5 Reasons Your Allergy Treatment Isn't Working

Have you ever felt like your allergies were an unruly pet, refusing to be tamed despite your best attempts? If you take your medicine and follow all the right steps to allergy-proof your environment, yet still find yourself feeling sick, you may question what you're doing wrong.

Some allergies just don't respond to over-the-counter or prescription remedies. But if one approach doesn't work, you may need to take a closer look at your situation and see if there's something you could be missing.

Five Allergy Treatment Fixes

Here are five simple fixes you can try to help you get the upper hand on your unresponsive allergy symptoms:

1. Keep track of your medication usage.  You probably think you're taking your doses correctly, yet it could be that you're not fully complying with the directions.

2. Pay attention to your triggers. It's important to identify the causes of your allergy symptoms so you'll know exactly what to avoid. Just keep in mind that you could have multiple triggers. Avoiding one, but not another, may not be enough to prevent your symptoms. If you aren't getting any relief from your avoidance efforts, it's probably time to step them up a level.

3. Get the right diagnosis. If you've diagnosed your own allergies and your over-the-counter treatment regiment isn't working, it's probably time to get a professional's opinion. An allergist can do tests to determine exactly what's prompting your symptoms.

4. Consider what factors interfere with your allergy treatment's effectiveness. When your allergy medication isn't making a difference, you'll want to explore anything that could be counter-acting the benefit.  For instance, do you take any other medications that could be blocking the absorption of your allergy treatments?

5. Try a multi-pronged approach to prevent and treat your symptoms. Some people with severe allergies (or allergies and related asthma) may find that one medicine isn't enough to provide complete relief. You could need to try a few different treatments. For instance, you could need an antihistamine as well as a nasal or oral corticosteroid spray. Your doctor can tell you what medications you need and can safely take together.

Remember that even unresponsive allergies can be controlled with the right approach. Therefore, don't settle for simply coping with your symptoms. When they don't seem to respond to your treatment efforts, always seek the advice of a specialist.

 


 

Sources:

American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)

http://www.aaaai.org/nab/index.cfm?p=faq

http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/whatareallergyshots.stm

American Academy of Family Physicians (AFP)

http://www.aafp.org/afp/2009/0701/p79.html