# Colds?



## Sniper68 (31 Oct 2020)

OK this is probably a bit trivial in light of what's happening but here goes

I usually get maybe one or two minor Colds a year.Some years not at all.Never had 'Flu.Since late July I seem to be getting a "Cold" every other week....and it always seems to be on my days off!I do an odd shift pattern,but have done so for 25+ years.These "Colds" are exactly the same..itchy runny nose,sneezing,watery eyes and a fuzzy head...ie what I would typically call a Cold!I'm halfway through my 6 days off and it started yesterday again!This morning it's progressed to the nose running like a fountain
I'm not complaining(OK maybe just a little ) and I'd sooner have this than C-19 but it's getting to the point where I'd rather work through my days off just in case...OK maybe not
Is it just me or is it part of the whole Coronavirus fall out?


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## Slick (31 Oct 2020)

Rule 5 maybe?


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## vickster (31 Oct 2020)

Add a daily zinc + vitamin C tablet to your morning routine and have plenty of rest days 
Sounds as much like hay fever /allergic rhinitis as a cold. Do antihistamines help?
Do you work in healthcare or education where you come into contact with sick people or mini plague carriers?


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## the_mikey (31 Oct 2020)

Another possibility is you have an allergy to something at home.


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## Sniper68 (31 Oct 2020)

@vickster I work in a Steel Works.Not tried antihistamines maybe worth a go?
@the_mikey I ruled out allergies as nothing at all has changed at home nor work.Maybe worth looking into in depth.
(my wife mentioned this and said maybe I should move out.....I think she was joking )


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## Globalti (31 Oct 2020)

Clarityn is what you need


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## vickster (31 Oct 2020)

Globalti said:


> Clarityn is what you need


Or any generic loratadine?


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## jowwy (31 Oct 2020)

Slick said:


> Rule 5 maybe?


You can’t use that in this forum any longer........


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## Slick (31 Oct 2020)

jowwy said:


> You can’t use that in this forum any longer........


I think maybe it's just you that's not allowed.


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## jowwy (31 Oct 2020)

Slick said:


> I think maybe it's just you that's not allowed.


You might be right.......not everything is equal as it seems on CC


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## vickster (31 Oct 2020)

Perfectly acceptable in the context of man flu 
Less so mental health struggles


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## slowmotion (1 Nov 2020)

Cycling makes my nose run but I don't really get proper colds any more since stopping smoking a decade ago.


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## Sniper68 (1 Nov 2020)

Day 2 of antihistamine (cetirizine hydrochloride) and the symptoms are better but not 100% gone.
I took one yesterday around 14:00 and by 16:00 symptoms had eased dramatically.
So this looks like an allergy but to what
Is it possible to develop an allergy to something that's always been there?
Is it permanent?
Do I stop taking the tablets once the symptoms disappear?


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## jowwy (1 Nov 2020)

vickster said:


> Perfectly acceptable in the context of man flu
> Less so mental health struggles


thats your opinion.......


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## vickster (1 Nov 2020)

Sniper68 said:


> Day 2 of antihistamine (cetirizine hydrochloride) and the symptoms are better but not 100% gone.
> I took one yesterday around 14:00 and by 16:00 symptoms had eased dramatically.
> So this looks like an allergy but to what
> Is it possible to develop an allergy to something that's always been there?
> ...


Could be anything in the environment, at work or at home. Take them for a bit, stop them for a bit and see if the symptoms come back. If they do, take them again. You could always see a Dr but it doesn’t sound like the symptoms are a major issue


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## marinyork (1 Nov 2020)

Sniper68 said:


> Day 2 of antihistamine (cetirizine hydrochloride) and the symptoms are better but not 100% gone.
> I took one yesterday around 14:00 and by 16:00 symptoms had eased dramatically.
> So this looks like an allergy but to what
> Is it possible to develop an allergy to something that's always been there?



Yes you can develop allergies later in life/to things that have always been there.

The main three second gen antihistamines that are available over the counter take about an hour to work. They last for different amounts of time and some work better for some things e.g. skin allergies in patients than others, but it's trial and error.

People take cetirizine for long periods of time. It isn't like taking other so called antihistamines like diphenhydramine where it's a very bad idea to take for an extended length of time.


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## byegad (1 Nov 2020)

I'm allergic to all sorts of things, as time goes by other, previously ok items suddenly set me off. The last 'new allergy' was chocolate*.
So I take desloratadine in the morning and cetirizine at night. When things are bad I take another desloratadine in the afternoon. I've been on this regime or years with no apparent ill effect.
*Turns out it's not the chocolate per see, but the insect droppings the beans pick up when they're dried in the sun. Apparently all chocolate has some droppings in it.


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## Sniper68 (1 Nov 2020)

IBS in my late 30s.
High BP in my late 40s.
Now this in my 50s.......
What next I wonder.....?
Pills,pills,pills


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## Notafettler (1 Nov 2020)

I'm allergic to Hay-on-Wye. Stayed there twice and had an allergic reaction to something. Assuming whatever you are getting a reaction to you must have been in contact with shortly before hand?? Sooo nothing!
Either way never had a allergic reaction before or after, only when in Hay on wye. 

PS the Welsh part.


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## marinyork (1 Nov 2020)

Sniper68 said:


> Pills,pills,pills



Right to be concerned. But cetirizine is at the safe end of things.


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## classic33 (4 Nov 2020)

Sniper68 said:


> Day 2 of antihistamine (cetirizine hydrochloride) and the symptoms are better but not 100% gone.
> I took one yesterday around 14:00 and by 16:00 symptoms had eased dramatically.
> So this looks like an allergy but to what
> Is it possible to develop an allergy to something that's always been there?
> ...


No. 
If it's a prescribed course of treatment, finish it. 

Is there anything there now, possibly in greater amounts than there was before.


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## Sniper68 (4 Nov 2020)

classic33 said:


> No.
> If it's a prescribed course of treatment, finish it.
> 
> Is there anything there now, possibly in greater amounts than there was before.


Nothing whatsoever has changed.


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## Hacienda71 (4 Nov 2020)

Notafettler said:


> I'm allergic to Hay-on-Wye. Stayed there twice and had an allergic reaction to something. Assuming whatever you are getting a reaction to you must have been in contact with shortly before hand?? Sooo nothing!
> Either way never had a allergic reaction before or after, only when in Hay on wye.
> 
> PS the Welsh part.


You probably have Hay fever.....


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## Notafettler (4 Nov 2020)

Hacienda71 said:


> You probably have Hay fever.....


Dire
!


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## Sniper68 (14 Nov 2020)

Update on things.
I took the AH tablets for a few days then stopped.This resulted in the symptoms starting again.Started taking them again.Ran out of tablets yesterday.The symptoms started again this morning and by 12 o'clock were getting worse so I've been out and bought some more.This has to be an allergy.
I'm going to try to speak to my GP but they're very busy(obviously) and getting through on the phone is impossible it seems.


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