Spring has finally arrived, and while my soul rejoices, allergies are wreaking havoc on the Lashley household. My sweet flower has it the worst. Her skin literally reacts to pollen, and she is covered in eczema from head to toe. Her poor eyes have a raccoon mask of dry, flaky skin around them, and she is on a very strict regimen of antihistamines, creams, oils, bath concoctions, and eye drops. Thankfully, the rainy, cold weather we are having this week is improving her condition.
I began noticing little red bumps appearing in the crooks of her elbows and knees. They then turned into huge eczema patches and eczema bumps started dancing their way across her inner arms and legs. Of course they itch, so she scratches, causing angry red sores to sprout up.
It’s pretty terrible looking. All of this cropped up within two days of the pollen being released. I made a bath soak for her out of oatmeal and baking soda, which I ground together in the Magic Bullet, hoping with everything I had that some magic would come out of soaking her in this concoction. I wash her hair with dye-free, scent-free, sensitive-skin shampoo, and make her soak for exactly 6 minutes in her oatmeal bath. I even put the timer on the oven. I then get her out, pat her dry-ish (no drying completely) and then begin the coating down of her limbs. Any lotion or cream that I have purchased over the counter burns her skin; she cries, and it’s beyond pitiful to see. I have resorted to coconut oil and Neosporin. That seems to be the magic combination. The coconut oil moisturizes and the Neosporin helps heal the sores from scratching. Meanwhile, the Zyrtec in the morning helps along with the nasal spray. We top it all off with Visine-Allergy eye drops to control the red, itchy eyes. I will be so glad when I can stop pumping antihistamines into my baby.
The pollen this year must be a super-sized version. I rarely have any symptom of allergies except for a sneeze here and there. This year I was done in, and ended up getting a sinus and ear infection along with tonsillitis from the pollen induced mucus that built up in my head. It was gross, and I was miserable. We went down to Charleston for spring break this year, and while there we all began to get a little better; their pollen season is ahead of ours. However, as soon as we returned we were right back in yellow dust misery.
It’s unfortunate that we are reacting this way to the outdoors this year. We love to be outside; the kids make up games, play football, and love racing around trying to aggravate the chickens, the cats, and the dog. I hate keeping my sweet girl inside on pretty days, but she is a disaster once she comes in from playing out in the yard. I have enjoyed planting this spring, and then regret it that evening when my head is splitting wide open and my throat is killing me. It’s a give take situation I guess. I give my feelings of health over for the joy of being outside during our beautiful spring. My flowers are flourishing, my wonderful husband has built the most amazing straw bale garden with a fence and a cute gate to go into the garden (it’s adorable), and the chickens are back to laying eggs in full force. Spring is a time to celebrate rebirth; the earth is waking up, the flowers are in bloom, and allergies are in full force.
Spring is my favorite time of year; the beauty of our earth is so astounding that I think our bodies just can’t handle it. That’s my reasoning for allergies! May you all enjoy our beautiful, glorious, generous Mother Earth, and be mindful of caring for her and for yourselves during this most exceptional season.
