Disclaimer: I am an allergy patient, not a doctor. You should always consult a specialist about your specific case, especially before doing any kind of treatment. This article is for informational purpose only.

Why should you listen to me?

I have suffered from allergies for over 25 years, and I feel obligated to share what I have learned so that you don’t have to go through the hell I went. 

I am not sponsored or endorsed in any way to write this article. There are no hidden products. There is no sales pitch that I’ll be making. My motivation is really simple —I am trying to help because I’m certain that I can.

This will be a super in-depth article and I will be explaining my thought process behind each step, tip, and trick to help you understand what you can actually do to manage your situation better. I could have skipped it and just given you a short version, but the truth is — that won’t help you much. If you know anything about allergies, you already know that. Why? Because you’ve probably already learned the hard truth —you don’t need to know how to deal with allergies. Because, really, there is just one rule, and you already know that.

AVOID what you are allergic to, and you’re good.

But It’s not that easy though, is it? In fact, it may not be possible at all, depending on what you are allergic to. And that is exactly the purpose of this article to help you mitigate the “damage”.

You need to know the exact thought process that goes into each of the things I’ll mention.

And the reason is, so you can take everything I say with a grain of salt, and use your own judgment to see if that works for you. Or so you can adjust it to your specific case to ensure great results.

I understand that my own case might be too extreme, but I also know if the tips and tricks I am about to share have worked for my severe allergies. Then it obviously should work for “minor” ones as well.

Severity is subjective though. There are no “minor” allergies, really. You already know it. Having allergies sucks. It forever changes your life and how you live it.

If you are new to having severe seasonal allergies, welcome to the club!

First things first, as you are about to find out on your own our club sucks balls. It’s not the one you ever wanna be a part of.

Which is an understatement 🙂

You gotta understand and accept the fact that once you develop seasonal or food allergies, they are not going anywhere on their own. If anything, they usually develop and get much worse.

It’s good to know that. So that you can start doing something about that and not just be reactive and wait for the quality of your life to go south.

Do nothing, and sure enough, it will.

Along with not just yours too, but the people you love and spend time with as well. Particularly if you have a partner, husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend or a teddy bear.

It’s hard to live with a person constantly suffering, complaining and being miserable, or whose life is constantly on a knife-edge.

Because what happens when your loved one is suffering? More often than not, we suffer even worse. The main reason for that is you feel hopeless because there isn’t anything you can do to help them and that starts slowly eating at you.

Brace yourself, because suffering and misery are what comes along with severe allergies.

I’ve had them most of my life. Over two decades.

I learned to adapt and get creative and discovered a few tips and tricks that helped me a lot to reduce or even eliminate some of the symptoms.

Even though they are extremely helpful and life-improving, they are by no means a substitute for an actual treatment. Such as immunotherapy also known as allergy shots.

Consider reading this blog post to learn more about different treatment options for severe allergies and figure out what’s the best solution for you.

If for some reason the treatment is not an option, then following the tips and tricks I describe here is even more important for you. They’ll still help you to manage your symptoms—you gotta take all the help you can get.

It’s invaluable.

Because even the slightest positive change in the severity of the symptoms could be the difference between having a really bad day, and the one you can still enjoy.

Here are the tips and tricks:

1) Do not touch your eyes!

One of the worst things about severe allergies is having to deal with allergic conjunctivitis which makes up for the majority of the suffering that comes along with it.

Conjunctivitis, often called pink eye, is an inflammation of the outer transparent layer of the eye that covers its white part.

And no, anaphylaxis is not worse. Anaphylaxis is just a few minutes, lack of oxygen, and you drop dead. But having this issue, makes you slowly suffer. No fun.

What makes conjunctivitis so bad? It’s not just the inflammation, but that white ropy discharge in your eyes.

The mucus that somewhat looks like stringy worms when you try to pull it out.

And yeah, you will want to pull it out so bad as if your life depended on it.

And it’s only in human nature the instinct to rub your eyes, as soon as you feel like something’s in it.

I know how satisfying to pull this mucus out of the eyes. It’s unbelievably addictive.

Please, just…just don’t.

Tattoo this on your head, if you must:

Under no circumstances, YOU ARE TO EVER TOUCH YOUR EYES.

Touching your eyes will seriously mess you up, more than anything. If your allergies are severe, you will get a pink eye that lasts for SEVERAL DAYS.

That’s several days of pain, suffering, and utter misery.

That’s several days of when you want or need to be doing something important (work, college, family time, me time), but you won’t be able to.

You’ll be laying in bed praying for the symptoms to go away and wishing you had made better decisions.

Think about that every time you have this urge to scratch your eyes.

Ask any ophthalmologist, they’ll tell you the same thing.

When you have allergic conjunctivitis, scratching or rubbing your eyes can damage the transparent front layer of the eye, called Cornea.

Not only that,

Rubbing and scratching your eyes can release more histamines (allergens) into the area.

That will make the itchy feeling worse and make you even sicker than you already are.

That’s one of those things when you feel like there is no way it can get any worse; but it just might though. Can’t be too sure.

Let the meds do the work.

IMPORTANT: If you have problems getting used to not touching your eyes, try wearing any kind of protective glasses. Rubbing your eyes, as soon as you feel like something’s gotten in it is a human instinct.

But that physical “barrier” is gonna buy you just enough time to make you realize that you were gonna touch your eyes, and hopefully prevent that from happening.

Wearing glasses is how I eventually learned not to rub my eyes, but rather to endure and take the pain knowing that if I broke that rule, I’d feel tenfold worse.

Which leads us to the next point.

2) Use Sunglasses.

Bright sunlight hurts your already inflamed eyes. It causes the irritation to get way worse.

The biggest problem is a strong commercial light, like the one in department stores and pretty much everywhere you go. It’s a real bitch.

Usually, 15 minutes of exposing myself to that light and my symptoms escalate rapidly.

One of the most common symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis is inflamed watery eyes.

They get irritated, swollen, and red, making you look like you just smoked a giant blunt.

The more inflamed they are, the itchier they get.

EDITED 6 months later: I’ve been doing allergy shots for a while now, so the light almost doesn’t bother me that much. If you can, do the shots. They are the main reason for my radical quality of life improvement. I still wear sunglasses often, especially on a bad day. The upside, the treatment is working great and there aren’t that many bad days anymore.

Try wearing sunglasses as much as you can, they help a lot to reduce the strain. But not only that, when you are outdoors there is a big chance of dust blowing in the wind that might get in your eyes. That’s REALLY bad for you.

Why is it bad, you say?

Because you’ll need to take the dust out. And how are gonna do that? Oh, that’s right. You gotta touch your eyes. What that leads to?

A pink eye lasting for days. Oh, that really sucks.

If you get a really bad pink eye, as I used to get all the time, before the allergy shots, your eyes will swell up and shut close.

There’s nothing much you can do at that point but to wait it out using antihistamine eye drops and staying at home, eliminating further exposure.

Getting pink eye means you can’t watch TV or use your laptop, phone or anything of that sorts. The screens put a strain on your eyes and irritate them further, making a pink eye worse.

When you are having a really bad day like that, that means wearing sunglasses at home too. Oh, does that sound like a ridiculous thing to do?

Oh, well, your symptoms are ridiculous, and you gotta do what you gotta do.

Take any help from any sources. It matters.

If that sounds like too much for you, give it a try anyway and see the results for yourself.

Or at the very least regulate the exposure your eyes to the lights. That means dimming them. But not too much, not to the point where you can hardly see anything because that TOO puts a strain on your eyes. Find a sweet spot :))

Wear sunglasses everywhere you go.

Also, stop caring what people might think of you wearing them indoors, in the evening, or in places where it seems silly.

I used to have a lot of insecurities, thinking about that a lot, being a teenager.

But when my allergies got to a ridiculous uncontrollable level, I just realized if you do not have health, everything becomes meaningless..And anyway, it’s just their opinion.

I respect that, but at the same time it’s just exactly that —an opinion. And also you’d be surprised how little other people think of you anyway.

Everybody is self-centered.

Keep your priorities straight. Your health comes first. Always.

And it’s not some smooth fashion move that you make to look cooler.

You are improving your well-being!

You might look snobby wearing them indoors or deep in the evening, but after you will notice how much they help with relieving your pain and reducing the strain on the eyes, you are gonna start to wear them ALL THE TIME, anywhere you go.

A thing to note, it’s not the UV that hurts the eyes, it’s the strength of the light itself.

So pick up a nice pair of really dark welding glasses at the closest hardware store.

The ones that if you put them on, you can’t see squat. Don’t get mistaken, those are the best.

What? You thought of some super expensive pair that you pick up from a boutique in Manhattan. Well, think again.

Trust me on this.

You’ll say thank you later.

But really, pick up a pair that is pretty dark, the more it reduces the light, the better you will feel.

Just don’t drive anything in those!

Having red eyes, or a pink eye might affect your confidence level too. How can you look someone in the eye when you resemble a red-eyed vampire that’s high on drugs.

Do you know how many hundreds of people at work have made a subtle remark that I shouldn’t be smoking weed so much.

Ironically, I have the most severe allergies to grass, trees, and weed.

Try explaining that to your boss though, when in addition to your red eyes, you avoid maintaining eye contact.

Mostly because of the mucus, that for some nasty reason always gotta be on the pupils of your eyes, making your vision foggy.

In addition to that, it’s painful, especially to look straight. So you constantly try to look down.

If you put all these symptoms together, and especially given that some allergy meds make you very drowsy, you look and act like you are stoned.

Listen, all I’m saying is good luck, at work.

On the other hand, it’s great though. You are gonna have so many awesome stories to remember for years,  not like “some of those boring people”.

For instance, your boss is gonna fire your junky mess, and you’re gonna have to explain to your family “that”. Am I self-projecting here? Haha, may be.

3) Use Air Conditioner as Much as Possible.

If you had severe allergies for a while, you probably noticed by now, that COLD temperatures reduce the severity of allergy symptoms.

Itchiness in particular.

That’s a big deal.

No itchiness- no scratching. No scratching – no pink eye. No pink eye – a happy life.

Almost.

Summertime I keep my A/C running non-stop.

It helps so much! It’s like a painkiller of sorts.

Getting home and having an A/C running after exposing yourself outside to allergens is such a relief. It feels amazing.

Give it a try. Keep the A/C on 70-ish Fahrenheit and reap the benefits.

Just try to use it for a week, and then don’t use it for a week, and compare the results for yourself.
Cooler temperature – less itchiness, and you are not so prone to scratch your eyes out after all.

It simply works.
Nowadays(2018), most of the air conditioners are hypoallergenic.

What it means is that when it sucks the air from outside, there is a HEPA filter, that doesn’t let pollen and allergens to get inside of your apartment.

Which is exactly what you want, to avoid unnecessary exposure.

4)Keep Windows Closed During Allergy Season.

Having severe allergies means having your windows closed at all times during the season.

I’ve been hearing this my entire life, “Air out your room, fresh air is good for you.”

But it’s not though. Not at all.

Maybe for people without seasonal allergies it’s good. Those are “regular” people. Nothing about you is “regular.”

Your “condition” is unique depending on what you are allergic to. And if you do not adjust your lifestyle with respect to those things, you will be 100% miserable.

I certainly was for a long time, because I used a “man up” kind of mentality and just coped with my life. I shouldn’t have. I should have known better, but I didn’t.

Your allergies require specific adjustment to your lifestyle, and that is whether you like that or not.

That is not an option, really. Do you wanna feel terrible every day? Then go ahead, do what you always do.

Allergies can and will bring you an insane amount of suffering if not dealt properly. Don’t play with that.

For all moms and dads out there please pay attention.

If you have a kid with severe allergies, you CANNOT air out your home anymore by opening the windows. That means you shouldn’t do that even when your kid is at the school.

You let the allergens fly in and settle on the bed mattress, pillows, blanket, walls, desks, etc.

When your kid comes home, an inevitable allergen exposure is waiting for him. Allergens will settle everywhere throughout your house if you open windows. Yes, even 5 minutes is a no-go.

In addition to that, if you have pets living in the house, they will transport the allergens everywhere with their fur.

Even if your kid is not allergic to pets, they will make him sicker when he or she pets them.

Their fur collects everything: dust, mold, cockroaches’ remnants, pollen, and whatever’s been under the bed for 20+ years.

Every single time you open that window, just know that your kid is getting sick because of YOU.

What should you do or what can you do if your house was exposed to allergens?!

You gotta clean EVERYTHING using a cleaning solution to which you are not allergic to. Intense fumes can trigger dry eyes syndrome, which is awful too. Gotta avoid that.

Personally, I like to use water and vinegar mix for wiping off my computer desk, coffee table, and cabinets. It seems to neutralize the allergens.

To mop the floor, I use a non-bleach Fabuloso, and it works wonders. I can’t use bleach, like many people with severe allergies, because it makes them worse.

Keeping your windows closed during summer could be rather “inconvenient” to say the lest. It’s hot as hell.

But that’s another reason that you might wanna invest in buying an Air Conditioner. Even a used one will do. Make sure to change the filter though.

If you can, try to get a premium anti-allergy filter that blocks allergens from entering your apartment. That’ll be the best, but even a simple and cheap one will be a huge quality of life change for you.

It’s a big deal, It’ll be a worthy investment in your well-being. You’ll say thank you later.

Summertime, I use A/C practically 24/7 on medium to low, hence keeping my place cool at all times, and it costs around $30 a month(in the US) in terms of electricity consumption. It works best when I use it in addition to a ceiling or regular fan. It helps redistribute cold air throughout the room.

Keeping windows closed is an insurance policy to prevent allergens from entering your home.

In and of itself, allergies are not gonna get better.  Unless you are a kid, then there is a chance that you might outgrow them.

That’s possible.

For everyone else, best case scenario, they might stay the same,  but usually, they get worse. They might even evolve into a beast that controls your life.

To deal with severe allergies the best is definitely to AVOID whatever you are allergic to and definitely NOT give it a warm welcome to the place you live.

Just think about that for a second.

You go to work/school and you expose yourself to different allergens, and you hope to come home and get a very much needed relief. You think of it as your safe place, where you are supposed to find solace and relief.

But is it?!

Don’t be surprised to wake up in the morning, only to find yourself feeling miserable and your day hasn’t even started yet. Way to go.

Do yourself a solid, and keep the windows shut at all times.

If you like to air out your place from time to time, that’s great.

Use a window air conditioner, in FAN mode, in particular, to help you with that.

Otherwise, stop complaining and get ready to bear the consequences you are bringing upon yourself voluntarily.

Masochist.

Do not use window fans. Like A/C they suck the air from outside, but they don’t have an “anti-allergen” filter, so they don’t block allergens from entering your room.

EDITED: Allergy shots improved my allergen tolerance and overall well being drastically. And, I can air out my apartment from time to time. But even then, I almost never do that during allergy season. The downside is just way too horrible to simply ignore it. I use A/C in Fan Mode when I’m not home, and in Cool Mode otherwise.

The way I see it,

compromising the ONLY safe place, where should be no exposure, is a dumb idea. 

What I sometimes do, is I air out my home on the same day when I do a full thorough cleaning. And then I make sure to wipe every surface in the apartment with that vinegar/water solution. The problem with that is that meanwhile, you are exposing yourself.

So ask a friend to do all the cleaning for you, no big deal. Haha. Problem solved. That’s what BFFs are for, right. They’ve got your back.

5) Use Cold Compress.

This is one of the best natural painkillers out there for your allergic conjunctivitis. If your eyes are red, watery, irritated, itchy, swollen and in pain – apply anything really cold to the area. It will make you feel much better.

It drastically reduces pain. Give it a try and see for yourself.

Again, do not rub your eyes with that cold compress, because I know you’ll want to. It feels so good. BUT, don’t. Check out the first point again.^^

Always remember, if something is super itchy – the cold temperature is what you need. Find something super cold and use it.

I found on Amazon something that looks like a sleeping mask compress. I always keep it in a freezer and use it when my symptoms are getting out of control.

6) “T-Bag your face.”

Haha, but really. If you have allergic conjunctivitis when you wake up and can’t open your eyes, because they are glued, and there is this crust holding it together.

You need to make yourself a nice cup of tea.

Use two tea bags for two eyes. Use three, if you have three, and so on. 🙂

Ideally, you should use a regular gauze bandage. It soaks liquids very well. You’ll dip it in the tea you made and apply it to your eyes. Gently.

Lay down and keep it for 10-15 minutes.

If you don’t have a gauze bandage, you can use the tea bags that you used to make the tea.

Be careful though, don’t wiggle them too much, and don’t rub your eyes with them. They did burst before quite a few times.

Not the best thing ever.

But hey, life is an adventure.

Gotta experience everything once, right, so you have great stories to tell and may even get to laugh about it looking back.

! Do not Google “how to t-bag” videos. The instructions they give you are somewhat ambiguous.

You are better off with proceeding with the ones I am giving you here. It’ll suffice.

Of course, make sure the tea bags are not that hot so you don’t burn your self. The area of your eyes, particularly the eyelids is way more sensitive than your hands.

This simple trick is amazing, it will unglue your eyes! Use antihistamine eyedrops, once you can open the eyes.

Always make sure you are following the directions for the medication you use. Don’t over doze.

If your eyes are completely shut, and you can’t do it yourself, ask for help.

Just tell them to Google it and go from there.

Oh, wait. Don’t. Better, just do it yourself. One can never be too safe nowadays.

7) Take Showers. Often.