For a while, a few weeks or so, my headache improved tremendously. When it flared up, I took a medication Doc Theo had prescribed that contained cortisone but was instructed to use it sparingly due to potential side effects. If I could have taken it daily, I’d have been headache and facial pain-free. But I’ve only used it a few times for two consecutive days, enjoying the relief by the second day.
It wasn’t until I started taking a non-prescription antihistamine that he suggested, Fexo 18, fexofenadine, for the past week that I began to notice a good improvement in the symptoms. I never thought it was a brain issue. I am convinced it is an allergy problem and nothing more serious requiring specialists or brain scans.
It seems the symptoms are worsened with more humid weather, but also consider the following:
“In spring and summer, during tree and grass pollen season, levels are highest in the evening. In late summer and early fall, levels are highest in the morning during the ragweed pollen season. Take a shower, wash your hair, and change your clothes after working or playing outdoors.”
Covid 19 symptoms vary from person to person. When we both got Omicron on a cruise ship last April, the first symptoms I experienced, besides the sore throat, were a headache over my left eyebrow and pain when touching my left cheek. These symptoms, overall, have continued since that time to one degree or another. I’ve been treated for sinus infections and would have relief for a few weeks, and then it would start up again.
Early on, I was treated for trigeminal neuralgia, which made some sense. But the excessive sneezing and runny nose didn’t coincide with that diagnosis. Plus, the medication for that condition made me sleepy and sluggish during the day and caused me to gain weight, a typical side effect of that drug. I stopped taking it a month later, and the headache and face pain returned.
Then, off and on over the past several months, I’ve had short periods with less pain in my head and intermittent face pain. At this point, I’ve been pain-free for the past four days since I started taking the strong antihistamine a week ago. The sneezing and runny nose are less; the headache is 90% gone, and the facial pain. Perhaps, this is actually under control with this over-the-counter medication.
Years ago, when I was allergy tested, dust, dust mites, ragweed, and grass pollen were the allergens to which I responded the most. Right now, ragweed is at its highest level in the fall here in the Southern Hemisphere. There’s more dust and pollen here in the bush than anywhere we’ve ever been. Imagine the dust the animals kick up every day which enters the house. and no amount of hand dusting can eliminate it.
When we were in Minnesota in November and December, the headache almost disappeared after the first few days with snow on the ground. But, in our old lives, I experienced many symptoms in Minnesota during the summer months due to these same allergens.
So now, I wait and see if the headache and face pain continue to improve. If so, there won’t be anything I need to do in the future other than continue taking this particular antihistamine when returning to South Africa next year. We’ll see how it goes.
On Friday, we’re both going to see Doc Theo. Tom would like the peace of mind of having an ultrasound called an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening test because several male family members have died or experienced this condition requiring treatment. Doc Theo will arrange for the test for Tom, which requires that we travel to Nelspruit, most likely to Mediclinci, where I had heart surgery.
Also, I am overdue for a heart scan and plan to do it on the same day as Tom’s test. Hopefully, all will be fine for both of us. We’ll report back what we discover.
That’s it for today, folks. Have a fantastic day, and be well.
Photo from one year ago today, March 20, 2022:
