There’s nobody who can sneeze with such force and volume as my husband, Ryan. He’s allergic to… well, everything, I think. Pollens, dust, dust mites, animals, housework, you name it, and it probably makes him sneeze. And our lucky little son Mason has seemingly inherited this. Mason has both food and environmental allergies, so it’s safe to say we’re keeping tissue companies in business year-round over here. Every outing we have with Mason has a lot of this going on:
Achoo!
In the winter, I work hard to keep our home as allergy-friendly as possible. I vacuum with our HEPA filter vacuum regularly, dust with a damp cloth frequently, change furnace filters often, and wash bedding weekly. But when spring comes, it’s almost impossible to ward off the onslaught of outdoor pollen, because we’re battling the effects inside and outside and immune systems just get so tired of defending themselves, you know?
Allergies make playing outside absolutely miserable for kids some days. You can spend an awful lot of time reviewing pollen reports to work around the things that bother kids most, but allergies can still really hamper outdoor time. A trip to the zoo when the grass pollen count is high isn’t a good idea. Rolling down a hill of grass? Nope. Idyllic days at the beach? Not so idyllic when kids are rubbing eyes and constantly sneezing.
Last summer, we took the kids blueberry picking in Newfoundland and even that was a challenge. Plunking an allergic kid into a huge field of wildflowers and bushes means sneezing, that’s a fact. (But ohhh it was so fun!) Every little outing with allergic kids means a ton more pre-planning.
Allergic kids can hardly kick a ball around the field thanks to itchy eyes, non-stop faucet noses, coughing, and sneezing. It’s just so sad to see them missing out, just because of seasonal allergies.
While Mason’s still a little too young for some over-the-counter allergy meds, I have to say I’m really looking forward to being able to give him REACTINE® FAST MELT™ Junior Dissolving Tablets when he turns six. They work for 24 hours and won’t slow kids down like the other sleepier meds can. The tablets are quick to dissolve and are fruit-flavoured, meaning kids don’t have to wait long for relief, or attempt to swallow disgusting-tasting medicine. They’ll have relief from itchy, watery eyes, hives, allergic skin reactions, and sneezing.
Although we tend to leave medications to the end of our treatment options as a last resort, there’s absolutely no need for kids to suffer through the symptoms of allergies, and I like that the meds make it easier for kids to just, you know, be kids.
Do you have to deal with seasonal allergies, too? How do you handle them?
This post was generously sponsored by the makers of REACTINE®, but the opinions and images are my own. For more information, visit reactine.ca
Thanks to Alex from I Don’t Blog for contributing this post. You can read more from Alex here.
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