Can "hayfever" turn into a cold???

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I am so baffled.

I was totally fine yesterday until I handled hay to give some to the bunny. I always have an allergic reaction as grass is my most evil allergy (inflamed my entire back on the scratch test 20 minutes of torture!). I washed my hands, and took some claritin since washing hands is not enough. Now, claritin never works well--I gotta get my prescription allergy meds.

Today--I woke up with a headcold...and the headcold seems to be turning into a chest cold.

I am also on antibiotics (finishing up!) for something else, so then I wondered if while fighting the bad bacteria, if it lowered my immunity or something.

But I was fine until I handled grass, and just felt worse and worse and worse until *poof* a cold.

So--coincidence or not?

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Wow that is a pretty severe reaction. I would say it is a direct result of your allergy attack and not a coincidence.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Allergies can turn into sinus infections because SI are secondary infections. A cold has to be caught separately, it can be hard to fight if you are under the weather but it won't just pop up on its own, you have to be exposed while the sinus infection germs are always around and opportunistic. Once you get stopped up your face becomes a giant petri dish and as the funky stuff slides down, well it spreads.

Since you are antibiotics you probably need to be seen because whatever you have could be a super bug.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Allergies can turn into sinus infections because SI are secondary infections. A cold has to be caught separately, it can be hard to fight if you are under the weather but it won't just pop up on its own, you have to be exposed while the sinus infection germs are always around and opportunistic. Once you get stopped up your face becomes a giant petri dish and as the funky stuff slides down, well it spreads.

I did not realize that.

I can't think of anywhere I went yesterday after my allergy attack. But I will keep this in mind in the future.

 

[minkydog]

I think this is related to your allergy attack. Once you get that hay dust and whatever spores it may have had in it, it got stuck in your swollen sinuses. Since your meds aren't helping, I'd be inclined to be seen in the urgent care this weekend.

 

[dreamin_disney]

i did the detasing and cleaned out my craftroom. Well the dust made me sick 2 days later I had a sinus headache. My sinus were cloggled then draining, then pressure and stuffiness. My eye has been watering like crazy. Lastnight I felt a lil inmy chect. Today I feel it a lil more in chest, eye is watering some more and i feel so tired. I think i might have to go to urgent care tomorrow but the last 2 times this happend they didnt want to give me anything and said i need to let it run its course. I had to push it for antibotics. One Dr. was annoyed with me. Once i took the antibodic i started feeling better

 

[shortbun]

Probably a coincidence. You would not be getting a chest cold in one day after a reaction to the pollen from hay. Are you sure it was 'hay' and not 'straw?' If you have such a severe allergy, you might want to get an irrigation pot or bottle with saline to rinse daily. These keep we allergy sufferers from getting really bad reactions because they clean the pollen, dust mites and so forth from our noses and sinuses. My son's allergies are so bad, he uses one twice a day with a topical antibiotic and a steroid solution in it. I just use the saline solution and seem to avoid most problems. I'm suprised your allergist didn't recomment one. there is a very serious and long virus going around here that starts with a full frontal, very mucusy cold type thing and quickly goes to the chest and into a cought that will not go away. I'm guessing this virus is everywhere right now. I sure hope you feel better very soon. Hot tea with honey, irrigation, mucinex and some other homeopathic type things helped us and the people we know who have been through this one thus far. Good luck!

 

[Mrs. Darcy]

Colds are caused by viruses and antibiotics kill bacteria not viruses. So I'm thinking a coincidence.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Probably a coincidence. You would not be getting a chest cold in one day after a reaction to the pollen from hay. Are you sure it was 'hay' and not 'straw?' If you have such a severe allergy, you might want to get an irrigation pot or bottle with saline to rinse daily. These keep we allergy sufferers from getting really bad reactions because they clean the pollen, dust mites and so forth from our noses and sinuses. My son's allergies are so bad, he uses one twice a day with a topical antibiotic and a steroid solution in it. I just use the saline solution and seem to avoid most problems. I'm suprised your allergist didn't recomment one. there is a very serious and long virus going around here that starts with a full frontal, very mucusy cold type thing and quickly goes to the chest and into a cought that will not go away. I'm guessing this virus is everywhere right now. I sure hope you feel better very soon. Hot tea with honey, irrigation, mucinex and some other homeopathic type things helped us and the people we know who have been through this one thus far. Good luck!

Timothy Hay.

I have a nasal spray that I need to get the script refilled.

Irrigation was moot for me. It simply doesn't work.

Colds are caused by viruses and antibiotics kill bacteria not viruses. So I'm thinking a coincidence.

I realize that. Mentioned them b/c the are in my system. I know it wouldn't do anything for a virus, but part of me was wondering if it would inhibit an immune response to the virus.

 

[IDoDis]

No, hayfever cannot turn into a cold. A cold is caused by a virus and only a virus. It does not sound like you have a cold, but you are suffering from severe hay fever which has similar symptoms to a cold. Also, a person has the cold in their body for at least 2 days (or more) before symptoms show up. So if you were sneezing the night before from the hay and woke up with a cold the next day (probably less than 18 hours later), your symptoms could NOT be a cold you caught from the hay. It doesn't work that way.

Shared Symptoms for Both (cold & hay fever):

* Runny Nose: Although both produce a runny nose, mucus caused by colds will have color to it. Mucus caused by allergies will be clear or transparent.
* Nasal Congestion: Hay fever is a respiratory response to an allergen. Colds are an upper respiratory infection caused by a virus. For both, the immune system releases inflammatory chemicals that cause nasal congestion.
* Sneezing: Both conditions will cause sneezing. However, hay fever can produce prolong and repeated spells of sneezing that colds do not.
* Coughing: Coughing does not last as long with colds as they do with hay fever.
* Fatigue: Both conditions take out the energy from a person.
* Throat Discomfort: Hay fever tends to produce a scratchy throat while colds produce more of a red and sore throat.

The Speed in Which the Symptoms Appear

* Colds: It can take days for the symptoms to develop from the time of infection.
* Hay Fever: Symptoms develop relatively quickly after exposure to the allergen.

http://www.avoid-nasal-allergies.com/hay-fever-or-cold.html

 

[hambirg]

I know what everybody else has written to be true. . .BUT. . .absolutely! I have pretty severe hay fever and it's not unusual for it to turn into what seems like a cold. I'm not sure why that is, and frankly, I really don't care. . . I just know it's true.

Welcome to my world. . .bad allergic, hay fever type reaction. . .and then what seems like a typical upper respiratory infection. I really don't know why or what the science is behind it. . .but it is not uncommon and you are not alone.

Go seek medical attention. . .it's not just going to go away on it's own. . .from my experience.

Btw. . . I'm sorry you are not feeling well. . .it's really sucky!

ETA-the poster above me is probably right. . .but my hay fever tends to turn into bronchitis. . .why I don't know. . .but I have been going thru that every spring probably for the last 20 years. I suspect the allergic reaction irritates everything and lowers your immunity. . .all I know is. . .bam! bronchitis.