because they bring me so much joy, but how am I supposed to live like this?
Is there any way to manage this allergy without giving up my cats?😢
If anyone knows anything about this—ANYTHING—I am begging for an answer. I am open to homeopathy or any alternative remedies.
Thanks.🙂

An allergy to cat dander would have surfaced immediately due to prior sensitization, so that is highly unlikely. As for me, my morning symptoms are triggered centrally, combined with smoking too many cigarettes. Even feather pillows—to which I am allergic—are enough to trigger a full-blown asthma attack within five minutes.
Are you allergic to something? Likely. Though, I personally experience those classic inhalant allergy symptoms whenever someone gives me a hard time or work gets stressful; but then again, I'm just a neurotic, high-strung mess.😬
I would suggest you redo your testing rather than blindly popping Zyrtec; those drugs mostly just mask respiratory symptoms and aren't particularly potent, so they fail many people. Allegra worked for me, but don't just guess—get tested again.
If you truly are allergic to cats, though I doubt it, look into immunotherapy (where they expose you to gradually increasing doses of the allergen over time; they do this for ragweed at Spirit World, so they might offer it for other things). Keep the cats out of the bedroom, keep a bowl of water on the radiator to maintain humidity (personally, I keep my bedroom heat at a minimum and crack the window frequently during the day), and consider a humidifier, though those can be quite expensive.