I am now 1 year into a 3 year immunology desensitisation programme for the relief of the dreaded hayfever. I have suffered with hayfever all my life but controlled it with steroid injections and oral steroid medication. When my GP became reluctant to continue prescribing steroids due to their long-term side effects, we had to find an alternative, so immunology it is. Every few weeks I am injected with a controlled dose of slow-release pollen with the objective that my body learns to fight the enemy and gradually builds up immunity.
I have to say that having hayfever injections when there is 6″ of snow on the ground or when it is pouring with rain is a bit weird, but if it works I don’t care. I wouldn’t normally blog about this topic but recently I came across some fabulous photographs of my dreaded enemy, pollen, and they are just too spectacular not to share.
Daily Telegraph-Hay fever sufferers know your enemy photographs
Simply amazing!
If you suffer with hayfever and none of the over-the-counter or prescription medicines work, ask your GP if immunology is suitable and available for you. It may save you months of misery and enable you to join in the summer fun instead of sitting indoors with the windows and doors closed.
Desensitisation is also available for those with wasp and bee sting allergies.
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Poppyposts 
Hi Caroline,
I see we have something else in common. Hayfever. Must have both inherited it from Mom & Dad. 😉
Over the years I have grown into and out of my Hayfever. It seems to come and go along with general sensitivity to other things like horses. But cats remain a problem eternally.
Best non-chemical cure I’ve found? Freezing yourself! If I sit in a very, very cold room with the air conditioning up full blast, I can live on a horse farm if necessary. Just don’t let the cat in the room. 🙂
Good luck with your desensitization. It should be worth it.
– Phoenix
Ha! Ha! very good. Our parents have a lot to answer for don’t they?! Philip Larkin had the right idea in This Be The Verse, ” They f*** you up, your mum and dad”……..
I’m not sure about freezing yourself. I hate being cold but it makes sense as I was told to put mohair wool in the freezer before knitting with it to stop it irritating me. All these tricks and tips….we need to write a book!
The de sensitization is going fairly well but I’ve had two bad reactions so far and one more and they stop the treatment 😦
Finger X I am now on my maintenance dose and so far so good. Roll on summer-I’m going to sniff every flower in my garden….even the honeysuckle!
Good luck! You may want to consider taking a nice cold drink of your favorite cola with ice cubes in it around the garden with you too. The bubbles, both inside and outside your nose, can bring mild but quick relief. And the ice cubes can act as mini-freeze therapy. Apply them directly if necessary to anything that starts to swell.
Except your head. If you’re getting a big head because you’re not sneezing, just accept it.
Have fun! And don’t use a straw. Just enjoy the full, bubbly help of the drink directly from a glass.
Let me know how it works.
– Phoenix
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