My wife has severe dust allergies. It’s so severe that the use of an air purifier even circulating the air in our one bedroom apartment will close her airways.

Over the last six years, as her allergies have worsened, we have tried everything - from Austin, Coway, and Levoit air purifiers to MissionAllergy pillow cases and mattress covers to even vacuuming the air with our HEPA vacuum cleaner. They have all helped to a degree. We have no fabric in the apartment except a blanket to sleep under and towels in the bathroom - everything else is stored away.

She isn’t suitable for allergen immunotherapy, because she suddenly started going into anaphylaxis after a year of regular shots gradually building her up, and even after the dosage was halved and quartered. Antihistamines also have lost their effectiveness or have started contributing with some nasty gastric side effects. We’ve tried Advanced Allergy Therapy which provided some relief. She received Xolair in India for six months which provided the most sustained relief, but now we’re waiting to get insurance approval for Xolair in California.

All of this to say that her sensitivity to allergies are so severe that we’ve tried it all… and I wanted to share what I can see brought the most relief during various stages of her journey. Tip 1, 2 and 3 has brought her the most non-medicated relief.

Tip 1:
Remove all fabric, carpets and curtains from your home. If you rent, look for hard floors only. Do not leave your clothes out - store them in the cupboard or laundry basket. Less used clothes should be stored away to reduce the amount of fabric.

Tip 2:
Use a Bona Spray Mop with water (no chemicals added) to spray water into the air in our apartment… and then mop the floors. The water drags dust particles down faster than an air purifier can clear a dusty space. Whenever my wife complains that her throat or ears are getting itchy, I spray the air down and mop (usually once or twice a day).

Tip 3:
Invest in a Navage Nasal Rinse, and rinse out your sinuses when you return from the outside. If you’re in the US, Costco has a deal for the Nasal Rinse, 1 month supply of pods, a bathroom stand, and cleaning equipment for $99.99 (HSA eligible).

Tip 4:
Air purifiers are great, but just be aware that it is circulating the dust around in the apartment as well as filtering it. So it’s better to blast it when you’re heading out, have it time out after a little bit so that whatever dust remains can settle before you return home, and then mop it away. Otherwise, keep your air purifier as low as possible to prevent it circulating so much to trigger you.

Tip 5:
If you can afford it, do laundry at a laundromat or have your laundry machine spaced as far away from your living area or sleeping area. The dryer is the single largest source of dust in every apartment or home we have lived in, and so I take our laundry to a laundromat and finish our week’s laundry in 1/4 of the time. If you do laundry at home, I recommend deep cleaning immediately after your last dryer load.

Tip 6:
MissionAllergy is a godsend, and worth investing into. Go a step further if you can afford it and invest in a leather sheet from Etsy. We have had ours for three years now, and it has made a world of difference.

Tip 7:
If you have long hair, as my wife does, washing your hair every day isn’t always possible. Washing your hair does help rid of any dust or pollen you will have picked up from outside or in your home - but on the days where you can’t or don’t have the energy for, use the vacuum cleaner nozzle to (as silly as it sounds) vacuum your hair for 5 seconds.

Tip 8:
A robot vacuum and mop is a great investment if you live alone, struggle with energy, and need a little extra support keeping dust levels low in your home. It’s not as quick as mopping the air and your floor yourself, but after seeing my wife for the past few years, you need to give yourself all the grace in the world with dust allergies.

I hope this helps others figure out their home protocols. If you are suffering with dust allergies, I am so sorry. It is the worst, and I genuinely hope something from our experience helps improve your quality of life even a little.

If you have any questions, let me know.

I just moved about 25 minutes south of where I used to live. So same climate. Within minutes of entering my new apartment my eyes get dry and irritated, my nose gets clogged and my throat closes up. It’s miserable. It’s clean and a nice building so I never would have thought this would be an issue. I’ve cleaned and wiped down everywhere. I have air purifiers running. They’re going to come clean out my air ducts. Is there anything else to do? I truly have no idea what’s causing the issue, the leasing office told me they’ve never had a complaint like this before. It’s been 2 weeks and I dread having to be in my apartment. Getting very worried about how this next year is going to look. Any advice on where else to look for solutions?

I sleep like 10-12 hours a day and I'm sick of it tbh. (allergic rhinitis victim)

ما اعرف ليه لمن اتعرف على اشخاص العلاقة ما تكون بنفس التواصل لمدة يعني اتعرف عليهم و نسولف و نلعب و بعدها تتسطح العلاقة و ابدأ من جديد اتعرف على اشخاص و تصير سطحية كانها حلقة مفرغه

So my housemate got a new puppy, an 11 week old chocolate brown Frenchie. She's being kept out of the common areas and my area because of my allergies and asthma. It kills me that I can't just cuddle the little baby constantly, she's such a sweetheart. Like I checked on her when my housemate is at work this morning and it hurt me to not let her in the kitchen. She's not a total allergy farm like more fluffy dogs, but I do get a little snuffly from her. But I can at least pet her as long as I wash my hands after

Hello all. I came here to ask for help with something small. I suffer from bad allergies and recently ran out of OTC medication for them. I used the last of my money and cannot get any more. I have no job and no way of getting money right now since I've sold everything I could and while I still live with my parents they cut me off. I have $0.36 in my bank account and would need $6 to be able to buy a 24 pack which would last me a while. I know this is a funny request but I have been suffering from allergies and would be happy to have some relief for a while. I don't have enough karma to post on r/assistance and any help would mean so much to me.

Hello how do I add a picture?
I was wondering if anyone has any experience with this. My friend suddenly developed this allergy about three months ago. Since then, I think he has seen a GP around seven or eight times. He was advised to take three fexofenadine tablets a day.

So far, the allergy has affected his face twice, and both times he had to go to A&E. During his most recent visit to A&E, he was prescribed a four-day course of steroids. They said the steroids might resolve the problem, but unfortunately they didn’t.

Even while taking both the steroids and fexofenadine, the rash still appears from time to time. The rash can appear all over his body at the same time for example, on his stomach, legs, and arms. It is also extremely itchy.

Usually, if he takes the fexofenadine, the rash disappears within about an hour to an hour and a half. Most of the time, the medication prevents it from appearing, but occasionally it still breaks through, and the episodes seem to be more severe.

No GP has been able to give him a definite diagnosis or explain exactly what is causing it. However someone whose husband is a GP, mentioned that it could possibly be a condition called CSU

Anyone noticed rice, wheat, carrots increase massively mucus in nose which result in post nasal drip and hoarse and dry voice ?

Hi friends! My husband and I have a dog and a cat. I allow the cat to have full run of the house, but my husband gets pretty anal about our cat going into the guest room, since his dad is really allergic to cats. They only come to visit once or twice a year, so I’m never too worried about it. Other than washing bedsheets in hot water with vinegar and OxiClean, does anybody have suggestions on cleaning the room for pet dander? Our cat is only ever in there if we are in there, which is rare. We have an air purifier for the whole house, I open windows when the weather is nice, I use odorband to disinfect, and it’s hardwood floors with no rugs.

I’d prefer not to use heavy chemicals or fragrance for the sake of our animals

my left hand has red blotches about the size of a quarter all over. its incredibly swollen to the point of my knuckles being kind of engulfed. this is concentrated ONLY on my left hand. this started a week ago but I assumed it was just allergies and took a blexten. it seemed to work but now its back, worse than ever. the swelling doesn't go into my finger at all, just the top of my hand. I have a severe peanut and soy allergy along with other environment allergies. my hand is also very itchy

Anyone else exhausted trying to turn test results into actual grocery lists?

I guess in a different country I'd qualify for disability and its claims, but in India, not so much. I have 'allergies' (as per the allergy test) for at least 57 different foods, and other substances such as cotton, dust, and cockroaches. Because of that sheer number of triggers + overlap, I am just constantly tired and sometimes sick for 4 days a week. I cannot keep going on like this if I wish to have a career and survive. None of the OTC allergy meds work, and only painkillers work at times. I just stay groggy and low energy and unenthusiastic and irritable ALL DAY. idk if this is because of cPTSD or some other disorder like MCAS or just allergies.

IgE is 411 IU/ml.

IDK if they are allergies per se because, different foods give me different reactions, or rather, some have drastic reactions and some do not. e.g., Cow milk and its products give me muscle cramps and intense muscular pain at times, and joint pain. Clarified cow butter can make me instantly dizzy and sleepy and fully feverish. Peanuts and some other nuts give me almost-asphyxiation (my throat tightens), my head spins, and I feel sleepy and dizzy. Other foods that I am allergic to do not give me muscle pain but fatigue me that I'd rather sleep. Note that this is not as drastic as feeling instant-sleep by cow butter. I rarely get any skin reactions.

tldr for backstory: grew up under extreme abuse, have anxiety, slept in dusty, moldy sheets, ate rotting food, drank dirty water; deficient in few vitamins now, and idk to what I pinpoint my conditions to, and how to heal from these.

I'll edit this if I remember some important detail. please ask me anything that might help identifying the issues.

Below is some backstory in case it helps with the hypotheses:

I am 28M, 174cm and 95kgs. I grew up in an extremely abusive household (getting beaten and shouted at for hours) and faced extreme abuse in school as well (the word 'bullying' does not cut it; I'd be groped all over and shoved and twisted again for hours back to back between class breaks).

My maternal grandparents were with me until I was 13 who gave me nutritious food. They left, and my mom would just cook the most random stuff that would qualify for prison food, and sometimes even cook veggies that has kind of been rotting. No proper nutrition since then.

I had high energy (probably due to high adrenaline due to abuse) until I was 18. I would walk for miles and miles without tiring, and work/study for 13-15 hours a day. Two weeks or prior to my 20th b'day, we stopped getting purified water since we did not have enough money, and started drinking a little bit dirty water without any boiling and processing. A week after my 18th b'day, I felt extremely dizzy and rushed walking home, and could not get up for hours. My mom did not attend to me, and my friend came home after many hours to give me meds. This same sudden dizziness happened another time as well. This same month once my entire leg was too numb that I was not able to walk for 5 minutes. From this point onward, my tiredness and fatigue has just been increasing year by year.

To note, my mom has already been feeding me improperly since I was 13. Please do not ask why I did not cook for myself; I was not allowed, and I was constantly abused.

Since it was just me and my mom, I tried to keep the house as clean as I could. But even then, rooms were extremely dusty, and since I was tired all the time, sometimes I'd not change sheets for months, and I guess I was sleeping on dusty, moldy sheets for a few years.

At this point, we were eating both improperly and very less as well due to no money. I started looking for a job, and tried OTC supplements with no avail. Then I thought that maybe I am iron deficient, and started Iron syrup, and that seemed to give me a little bit energy. This is also when I tried eating more peanuts to get iron and other nutrients from some street vendors.

From age 20-23, my energy would ebb and flow. If I ate something I was extremely allergic to like peanuts, I would just be so drowsy as if I were on some drugs, and even two cups of coffee would sometimes not be enough to keep me awake. I could not sleep in office, and how many sick days could I even take. Because of this, just battling drowsiness the whole day, I'd be backlogged, and then I'd panic-work to meet deadlines on weekends. My anxiety which was already high increased even more.

age 20-21 my feet would go numb if i wore something too tight, and i continued iron syrup intermittently.

age 21-23 was also when it was lockdown, and I was with my mom who by then had gone fully schizophrenic, and if she weren't shouting at me, she would be shouting at her voices. Still no proper food. I am somehow trying to keep up by eating protein and fruits from outside.

age 23 marked the peak of my fitness wherein i was clocking close to 17 miles of walking every day. This was happening, and also me feeling fatigued while working. Actually, the only time I'd not feel fatigued was when I'd walk. Mainly I had a lot of anxiety and anger and that was enough to make me walk, but I also wanted to burn fat and I kept pushing myself. But it did not feel like anything since my feet would not hurt.

This went further downhill when one fine day I had an intense, out-of-the-body panic attack at age 23. After that panic attack, I felt even more tired than usual. My psych suggested that I move out, and I did. In the midst of figuring out moving, I stopped walking for miles, and now it has been 4 years since I have walked for miles. I can barely walk one mile without heaving these days.

Ever since the panic attack, I have become super-sensitive to caffeine (or maybe I have connected with my body and can identify when I am jittery and anxious and I do not suppress my emotions lesser now, idk?)

Now, age 23-28: I am low contact with my mom. I cook for myself and I am trying to keep my house as clean as possible. But unlike age 20-23 wherein I felt fatigue for only 4-7 hours a day and could make up for lost time by working during the rest of the day, now, I feel drained for almost 8-10 hours a day. My main deficiency as per recent reports is Vitamin D. I am yet to do a thorough mineral panel. I have lost a bit of muscle, I have gained fat, I cannot walk for even a mile, and as I said, I am just constantly groggy and low energy and unenthusiastic and irritable ALL DAY.

Please help me out.

I'll edit this if I remember some important detail. please ask me anything that might help identifying the issues.

ELI5: So supposedly allergies are your body thinking some perfectly good stuff are invasive evil germs right? Why is the next logical step "let's close up his airway so he can't breathe!" or "What the heck, let's make his eyes water!"

Hey everyone, I wanted to share a small tool I built myself.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/allergylens-ingredient-scanner/id6768857395

I have a peanut allergy, and I once had a moderate allergic reaction after accidentally eating food that contained peanuts. It was a pretty tough experience, and ever since then I’ve always felt anxious eating out or trying unfamiliar foods — you never know when there might be hidden peanut ingredients in a dish.

So I took matters into my own hands and built an iOS app. The concept is simple: take a photo of your food, and it will analyze whether it contains any peanut ingredients, acting as an extra layer of safety check.

I finally got it published on the App Store recently. Instead of keeping it just for myself, I wanted to make it available for anyone else who struggles with the same problem.

Right now, the app offers 3 free scans per day. I’m covering the API token costs myself for the time being — it’s manageable at current usage levels, so everyone is welcome to use it. I may adjust the limits if usage grows significantly later on, but for now it’s completely free.

The app is still a work in progress and definitely has room to improve, but I truly hope it can help other people with peanut allergies who constantly worry about hidden ingredients in their food. Feel free to share any feedback, and I’ll keep working on making it better.

Hi, 29 yo french here. I have ME CFS and MCAS but my MCAS was never too severe with food.. but ten minutes ago, I started eating melon and suddenly, my throat ticckled, started to get very thigh and I had a sévère coughing fit while I was gasping for air...

Thought I was going to pass out, my mom reached her phone in order to call for an ambulance...

But five minutes later, I could breath better and I'm not coughing anymore.. I can speak without struggling... This épisode seems to be over...

What the hell just happened ??! I have no allergy known...! But this was SO stressful ! Are my symptoms a sign of severe food allergy or not ?

Thanks in advance

To start our 7yo daughter got a referral to see an Allergist for minor allergies. She got the skin prick test and the results showed she was allergic to many different things. We walked out with 3 different prescriptions, eye drops, nasal spray and, a liquid medication which all have to be taken daily. In her after care summary she was diagnosed with severe allergies. We are a bit shocked as we think her allergies aren’t that severe and she has never complained about them. So my question is how accurate are these tests?

Can anyone with dust allergy cna advice me hoe to get rid of it?
I am thinking of two option as i have severe allergy from dust what should i go for immunotherapy or homeopathy?

spring in a rental apartment is an absolute nightmare. i have severe pollen allergies so my windows have to stay sealed shut, but by afternoon the bedroom feels so heavy and stuffy.

i run an air purifier 24/7. it catches dust and clears pollen fine, but it does NOT bring in fresh air. it just recirculates the same tired indoor air until i feel drowsy. the moment i crack a window to vent the room, my eyes start itching instantly.

came across a pre-launch concept from cozeware for a window-mounted Fresh Purification System that filters incoming outside air. but as an allergy sufferer, i'm skeptical: can a window intake filter actually stop a pollen bomb, or does the filter just clog instantly in April?

I'm not sure if this is the right sub so I apologize in advance. I'm 30m if that helps at all.

So I woke up a few times throughout the night itching, which I didnt think much of nor did I have any sort of breakout immediately after waking up. I then went outside and worked on my car for a bit, took a shower, and went to work. It wasn't until I was already at work for awhile when I started breaking out with a rash/ hives all over my body. My head was especially itchy, almost like I had lice. It definitely gets worse with temperature because I was wearing shorts and my shins were fine. I took some Zyrtec for Hives and applied some hydrocortisone to help with the itching, which definitely helped. Most of the redness went away and I wasn't itchy anymore. I figured I was in the clear until I left work at 1am. By the time I got home my entire back was red and itchy, as well as my inner elbows, lower body down to my knees, my wrists, and the top of my feet. I haven't changed anything about my life and my girlfriend said she's been using the same laundry detergent she always does. I dont have any other symptoms so I'm wondering when I should go to the doctor about this. Should I just keep taking Zyrtec and hope is goes away? This is the first time something like this has happened. I'm also not allergic to anything that I know of.

Hi Reddit

My wife reacts to citrus, lavender, and aloe vera, and the frustrating part was how often she'd react to something that supposedly didn't contain any of them — except it did, hiding under a different name.

The same ingredient shows up as several different words on a label: aloe is Aloe Barbadensis, lavender is Lavandula Angustifolia, and citrus turns up as Citrus Limon, Zitrone, or Linalool depending on who wrote the label. So she'd be standing in the shop squinting at the back of a bottle, trying to remember every Latin and German name it might be hiding behind — and eventually you just give up and hope.

After the 5th reaction to something that "didn't contain" the thing it contained, I built the tool I wished existed for her. It's called achuu — a free web app (works on any phone, nothing to install). You set up your allergen profile once, scan a product's barcode, and it tells you "clear" or "warning" against your list — matching across Danish, English, German, French, and Latin/INCI names, so you don't have to hold all of that in your head.

No barcode match? Snap a photo of the ingredient list and it reads it in.

It covers the 14 EU food allergens and all 26 and counting, declarable fragrance allergens, and you can set up household profiles — so I can check products for her allergies, not just my own.

What I'd love feedback on:

- Does it correctly flag things for your allergens, especially the fragrance ones like linalool and limonene?
- Does the photo-reading actually work on messy real-world labels?
- Where does it fall over?

Honest about the rough edge: it works best on European products, since it's built on the Open Beauty Facts / Open Food Facts database — coverage is strongest in the EU and still growing, so every scan helps fill it in.

You can try it at achuu.dk — there's a feedback link in the app. Roast it if it deserves it.

TL;DR: My wife kept reacting to products that hid citrus, lavender, or aloe under a different name, so I built a free app that scans a product and checks it against your allergen profile across five languages of ingredient names. Works best on European products. Looking for testers.