Summer’s End

A Sunday Seven Post

[I can no longer write a post unless it’s in list form. I attribute this affliction to writing only Sunday Sevens for the past month.  I started a post earlier this week, but couldn’t seem to finish it.  Since I have nothing else planned for today, here it is in list form.]

It’s official.  Summer is over. I know this not because Labor Day has come and gone, not because school is in session once again, not because September hails the start of meteorological autumn.  Nope.  I know this because I can’t breathe.

For me, autumn is actually worse than spring. Or perhaps it just feels worse after a summer of (relatively) clear breathing.  (Winter presents its own sinus afflictions, so spring allergies aren’t quite so noticeable.)

Seven Fall Allergy Facts

1. WebMD tells me I’m suffering from hay fever.
2. The official name is “allergic rhinitis.”  This tickles me because the old speech pathology/audiology/linguistics student in me knows that “rhin-” refers to the nose and “-itis” is the medical suffix for “inflammation of.”  I also know the physician responsible for this portion of the body is an otorhinolaryngologist, although most people call him (or her) an “otolaryngologist.”  The  latter is a bit of a misrepresentation because it doesn’t account for the “nose,” even though the Americanized version of the specialty is ENT (ear, nose and throat).
   Oop, I digress.
3. The most likely culprit is ragweed.
4. Since ragweed pollen can travel up to 400 miles, there’s almost no getting away from it.
5. I have nearly all the symptoms.  What are the symptoms?
   • Runny nose (I’d actually prefer a runny nose to one that’s stuffy)
   • Watery eyes (this was my first symptom, showing up on Monday)
   • Sneezing (not so much)
   • Coughing (yep, generally at night, making sleep difficult)
   • Itchy eyes and nose (kind of coincides with watery eyes)
   • Dark circles under the eyes (probably due to difficulty sleeping)
6. Post-nasal drip and ensuing sore throat isn’t mentioned anywhere, but they’re prevalent in me.  And really annoying.
7. Zyrtec, which my doctor recommended a couple years ago, works well (for me).  The CVS version?  Not so much at all.  Of course I bought a huge bottle of it.  😦  (In fairness to CVS, their version of Benadryl has worked well for me, so I thought the Zyrtec version would, too.)

All righty, then.  Off to the drug store to find some relief.

[Graphic credit:  Natalie Dee.  I found it through a Google image search for “fall allergies.”  Check out the website.  She has some majorly funny stuff.  (The file name for this drawing is “fucking-fall-allergies.”  Ha!  😀 )]