Allergies-have they worsened in Adelaide

[sduffy]

For those with hayfever and allergy issues,have they worsened in Adelaide ?

 

My daughter is having terrible problems with nasal allergies at the moment,which is impacting detrimentally on her asthma.

 

The Doctor said she would refer her to an allergy specialist.As we dont have private medical insurance anyone know how long we are likely to wait for an appt on Medicare.

 

She is on Beconase nasal spray and a daily Zyrtec but not really helping.Anyone had any success with alternative products.Would be grateful for any advice.

 

Thanks Sue

[Guest pomsrus]

Afraid my daughters Asthma which was very mild in UK has gotten much worse in Adelaide, she has been hospitalised three times in 12 months! Thankfully the treatment we've encountered here is excellent and specialist appointments are very quick compared to UK (around 2 - 4 weeks depending who your seeing). All the above considered though she loves Adelaide and wouldn't dream of returning (she's 19) she's got a great career going and is really enjoying herself.

 

She takes Zyrtec also but not the nasal spray and finds it works great when hayfevers bad - we also moved to an area that isn't so lush tree and garden wise and that seems to have helped a great deal.

 

Good luck with your daughter, hope things settle down soon.

 

Karen

[lorluc]

My 9 year old never suffered from allergies...until he came here.

 

Had blood tests etc last year...and basically his allergic reaction to the 'adelaide air' is very high.

 

Yes i did say the Adelaide air....just all the pollens, particles of stuff etc in the air. We were told that to make it better for him, the option was to move to Queensland!

 

He has good and bad times....some days he is constantly sneezing!

[foxychick]

My husbands asthma has been tons better since we moved here, so no idea why that is?

[Skittle]

My hubbie also suffered with asthma occasionally and always sneezed loads in a morning when he got up in the UK. He always carried a hanky too.

 

Since being here, he no longer carries a hanky and hasn't suffered from wheezing once. It seems like the Adelaide air has 'dried him out'?

 

It's weird how it affects people in different ways.

[Guest Libby1971]

In the UK I had not ahd problems with eczema for 14 years adn I had an antihistamine to keep on top of any allergies or pollutants which could trigger hayfever/ asthma.

 

Here, I've chanegd antihistamine at least 6 times, still not sorted.

My eczema ahs got so bad I have considered leaving SA or even Australia.

My asthma and hayfever are erratic and poorly controlled.

 

The doc said, and the consultant said the same thing, that Adelaide is the asthma and hayfever capital of the world. There are so many pollens etc in their air that it is virtually impossible to manage them all.

[Guest motlyman]

I've suffered hay fever all my life and beconase was the only thing that worked for me in the uk.

Since arriving in Adelaide i have'nt had a problem. All allergies have dissapeared.

Its all good.

 

Colin

[suzer]

What has helped me the most is an over the counter product called Fess, which is a saline spray. Use it 1 or 2 times a day. Helped me heaps as I was snoring like a truck!

[Guest sandar1]

Adelaide is indeed known as the allergy capital of the world. I have also been really bad of late. One thing that I am aware of these days though are the triggers. I have taken away anything with feathers. Know that in the spring the pollen is bad keep the windows shut and have a machine that I bought with me from America which cleans the air (can probably get the same here just haven't had to look). Make sure you wash your hair each day as the pollen does settle onto your head when it is really bad then gets on your pillow etcetera. This time of year it is the mould usually causing the problem, keep the leaves raked and the gutters cleared. I went to a woman last year who specialised in allergies using homeopathic vials and a magnetic machine to test for allergies (apparently it is a system used in germany by doctors all the time), sounds crazy but she did diagnose me with four things missed by doctors here and they have all been tested for by a regular doctor since and i did in fact have all conditions diagnosed. I was going crazy with a rash that would not go away. I will try to find her number so if you want to contact me do it by a private posting.

 

Thanks.

 

Sandra

[Flutterby]

For those with hayfever and allergy issues,have they worsened in Adelaide ?

 

My daughter is having terrible problems with nasal allergies at the moment,which is impacting detrimentally on her asthma.

 

The Doctor said she would refer her to an allergy specialist.As we dont have private medical insurance anyone know how long we are likely to wait for an appt on Medicare.

 

She is on Beconase nasal spray and a daily Zyrtec but not really helping.Anyone had any success with alternative products.Would be grateful for any advice.

 

Thanks Sue

 

I had dreadful problems with nasal allergies in the UK, nose constantly running & sneezing, but have had no problems since arriving in Adelaide and am not taking any medication now. How long has your daughter been on Beconase? It took about 3-4 weeks of constant use in the UK for my nasal spray ( flixonase) to have any effect on me and the GP told me to expect this. If her nasal lining is really inflamed it will take a while to settle down.

[Guest sandar1]

When you call through to the doctors surgery tell them that your daughter is a bad asthmatic, ask if you can be put on a list for any cancellations. If the doctor that has been recommended has too long of a wait, ask your gp for a list of other doctors, I am assuming that she is going to an allergist. My doctor gave me a list of about 15 doctors to chose from, the first one had a wait till October, but I managed to get in to another doctor who had just moved to the practice from overseas within 4 weeks. Make sure you tell them it is urgent, most places are really helpful, they don't care what type of insurance you have really as long as they get paid.

 

Sandra

[Guest sandar1]

I have tracked down one of the machines i was telling you about that I had in the US it purifies the air. Dealsdirect have one on special at the moment go into their website and take a look I have bought from them quite a few times in the past and have been lucky with all of the stuff I have bought. The prices are very good I think the air purifyer is currently $59.95. I know the one I had overseas was fantastic, I am going to order one myself. Let me know how it goes.

 

Sandra

[sduffy]

Thanks so much for your helpful replies.

 

Sandra,you have been particularly kind.I already have an air purifier that i brought with us from Uk .

 

In addition due to me and hubby having serious health conditions diagnosed since we came here we are unable to fund private health cover,due to high premiums.

 

I have already enquired about a consultation privately,that is sadly not the problem,all the allergy tests would then have to be paid for privately and from knowledge gained in uk i know how expensive that can be and on one wage we just cant afford it.

 

For the time being we are just going to have to wait.

 

Many thanks for your helpful comments.

 

best wishes

 

Sue

[jim and adel]

In my case, I don't use inhalers here daily unlike when I was in the UK, but over time in the year and a half that we've been here I've found that I need them a bit more often, so it looks like my asthma is creeping back (fortunately – apart from once or twice in the distant past where it's been frighteningly bad – I've only ever really suffered from it mildly and it's not been a debilitating condition like it is for some). As for my hay fever, this cleared up totally when I arrived and I actually regained my sense of smell! (Hadn't had it in years.) Again, over the last few months, the old symptoms have started to return ...

Stating the obvious, I know, but different people are affected by different triggers, so some will get better, some worse, others stay the same. Also, reactions change over time so I wouldn't get too excited if you've not been here long and aren't suffering ... yet!

Overall, I'd say SA is bad for hay fever and asthma. As for the 'capital of the world' status, I don't know about allergies generally, but for Asthma there seems to be any number of contenders. When I was a kid in Manchester, I was told by my doctor it was the worst place in the world for asthma because of the damp climate. Years later, a friend of mine returned from Atlanta where he'd been working and mentioned that while there he'd developed asthma. He then added that so many people there have it that he'd been told by his doctor that it was the asthma capital of the world. You know, I actually felt affronted by this challenge to my hometown! Perhaps I move in asthmatic circles, but I've heard the same claim made for Sydney and Beijing and it wasn't long once I got here before I heard that this place had gained the coveted award. Of course, cities aside, several countries claim the prize: Australia, Scotland, Ireland, New Zealand, India etc. I'm not sure what this all means apart from the fact that asthma is a big and growing problem in a lot of places!

Jim

[Guest Woody and Jane]

I have already enquired about a consultation privately,that is sadly not the problem,all the allergy tests would then have to be paid for privately and from knowledge gained in uk i know how expensive that can be and on one wage we just cant afford it.

 

Hi Sue

 

Not long after arriving I had a period of about 6 weeks where my allergies went berserk. I went to the doctor to ask for a referral to have an allergy test and there and then he faxed in the request to the Royal Adelaide. I was told it may take a few months before I was contacted with an appointment date. Truth be told it was about 8 months before they contacted me and gave me an appointment about 4 months in the future.

 

I felt bad but after that 6 week period my allergies totally cleared up and I've been fine ever since. I still went to my appointment as I've suffered all my life and really wanted to know what was causing it. They tested me for various allergens and the only one I reacted to was dust mites. I must be a lot cleaner now than when we first moved here.

 

Anyway, the reason for my comment was that it didn't cost me a single cent for my allergy test. I just had to wait for a year.

 

While I'm here though I may as well chip in about my asthma too. It has always been pretty mild, only really affected by exercise and pets, and that hasn't changed since moving to Adelaide. However being able to walk into any chemist and buy a salbutamol inhaler without a prescription is fantastic.

 

Cheers

 

Woody.

[Diane]

Hi - this was a pretty old post: it rose to the top of the barrel due to a spammer who has now been dealt with, but apologies that I didn't get to them in time!

[Guest clearclouds]

I used to have an asthma but recently, been having this weird feeling that I'd probably have it again. It's hard to breathe at times. Maybe, because of pollution.