Advice on Allergy Meds?

[Mehita]

There's always something, right?

The last several days DS has been sneezing a ton and complaining of itchy eyes. Some clear nasal stuff, but not too bad. I'm guessing its seasonal allergies (high grass counts here) but he's never had allergies before, ever. Then again, he's never been on Aza before.

The poor kid has been through so much this year, I'm hesitant to take him to an allergist. He'd never last through a skin prick test and just the possibility of another "thing" makes me nauseous.

I was thinking of starting him on an OTC allergy med to see if that helps. Any brand suggestions? Just needs to be gluten free and I think most are.

I have generic loratadine for myself here. Think that'd work? It's ages 6+.

 

[ChampsMom]

My son takes Citirizine (but it's prescription). I use the Target brand Up & Up, non drowsy and *love* it! I think they have a kids dose also.

 

[my little penguin]

Loratadine is the weakest - works for some but not others.
Zyrtec ( targets brand is gluten free) is stronger and works for most
But can make you tired at first .
DS has been taking it since he was a baby.
Allegra is the other one some try - DH is on that one.

I would blame puberty for the onset of allergies more than Aza.
Any major chemical changes ( aka puberty pregnancy menopause etc)
Tend to also cause changes to the immune system set up and that means addition or subtraction of allergies or asthma etc...

Good luck

 

[DustyKat]

We tend to use Zyrtec more than anything else and have had no issues with it.

Dusty.

 

[Mehita]

Well, loratadine didn't do much. I didn't think it would, but it was worth a shot. Still sneezing and complaining of itchy eyes. Moving on to Allegra to see if that works any better.

 

[Farmwife]

Grace has to take Zaditor eye drops. That is the only thing that worked for her eyes. After that her regular allergy meds seemed to work much better.

 

[crohnsinct]

Yep! What MLP said...got Crohns under control...puberty started and bam allergies. O's doc has us use Zyrtec. Knocks her out. She is like a zombie for days. But takes care of the allergies and if she is annoying me.......

 

[Crohn's Mom]

Gabrielle uses Allegra and it seems to work pretty well for her ~ Zyrtec or Claritin, not so much.
Good luck !

 

[Ann23]

My son has grass allergies that hit him every June. We tried Zyrtec but it didn't do the trick for him. For him, Claritin has really helped.

 

[Mehita]

The Allegra seems to help with the sneezing and nose, but his eyes are still itchy and we're using Alaway at least once a day. Think we should try Zyrtec? The drowsiness worries me a bit with that. I already have a teenager. I don't need a zombified teenager.

I have no idea what he's allergic to since this is all new. How do I know when to stop giving him allergy pills/drops? The weather has been so wacky here. Grass? Pollen? Mold? Who knows.

He's at a sleepover tonight and just called and asked me to come over and give him some eye drops. Is there anything else that can cause itchy eyes? Anything IBD related? The other thing that keeps nagging me is that this all started the week after seeing the ophthalmologist. It took him a full day before his eyes un-dialated from the drops. Think there's any connection? That was also the week he finished the pred taper.

If I call someone (?) on Monday, should it be the GI, the ped, or the allergist?

 

[Farmwife]

Grace does Zyrtek.
Yes she was tired for a day or two but their bodies get use to it. Well at least it does for my family.

Yes on calling in that list...GI...Ped.....Allergist. So all three. Sorry not the answer you wanted.

 

[Mehita]

The drowsiness is temporary then?

 

[my little penguin]

For eyes and nose the ALLERGIST is your best bet.
They can tell you what when and how much.

We use eye drops just for the eyes( prescription)
Because if the eyes are left to inflame over and over again( red itchy) then
Scar tissue can form ( sound like another disease )
Same with the nose - prescription nose spray
- don't want polyps or worse- again similar to Ibd.

This why you need a good allergist.

Zyrtec - some get drowsy some don't
But it does wear off over time.
DS was a baby and we gave it at night .
So ....

 

[Ann23]

My son's biggest issue was his eyes. At first, it was thought that it was a bad case of pink-eye, that didn't seem to get better with the prescription anti-bacterial eye drops, until my Dad saw Nick and saw the similarities to his own allergies. So, we made another trip to one of the pediatricians, who saw that Nick had the same problem at the same time the previous year (when he was 8) and determined it was grass seed allergies. It took trial and error of the different pills and eye drops (and advice of relatives with allergies) to find what really worked for Nick. Now, we are prepared every Spring and all is well.

 

[Ann23]

It was also thought be be pink-eye the year before but it hadn't been as bad. Similarly, Nick's Erythema Nodosum was diagnosed as cellulitis the first time. The second time the urgent care doctor also diagnosed it as cellulitis but, when it didn't get better with antibiotics we went back to see one of the doctors at his pediatricians' office and the doctor made the connection between his weight loss, inability to gain weight, lack of energy, etc. (that we'd been trying to figure out for several months) and the nodules on his legs. Which, finally led to his Crohn's diagnosis. I'm now a strong believer in second opinions and following my instincts.

 

[Mehita]

The Zyrtec seemed to do the trick today. I only gave him 5mg though (half an adult pill) because we had a big day planned and didn't want drowsiness to affect the day. His nose cleared up and no itchy eyes.

With many meds we seem to always run into the dosage issue. Too big for kiddie meds yet not quite big enough for adult sized dosages. Though while taking family photos today, DS couldn't stand in front of me like he has in the past... too tall!

Thanks for all the advice on the allergy meds. Very helpful.

 

[DustyKat]

Good to hear the Zyrtec worked Mehita!

And how fab is...too tall! :dusty::dusty::dusty:

:mademyday:

Dusty. xxx

 

[Mom2oneboy]

Allergies are our biggest problem right now! The doctor has S on Flonase and Zyrtec. His ears have been stopped up for a month now so they had us do Afrin for 3 days. Seemed to help a bit but his ears feel like they still have fluid in them. I switched him over to Claratin to see if that would help but I'm thinking we are back to the doctor again this week. So frustrating!