Allergies springing into action

April 23, 2017 — by Rahul Vadlakonda

Sophomore shares his experiences with spring allergies. 

The constant sniffles are followed by weirdly pitched sneezes and annoying ear pressure. The spring allergy season has always been a crucible for me.

Allergies, which afflict 50 million Americans, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, seem to rise in the spring, as plants start to develop flowers and pollen starts flowing through the air.

The resulting runny nose and constant sniffles have often made me ache for the chilly but allergy-free days of winter.  Don’t let springtime’s romantic reputation fool you — during this supposedly uplifting period of time, I am constantly blowing my nose to release the pressure in my ears, depleting plethoras of tissue boxes to clear up my everlasting blocked nose and swallowing antihistamines to suppress my symptoms.

With my long history of allergies, I have documented the way I deal with my symptoms in hopes of finding a better way to manage them. Rather than improving as I age, my allergies have instead worsened each year. As I write this story, I have already sneezed and sniffled at least 10 times.

As something I have had to deal with throughout my childhood, allergies continue to deprive me of happiness while spending time with friends, with conversations cut off by my loud sneezes and constant search for tissues. On long-awaited vacation trips during spring breaks, I often find myself focusing not on the beautiful scenery but rather on my dreaded allergies, robbing me of the opportunity to relax before finals preparation.

Not only do they bother me, but my allergies affect my nearby friends and classmates as well. For weeks, I repeatedly receive their scornful glances along with donations of tissues from considerate classmates or advice to take more medicine to stop my sniffling (it does not work that way).

Even though I am ranting about something beyond my control, I would like to end this story on a more positive note. Though my complaints may be against the spring spirit, I hope my fellow allergy sufferers can relate to my annual battle, and I wish them good luck in taking care of themselves.

Now, please excuse me as I go take some Claritin.

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