Dharma Wheel

They're really bad this year in many places. How are you all coping?

My approach to allergies has always been to pretend that they’re not there, or that it is just some natural phenomena that I don’t need to worry about for my own body. I know some people are really sensitive, but all my life I have just developed some kind of psychological shield to them. I try not to worry too much about them. Jinx!



But I certainly hope you aren’t having too hard of a time. If anyone has any knowledgeable Buddhist remedies, or remedies of any kind maybe they could share them. There’s traditional western medicine, and then there’s the deep Buddhist stuff that is wholesome, and also the whole world of natural medicines, so there is a lot to choose from. I hope someone can give you some good advice. If the allergies are tough on you, I hope you get through them quickly.

For me allergies have always been an out of sight out of mind thing, but my dad used to get them, so I have a deep empathy for those who have them. May all be well with you.



Protect us from allergies Chenrezig!

Om Mani Padme Hum!

Könchok Chödrak wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 4:41 pm My approach to allergies has always been to pretend that they’re not there, or that it is just some natural phenomena that I don’t need to worry about for my own body. I know some people are really sensitive, but all my life I have just developed some kind of psychological shield to them. I try not to worry too much about them. Jinx!



But I certainly hope you aren’t having too hard of a time. If anyone has any knowledgeable Buddhist remedies, or remedies of any kind maybe they could share them. There’s traditional western medicine, and then there’s the deep Buddhist stuff that is wholesome, and also the whole world of natural medicines, so there is a lot to choose from. I hope someone can give you some good advice. If the allergies are tough on you, I hope you get through them quickly.

For me allergies have always been an out of sight out of mind thing, but my dad used to get them, so I have a deep empathy for those who have them. May all be well with you.



Protect us from allergies Chenrezig!

Om Mani Padme Hum!

Unfortunately some people get them severe enough that ignoring them is not an option. For example, they can lead to an increase of frequency of asthma attacks, which can require intervention.

I do have bad symptoms from time to time.

Neti pot is my number one solution, sometimes I use the nosedrops found here in it: https://upyournosedrops.com/. If they get bad enough I take an OTC, but most of the time they are just an annoyance.

That said, I've had problems with my ears over the years and I'm wondering if some of the time it was not due to ignoring my allergies.

So now, when I start consistently sneezing or having a runny nose from them, I try to actively do something about it.

Yeah ignoring physical symptoms of an ailment isn’t a good idea. We must always find ways to heal and take care of ourselves. I hope anyone suffering from allergies gets through it quickly. Does anyone know anyone know any Tibetan remedies for allergies? Also, what is the climate like in Tibet, is it much of an issue there?

I have had some allergy-related tinnitus. This allergy season seems worse for a lot of people.

Johnny Dangerous wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:42 pm Neti pot is my number one solution, sometimes I use the nosedrops found here in it: https://upyournosedrops.com/. If they get bad enough I take an OTC, but most of the time they are just an annoyance.

That said, I've had problems with my ears over the years and I'm wondering if some of the time it was not due to ignoring my allergies.

So now, when I start consistently sneezing or having a runny nose from them, I try to actively do something about it.

I've had allergic reactions to dust/pollen/whatever since I was kid and they have made me sneeze uncontrollably. That's uncomfortable and distracting, etc, but not a problem for anyone around me. The sneezing also sets up ideal conditions for sinus infections which promptly take advantage - and then I can pass them on to others.
Learning how to deal with it has been a slow process. These days I stop the allergic reaction as fast as I can by taking over-the-counter cold tablets to dry it up and (optionally) an antihistamine tablet to settle the allergy. That avoids the inflamed and blocked sinuses, so I avoid the infections (well, nearly always).
I still sneeze more than most people but I don't get sick very often and I count that as a win!

Oh, and this "problems with ears" thing ... blocked sinuses have caused some pain in my ears, and I think they are behind some episodes of vertigo too but I'm not so sure about that one - vertigo has been so rare it's hard to know.


Kim

Kim O'Hara wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 11:32 pm

Johnny Dangerous wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:42 pm Neti pot is my number one solution, sometimes I use the nosedrops found here in it: https://upyournosedrops.com/. If they get bad enough I take an OTC, but most of the time they are just an annoyance.

That said, I've had problems with my ears over the years and I'm wondering if some of the time it was not due to ignoring my allergies.

So now, when I start consistently sneezing or having a runny nose from them, I try to actively do something about it.

I've had allergic reactions to dust/pollen/whatever since I was kid and they have made me sneeze uncontrollably. That's uncomfortable and distracting, etc, but not a problem for anyone around me. The sneezing also sets up ideal conditions for sinus infections which promptly take advantage - and then I can pass them on to others.
Learning how to deal with it has been a slow process. These days I stop the allergic reaction as fast as I can by taking over-the-counter cold tablets to dry it up and (optionally) an antihistamine tablet to settle the allergy. That avoids the inflamed and blocked sinuses, so I avoid the infections (well, nearly always).
I still sneeze more than most people but I don't get sick very often and I count that as a win!


Kim

Growing up I had so many sinus infections that they refused to give me antibiotics any more, and gave me a big syringe and some saline solution and told me to go to it. This was long before neti pots were a thing in the US. Since then, I've noticed that almost every ENT i've seen recommends them for sinus and allergy issues. I take the generic for zyrtec or allegra when needed and it helps too.

I feel like I could have avoided a lot of sinus and ear problems if I had been more diligent about care in the past.

I have eustachian tube disorder and significant scarring on the eardrums from perforations, both from when I was young and as an adult.

Amazingly, no doctor ever made a real connection to my allergies, and somehow I didn't think about it much either.

I've had very serious allergies for the last 15 or so years - to things like dust, cat dander, various pollens.

Obviously there is a scale from mild to life threatening/anaphylaxis - anything beyond mild is not possible to ignore; unless you can also ignore things like broken arms and flu.

So: you need a proper management plan. Get tested so you know for sure what you are definitely allergic to. Then, avoid this as much as possible. Awareness is key: you have to see what the thing is and what your body does when it encounters it.

Then: gut health. I think we're increasingly seeing the connections between autoimmune disorders and gut. Look into this!

avatamsaka3 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 11:13 pm I have had some allergy-related tinnitus. This allergy season seems worse for a lot of people.

It's amazing how many things can cause tinnitus. Jaw clenching is supposedly why I have (constant) tinnitus. I thought my doctor was bonkers at the time until learning more about TMD which I definitely have and all the pieces fell together.

Hazel wrote: ↑Wed Apr 07, 2021 1:50 am

avatamsaka3 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 06, 2021 11:13 pm I have had some allergy-related tinnitus. This allergy season seems worse for a lot of people.

It's amazing how many things can cause tinnitus. Jaw clenching is supposedly why I have (constant) tinnitus. I thought my doctor was bonkers at the time until learning more about TMD which I definitely have and all the pieces fell together.

When I was a massage therapist I was certified in intra-oral TMJD massage. I thought it was possibly nonsense, but then when I had my worst eustachian tubes issues it really helped both with pain and tinnitus. There are probably videos out there, I haven't looked. It's really only like four main muscles, two you can only reach inside.

I have eustachian tube disorder and significant scarring on the eardrums

Does this feel like a consistent "full" feeling? I do get that sometimes.

avatamsaka3 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 07, 2021 5:10 am

I have eustachian tube disorder and significant scarring on the eardrums

Does this feel like a consistent "full" feeling? I do get that sometimes.

It's something that I guess some ENT's won't even diagnose, basically it's constant popping, pressure is always off, like one ear is stuffed, etc. I have a good ENT now and they did a pressure test, I have negative pressure I guess, which is an indicator. It's pretty painful when it's active, like significant ear pain, and can cause dizziness.

In my case I had constant ear infections as a kid, tubes in my ears, and perforations as adult, so they are never normal.

I was born with over 120 environmental allergies. Childhood was brutal. Spent plenty of time in oxygen tents and getting allergy shots.

Pretty much nominal these days comparatively. Zyrtec is pretty much a silver bullet during times of the season when it gets bad. Don't find myself needing it all that often.

Pretty amazing how things eventually just changed.

basically it's constant popping, pressure is always off, like one ear is stuffed, etc.

I might have this then.

tkp67 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 07, 2021 1:33 pm I was born with over 120 environmental allergies. Childhood was brutal. Spent plenty of time in oxygen tents and getting allergy shots.

Pretty much nominal these days comparatively. Zyrtec is pretty much a silver bullet during times of the season when it gets bad. Don't find myself needing it all that often.

Pretty amazing how things eventually just changed.

Wow, that's cool. What were the primary causal factors in this transformation?

tobes wrote: ↑Thu Apr 08, 2021 2:01 am

tkp67 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 07, 2021 1:33 pm I was born with over 120 environmental allergies. Childhood was brutal. Spent plenty of time in oxygen tents and getting allergy shots.

Pretty much nominal these days comparatively. Zyrtec is pretty much a silver bullet during times of the season when it gets bad. Don't find myself needing it all that often.

Pretty amazing how things eventually just changed.

Wow, that's cool. What were the primary causal factors in this transformation?

It seems surreal even though it happened over decades. For many years I just suffered it. I don't recall having a positive outlook. At some point I decided I would rather die than live a horribly cloistered life. So as fits my personality I took risks many of which simply exposed me but I also became very athletic. I think a combination of treatment, development, a number of life style changes and long term adaptation to these conditions in lieu of avoiding them acted on concert to get me to a level of reasonable function.

Having raised two children with some similar allergies who are young adults I can say that some of this seems to improve through development. I do wonder about the impact of environmental influences. I think cigarette smoke may have been a factor in my development as a child

A success story comparatively at this point but I have to say that chanting has seemed to really change the way I breath. It really changed my relationship with my lungs. Many years into as it wasn't something I was doing in such a way that breathing had such engagement. I actually had a very strange walking vision/epiphany one day about my lungs and breathing. It is so hard to describe the experience but it was as if I understood their function from a design level. As if I could sense them in my body.

Anyway since I learned how to breath better I can clear out my lungs without assistance with medicines when in the past I needed assistance. I think over time I have also become more keenly attuned to cause and effect when it comes to my physiology. I had really gone in the opposite direction but it wasn't sustainable. The cumulative of healthy life style choices seems to pay dividends although it wasn't a simple lifestyle condition.

Because it was so unexpected it can easily feel like a "happy miracle" to me instead of a lifetime of adapting, adjusting and physiological changes. I think my haphazard attempt to overcome allowed me to let go of my attachment to a given outcome. This let me push boundaries and eventually get to where I am at now.

Imagine I had the capacity to learn about such things as attachment and breathing as a kid. I think it could have really been transformational in ways that the medicines did not. I don't say this with any regret or reservation. I say it with genuine wonder. Do cultures with such practices have different occurrences of such problems? Simply the thoughts that come to mind.

tkp67 wrote: ↑Thu Apr 08, 2021 4:03 am ...A success story comparatively at this point but I have to say that chanting has seemed to really change the way I breath. It really changed my relationship with my lungs. Many years into as it wasn't something I was doing in such a way that breathing had such engagement. I actually had a very strange walking vision/epiphany one day about my lungs and breathing. It is so hard to describe the experience but it was as if I understood their function from a design level. As if I could sense them in my body.

Anyway since I learned how to breath better I can clear out my lungs without assistance with medicines when in the past I needed assistance. I think over time I have also become more keenly attuned to cause and effect when it comes to my physiology. I had really gone in the opposite direction but it wasn't sustainable. The cumulative of healthy life style choices seems to pay dividends although it wasn't a simple lifestyle condition.

Because it was so unexpected it can easily feel like a "happy miracle" to me instead of a lifetime of adapting, adjusting and physiological changes. I think my haphazard attempt to overcome allowed me to let go of my attachment to a given outcome. This let me push boundaries and eventually get to where I am at now.

Imagine I had the capacity to learn about such things as attachment and breathing as a kid. I think it could have really been transformational in ways that the medicines did not. I don't say this with any regret or reservation. I say it with genuine wonder. Do cultures with such practices have different occurrences of such problems? Simply the thoughts that come to mind.

Interesting - and very positive. Congratulations!


There are some parallels in my ... adaptation ... too. I was an asthmatic child as well as having chronic colds and sinus problems and I was encouraged to take up a wind instrument about age 11 to help with my breathing problems. It did, enormously. Conscious breath control was part of it. So, I guess, was strengthening all the breathing muscles. I've been a diaphragm breather ever since: that's what you do as a singer or wind player, and it's so much more efficient that (in my experience) it just naturally carries over into the rest of your life.

And I moved, as a youngish adult, from a cold (by Aussie standards) wet climate to a warm sunny one. That alone improved my health, but it also encouraged me to get outdoors a lot more, so my fitness improved and that has helped as well.


Kim

I have found Mormon tea helpful for seasonal allergies .