I've never heard of food allergy shots either. I imagine that idea to be a bit dangerous if you ask me. (anaphylaxic shock)

Harajuku, I'm almost certain that if you avoid ALL dairy your stuffiness will improve. Try it for a couple of weeks and see what happens. I know you need your protein shakes, and I've heard that there are some non-dairy protein powders out there. Also, you might want to consider getting your med changed from Allegra-d to Zyrtec. I'll tell you, I was in the same boat as you with all of the stuffyness/congestion, and I also consumed a lot of dairy products, (whey protein shakes). I was also getting allergy shots when I shouldn't have been. (After 2 years they found I was a little too allergic to handle them.)I stopped the shots, changed my diet and my meds, the congestion subsided within 2 weeks. Because I have a LOT of food allergies I also had to make many other adjustmens which has made an even greater difference. My food allergies mainly cause me intestinal problems, but they also contribute to some upper respiratory issues as well.

I wish you the best of luck!

Harajuku,

Zyrtec is the top dog when it comes to antihistamines, and I needed it since the Allegra-d essentially stopped working for me. I mean it got to the point where I was having bad allergic reactions in the winter time when that is essentially my "easy" season.

Getting rid of the dairy and coffee will help you a great deal. I forgot to mention that coffee was another thing that had to be eliminated from my diet as well. It was also a culprit when it came to my congestion.

Eating out can sometimes be tricky when it comes to avoiding certain foods, but it's not impossible and most establishments will accomodate whatever your wishes are. Whenever I can't find things I veer towards salads, grilled chicken, steamed veggies, things like that. And yes, anything can be made without butter...including pasta. Extra virgin olive oil is the best way to go.

Good luck with the dairy elimination. I thought I would never be able to do it, but it turned out to be easier than I thought. Plus feeling better and breathing better gave me all of the incentive to stick with it.

Quote from Anjjou72:

Harajuku,

Zyrtec is the top dog when it comes to antihistamines, and I needed it since the Allegra-d essentially stopped working for me. I mean it got to the point where I was having bad allergic reactions in the winter time when that is essentially my "easy" season.

Getting rid of the dairy and coffee will help you a great deal. I forgot to mention that coffee was another thing that had to be eliminated from my diet as well. It was also a culprit when it came to my congestion.

Eating out can sometimes be tricky when it comes to avoiding certain foods, but it's not impossible and most establishments will accomodate whatever your wishes are. Whenever I can't find things I veer towards salads, grilled chicken, steamed veggies, things like that. And yes, anything can be made without butter...including pasta. Extra virgin olive oil is the best way to go.

Good luck with the dairy elimination. I thought I would never be able to do it, but it turned out to be easier than I thought. Plus feeling better and breathing better gave me all of the incentive to stick with it.

Thanks Anjjou,

Sorry to bother u again, but how long until u started feeling better after the elimination diet? Today i feel like hell, so stuffy, and i have been following my diet to a t and still feel miserable. Does it really take a few weeks or does it happen overnight? :(

I really hope I don't jinx myself here, but for the past 3 days I have felt great. I have kept my biggest food triggers: whey, milk, and coffee out of my diet for a good week. I wake up a little stuffy, but nowhere near feeling miserable as I was prior to my food allergy elimination diet.

I even moved back into my parents house with my two hypoallergenic dogs, that I thought were making me sick. I wake up feeling well rested and energetic. The ragweed is even at mod-high levels, and I am sensitive to it.

I feel like a normal person again :blob_fire

I keep forgetting to take my allegra-d too b/c my allergies have felt so good, so I might just save it for a really bad day. I'm so happy i could cry!

Just wanted to share this with everyone.