Antihistamines - How the Other Half Live
Aug. 1st, 2010 10:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
clovehitchedInspired by a post I saw elsewhere today where someone asked advice for itchy insect bites and people were suggesting all sorts of things to rub on them, but it was ages before the first person suggested antihistamines.
It reminded me of an incident a few years ago when I was at Boots, picking up a prescription. A lady came in and asked the pharmacist about some rash she had, and said that her GP had suggested antihistamines. "What do antihistamines do? I've never taken them before and I don't know anything about them".
I am boggled by both of these. Antihistamines are a fact of my life. I take an H2 receptor antagonist antihistamine daily, an H1 receptor antagonist antihistamine most days, inhaled steroids and nasal steroids daily, a nasal neurotransmitter receptor antagonist (it blocks mucus production) daily, and carry a Ventolin inhaler.
Thus when I get an insect bite, or insect bites, they are never more than the most temporary of irritations - the antihistamines take care of them as a side effect of the reason I take them - to try and control my ever present rhinitis and post nasal drip due to being allergic to dust mites, grass pollen, most mammals and $DEITY knows what else.
Sylvia has allergies too and not routinely having antihistamines in the house (in addition to the ones I get on prescription) would be akin to not having painkillers in. I sometimes forget that there are large numbers of people who don't experience routine allergic reactions to things, who seldom or even never take antihistamines, who don't keep a box in their car, or carry them in their handbag (don't even mention the spare nasal spray and inhaler that live in there).
The rest of us ... we just get to rattle when running up stairs!
Also posted at http://auntysarah.dreamwidth.org/244339.html - you can comment here or there.
It reminded me of an incident a few years ago when I was at Boots, picking up a prescription. A lady came in and asked the pharmacist about some rash she had, and said that her GP had suggested antihistamines. "What do antihistamines do? I've never taken them before and I don't know anything about them".
I am boggled by both of these. Antihistamines are a fact of my life. I take an H2 receptor antagonist antihistamine daily, an H1 receptor antagonist antihistamine most days, inhaled steroids and nasal steroids daily, a nasal neurotransmitter receptor antagonist (it blocks mucus production) daily, and carry a Ventolin inhaler.
Thus when I get an insect bite, or insect bites, they are never more than the most temporary of irritations - the antihistamines take care of them as a side effect of the reason I take them - to try and control my ever present rhinitis and post nasal drip due to being allergic to dust mites, grass pollen, most mammals and $DEITY knows what else.
Sylvia has allergies too and not routinely having antihistamines in the house (in addition to the ones I get on prescription) would be akin to not having painkillers in. I sometimes forget that there are large numbers of people who don't experience routine allergic reactions to things, who seldom or even never take antihistamines, who don't keep a box in their car, or carry them in their handbag (don't even mention the spare nasal spray and inhaler that live in there).
The rest of us ... we just get to rattle when running up stairs!
Also posted at http://auntysarah.dreamwidth.org/244339.html - you can comment here or there.
no subject
Date: 2010-08-01 10:19 pm (UTC)I first took an oral antihistamine for an insect sting when a bee stung my lip in my early 20s. I knew I was camping in a field with a lot of people with hayfever so I just asked everyone until someone had a pill to give me. It was... automatic. I assumed someone would have antihistamines, and that that was the appropriate course of action.
I was right, too.
Gave my children infant piriton to make them sleep (desperate measures), but also when one of them was stung by a wasp.
I've never used them regularly or for a known allergy. Ever.