Allergist appointment tomorrow

[Janelle205]

I'm weird and prefer flonase and hate nasonex, so maybe she would feel the other way. 

We have a small air purifier in our bedroom.  It might help some but daily vacuuming (roomba with the allergen filter) has helped WAY more.

[becca]

we never use the fireplace.  I stopped when the kids were little and we have never gone back to using it.  It sits there and gets damp with heavy rains and lime leaches onto the bricks from the water.  but, maybe there is mold in that?  That is my concern.  I was more thinking of using the air purifier in the family room to help if there had bene a mold issue in there.  spores in the air.  I really want to get a gas insert. 

I know we somewhat near one another, PC.  If your brother is around here, maybe you can PM me with where they got that, or who converted it?  I know we had neighbors email the association looking for someone to do this, and there were no recommendations.  That email went to 51 of us! 

I just googled the white stuff on my bricks and it is "efflorescence."  Salt deposits from moisture.  We have tried several times to remedy the water issue, and it never has been resolved.  It gets damp in heavy rains, but not dripping or puddles.  Some dampness with melting snow around the roof by the chimney.  There is more wetness on the garage side of things, but it dries up in dry weather.  Anyway, where there is water there can be mold.  so I figure there could be some mold in the damp bricks, even if we do not see it.  Maybe we should try re-sealing things.  Sounds like Mookie solved her issue after 3 tries. 

Anyway, the mold dd is allergic to is outside all the time, in much greater concentrations whenever there is not snow cover, basically.  It typically gets inside via open windows.  So, I may be off track anyway with the mold, but I just have a feeling that chimney bothers us.  I get itchy eyes myself. 

[becca]

Janelle, I could certainly vacuum more.  It kills my back, so I do not do it as often as we should.  Maybe we should get a roomba. 

[GingerPye]

I use Nasonex and there is no smell to it. 

I think the roomba vacuum sounds like the way to go. 

can you have your fireplace sealed off?  completely closed off?  And maybe that won't solve the problem. 

We never open our windows; we have an air purifier in the living room, and we use a dehumidifier in the summer.  We should get rid of our carpeting and we should have more air purifiers, I think.  Maybe one in each bedroom in addition to the living area.

It's good that you found out about the hamster.  That could be a big part of it.

[becca]

Dust was not +.  But It has been in the past. 

So, all we really know about for sure, inside, *is* the hamster.  We do not *know* we have mold inside.  But, we do open windows, though not now, due to cold.  I do think dust mites will be + on second level testing.  I think he wanted to recheck the dust, feathers and some others that way. 

PFT was fine, only improved 4% with albuterol. 

[hezzier]

I can't remember is she on a daily antihistamine? 

Ok, dumb question since DS has only recently tested positive for leaf mold...isn't the mold due to moisture a different strain than leaf mold?Just wondering if the fireplace situation is really contributing?

Well, at least you know the hamster is part of the problem and can get him out of her room.

[becca]

Alternaria mold, while commonly found in decaying vegetation outdoors, such as leaves, does get into homes, via doors and windows, and winds whip it around on dry days, when spores are actually very active, from what I can read.  It can come into homes on vegetables and fruits as well. 

I know I see mold in my bathroom, which I clean away.  But it grows unger where we hang our towels(damp) and I have to clean a spot there regularly, and the window moldings, where condensation collects.  I clean that regularly.  I do not see this in her bedroom or bathroom, or the 1/2 bath downstairs.  I think dh and my bathroom get heavier use so we have more moisture in there. 

I do not know at all if  have a problem with mold in the house, but just trying to guess what I could work on, given our results.  I do know we have a chronically damp chimney.

GP, the bricks on the chimney are porous.  There is not a single leak or spot, but they absorb water and it leaches out.  We have an oversized cap on it, but closing it off(not even sure how one does that) would not work for moisture, because it is still there and would still get wet.  While we have had flashing checked and roofing repairs around the chimney(a waste because it solved nothing maybe made it worse) the flashing always checks out.  But, it does seem to me there is some leak or failure where the roof meets the chimney.  Eventually, I bet that we have some major failure and need to remove it and rebuild or remove it and just vent the furnace and do a gas insert.  But presently, the furnace vents via the chimney.  It is on our list to call a chimney sweep to clean and reseal and inspect.  But my cousin, who is a mason, had nothing to offer me, and he is supposed to be pretty good.  He was honest, and pessimistic, based on the choice of bricks the builder used.  The particular brick is very porous.  I have seen the problem on other chimneys in the development.  Grrrr.  But, again, I have no proof that the chimney or dampness there is the cause of dd's problems. 

I do have proof that the hamster is a problem.  I would say, I also have proof, based on her symptoms, that dust is an issue, even if the testing was not an obvious +.  She feels better when I clean her room really well, and the same for the rest of the house.

I talked to dh about maybe getting a roomba, just to save my back, and I can do the heavy job once a week.  Either that or try an air purifier.  There is a size that can move easily room to room, so we could rotate it around the house day to day and dd could use it at night in her room.  Mulling it over.  Roomba is expensive and we have central vac, so our vacuum is vented outside and the cannister is in the garage.  when we vacuum, it all leaves the house, no air blows back in at all. 

He encouraged dd to use the flonase, or something, but she still would not do it last night.  I asked her if I got her one that does not smell, would she use it.  She shook her head.  Argh!

[becca]

Oh, and he endorsed Allegra over other meds due to less side effects.  But he really pushed the nasal spray.  Suggested having her use saline regularly as a cheap and harmless way to get her used to the sensation.  She is a real nudge about unpleasant sensory experiences. 

[PurpleCat]

Oh I know that one.  DD (and the boys, but they don't care) use saline spray and she hates to use it.  She says she knows how much better she will feel after but hates the feeling.  I have her do this just before she brushes her teeth at night.  Then when she goes to bed, her nose is rinsed of pollen. 

When she was young, I had to monitor her Nasonex until it became a habit because her preference was to skip it.  Our allergist was the same, a daily medication won't work as effectively as also using Nasonex every day.

My brother lives in a different state.  He does not have natural gas so he opted to have a propane tank installed in their backyard that fuels the gas fireplace which was some kind of insert into the existing space.

Allergra is DD's first choice.  Alavert is her second choice.

Becca, I don't know how you can eliminate mold in the fall.  It comes in the house on everything! 

If your DH is a leaf raker, watch your laundry.  I have to be careful when my DH mows the lawn and then does his laundry.  No kids towels or kids clothes can follow that batch.  Also he had a bad habit of not changing his clothes and coming into the living spaces.  Now he is "trained", in the basement he changes into sweats and leaves his pollen enriched laundry down there!

Our allergist had a good suggestion for me way back when.  She suggested one change to the house at a time until my DD had a good quality of life.  By doing so, there are things I thought we had to do that were not necessary.  For example, I never had the carpets pulled. 

It's all a big puzzle that takes awhile to figure out...and then they grow up and possibly go live in a dorm and who knows....it starts all over again!  Although for us, I am hopeful that the allergy shots we just started will put DD into a position where she can better tolerate allergens and be less sensitive to her surroundings.  Who knows though, we are at the beginning of the process and it works for some and not for others.

[Macabre]

I use Omnaris bit is not a steroid. I've used Nasonex in the past with great results.

[GingerPye]

I looked at my nasal spray last night.  Nasacort, not Nasonex.  Ooops.  I think it is similar.  No smell.

I have been using Allegra for a few months now after trying Claritin and Zyrtec.  It seems to work for me without the groggy feeling I get with the other two.