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3rd Trimester
Pets and Pregnancy, etc...
I don't know what to do...help?
I have a cat and a dog and I have always been allergic to them. I have been taking zyrtec for it daily over the last couple years or so. Now, that I am pregnant, my allergies are HORRIBLE- no longer tolerable. Sneezing non-stop, up all night blowing my perma-raw noses, clogged up sinuses, it really sucks. I am still on the zyrtec and taking an occasional benadryl, too. I vaccuum all the time. My floors are all hard-wood. The allergies seem to stop when I am out of the house, so there is no environmental aspect. I never tested positive for environmental allergies, mold, dust, etc.
Anyway, if this continues after pregnancy, what should I try before talking to DH about finding new homes for our pets? I hate to part with them, but I am in constant, absolute, misery. Any of you find that your allergies were worse during pregnancy and then subsided afterward? Do any of those air cleaners seem to work? Any other ideas?
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Re: Pets and Pregnancy, etc...
You should check with your ob-gyn to make sure that you can still take those allergy meds with the pregnancy. A friend of mine was on allergy meds, and was told to stop taking it when she got pregnant--she was so miserable but her ob-gyn was very conservative and didn't want her on any meds!
I personally dont have any first hand experiences w/ allergy, so I can't recommend a course of actions to you. I have heard that cats are not good around pregnant women. Good luck.
I have found that my allergies are no worse during pregnancy. I have 4 cats and a dog, but I think my allergies are outdoor (dust, mold), not animals.
However, I do have 2 of the air purifiers because my stepson has allergies to cats. We have found that giving him zyrtec and using the air purifiers (along with enough sleep and healthy eating) has kept his allergies in check.
I'm going to guess that with the change in hormones and you're probably exhausted, your body just cannot fight the allergies. I would give it several weeks after you have LO and see how you feel. The sleep issue might not change right away though......
I was told by my OB Zyrtec is safe
Two suggestions that you may have already tried:
A new vacuum, like a Dyson that is made to pick up pet hair, and there is a spray.
I can't remember the spray, but I *think* it's all natural and you spray it on your cat (and dogs too I think) and it helps with your allergy, which is most likely to their dander. My sister-and-law used it for when her sister visited who was allergic to cats. Not sure if it worked though.
Good luck
Same here. And I looked it up on the internet about a million times during the first trimester. Nervous nelly!
Do you have an air purifier?
That has helped me a lot with my allergies.
What kind of vacuum do you have? Does it have a HEPA filter. Sometimes running the vacuum can make things worse, since it blows everything around. I'd try using a Swifter on the hardwoods instead.
Plus, things will most likely go back to normal once your LO gets here.
I wouldn't get rid of my pets, but that's just me. To me, my pets are part of my family.
I'm allergic to my cats, too, and they've been giant sucks lately, so I have an idea how you feel! My allergies are nowhere near yours but I've found having your DH brush them outside at least twice a week can help, as well as vaccuming with a hepa-filter vaccuum once a week. Air purifiers work great as long as you buy the right kind- some won't pick up pet dander. You might also want to try a humidifer and ban the pets from the bedroom. It takes some training and some time, but I find my allergies are worse at night, and if there's one room I can go to that I know has way less (because let's face it, no room will have NONE) pet fur/dander then the others, they calm down.
Hope this helps!
And LOL to the person who said cats aren't safe around pregnant women. That is silly!
I guess I'm a terrible mom in great danger with my four cats all over me.
I have to LOL too. I guess my kitties are a great danger!
I do, however, have scat mats on my bed during the day so the cats NEVER sleep on my bed. We also close our bedroom door at night, so no kitties sleep with us. I think having a hair-free bed would help!
I agree with waiting until after LO is born to see how you fair then. However, is is possible to have someone keep your pets for a few months so a) you're not miserable and b) you don't have to keep taking medication while pregnant?
Good luck!
I have not noticed my allergies getting worse in pregnancy. I take claritin. For claritin its best for it to build up in your system and then allergies happen less but then I refrain from taking claritin because I feel good. And so the cycle continues.
We also have hard wood floors and the Roomba is amazing on hard wood floors at picking up cat hair!
Oh! Whoever said the furminator I second that! My dog has been shedding WAY less when my husband uses the furminator on her.
Also, I bought some cat clippers and cut my cats hair really short. There is less shedding and less hair overall. Summer is always the worst because everyone is losing all their fur. I swear when my cat gets off the couch there is a cat shaped hairball left behind!
Yeah, I side-eyed this as well. Guess I'm also a terrible mom because I continue to live with my three cats. *Gasp*, the horror.
If the allergies persist after your baby is born, you should look into immunotherapy (allergy shots). They will build up your tolerance to what you're allergic to and I found that they helped me immensly when I did it.
I am horribly allergic to my cat. In addition to having a vacuum with a HEPA filter to clean my hardwoods, we use a big Honeywell air purifier in the main living area, and another one in the bedroom, and DH bathes the cat every 30 days with allergen/dander-reducing shampoo. We also have an anti-alleren/dander spray that we use on the rugs, upolstery, etc.
All of this really helps. Before that, I was sneezing 10 times a minute. I was on Zyrtec and Flonase for year-round allergies, but have not had any meds. since I found out I was preg.
Ok, Thanks for your advice. I will ask my doc about the allergist. I will also start harping on DH to furminate the animals more frequently. I would love to try to get the dog out of the bedroom when we sleep (he sleeps on the floor), but I am not sure how to go about doing that. I foresee a nightmare there. But, I would rather try it than get rid of him.
Thanks guys.