The beginning of spring puts everybody into a happy mood. The flowers bloom and Mother Nature opens her arms, sharing the brightest colors and balmiest temperatures.

The days last longer. We can enjoy the resplendent sunset after a full day of work. And our children can spend more time outdoors running and playing after a full day at school. It’s all about connecting with our surroundings after a long, indoor winter season.

All of the above feels like an idyllic scenario, until you discover you’re allergic to pollen.

There you have it: Invisible particles released into the air in the early hours of the day can ruin your whole romance with spring and make it difficult to breathe. 

But, with the help of the allergist, you can take measures to breathe easy once again.

What to do?

1. Get tested by an allergist.
2. Start allergy shots: Routine injections as scheduled by the allergist will alleviate your symptoms and make your life easier.
3. Control your environment.  Thinking of moving to Arizona, in the middle of the desert? It wouldn’t be the best idea; pollen flies everywhere.
4. Know the daily POLLEN COUNT. The pollen count determines how many grains of pollen are counted in the air in a specific area. Knowing if it’s high or low and what are the worst offenders can make your day easier. To make it convenient for our patients and all of South Florida, we publish the daily pollen count on our website every morning. Our doctors recommend taking a glimpse at it before leaving for work. You can also see at a glance the most recent counts or compare up to a year ago. As a rule of thumb: from 10 am till 4 pm, avoid the outdoors on high pollen days. When it rains and temperatures drop, pollen gets washed away.

 Myths & curiosities

• Do you suffer of symptoms like fatigue, daytime sleepiness or chronic tiredness? It could be a ‘misdiagnosed’ allergy to pollen, a silent allergy that doesn’t show the most common symptoms like chronic congestion, sneezing and ‘raccoon’ eyes.
• Have you heard about Allergic Asthma? If you are allergic to grass pollen and you have been given a list of fruits you must avoid? What’s the correlation? Check n.10 and n.11 of our massive Q&A “Allergy and Asthma Questions you always wanted to know”
• Have you been asking everyone not to send you flowers for your birthday because you are allergic to pollen? Good news: The pollen you react to is the invisible kind, very rarely the yellow pollen of fresh cut flowers. Happy Birthday!

Do you have a secret trick that’s helped you deal with seasonal allergies?

Do you have a question that we may not have answered?

Please go ahead and leave us a comment.