People with ALLERGIES: what are you allergic to and how do you treat your symptoms?

1 I'm allergic to cats and I own two. For me, I build up immunity to each individual cat. If I go to another cat house, I get immediate breathing problems, itchy eyes, tight chest, and I'm miserable.

But I love cats, love them (and dogs too) so I can't live without them. A new cat for me, is going to require a serious break in time for me to be able to live with kitty. So kitty must have a great personality for me, we need to be sympatico.

If not, I take great care to adopt the kitty to someone else - it's happened about three times in my life time. But I like cats so much that I'm willing to endure the six week incubation period that my body seems to need to acclimate. I have a new kitten now.

She is so adorable it's the first time in my life that I've allowed my cat to sleep on/in my bed. Oh my gosh she's so good and cute. Gets along perfectly with my Sheltie and my Chihuahua and with my other adult cat.

We are one happy menagerie.So I'm not answering your question, but I didn't take a slot either. I suppose what is happening is that you (like me) are building a tolerance. See I react badly to a cat that I've not been around.

But my own don't bother me at all, after a time.

Lollipop_the_Bunny replied to post #1: 2 You are very lucky to be able to build up a 'tolerance'. I have become allergic to cats just in the last 9 years or so. I had to live with my sister who at the time had 9 cats.At least 3 of them slept with me on her sofa every night!

I got really bad itchy eyes, sneezing, and even breathing problems from all the cat dander. When I would leave her house the symptoms seem to be alleviated or even disappear for a time. But then I would have the same reaction when I would get around another cat.

I used to own cats before all that happened then figure out that I had become allergic. I took a cat in from someone that was going to just leave the cat to the 'streets' and we still have her now, She is a medium to long hair and I can't pet her too long otherwise it starts in again. Even though she is an outside cat now.

I do pet her but have to wash my hands and not let her sit on my lap for very long. It makes me sad as I do love cats! I never tried any of the medications but I think they didn't really have anything when I first became allergic then when they did come out with stuff I wasn't living with cats anymore.

Sorry, I guess I didn't really answer the question either but I have had the problem with different medications that you spoke about, building up an immunity to them so they quit working. It is very frustrating to deal with!

3 According to my allergist, it is very common for the effects of a particular antihistimine to become less over time, so he used to switch me every two years or so. After time away from a med that had lost its effect I could return to it again and have it work as it did before.

4 yaaaay Darwin - for an answer for this asker. :-)I'm sure I didn't have much to contribute to an actual answer. I'm GLAD that YOU did.

:-)happy day .

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.