Allergy medicine recommendations?

[Zwee]

Hey y'all,

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ALLERGY MEDICINE?

My roommate is currently battling horrendous allergies even though it snowed here last week??? The doctor said it was an early bout of seasonal allergies--but they are about 1000 times worse than her normal allergies!! And to make matters worse, she seems to think taking Mucinex is enough? Among less interesting symptoms like itchy and watery eyes, she is sneezing and sniffling CONSTANTLY and it's driving me insane.

I can usually separate myself from the fetish and I actually like taking care of her (and most other people besides family members) when it comes to illnesses and such because there's usually something I can do to make them feel better. But I have no experience with allergies and as far as I know, it's not going to stop after a few days and she is sneezing all the time and I don't know how much longer I can take it!!!

I want to go out and buy her the best allergy medicine I can find so she will actually leave the house instead of being bedridden, but I have ZERO experience with allergies so I'm hoping you all can give me recommendations? She doesn't like Benadryl because it makes her drowsy, but surely there is some allergy medicine out there that makes you not sneeze constantly and also doesn't make you fall asleep?

Wow, sorry this is long--this was not meant to be a Snake Pit post. Just send help please SOS

[Shay]

Honestly, it's going to be a matter of trial and error to find out what works best for her. The main OTC brands are Clariten, Zyrtec, and Allegra, and you can probably find generics of those that are cheaper. There's also a newer one called Xyzal which I believe is a superior formulation of Zyrtec(in the same way that Nexium is a better form of Prilosec), so it may work better, but will probably be more expensive.

Then there's the nasal sprays Rhinocort and Nasacort. There's also Flonase but I wouldn't recommend trying that except as a last resort. It has a rather strong smell that personally makes me ill to the point that I can't even be near people that have used it within the past hour or be in the room where it was used. I think the smell is really sour but others have said it smells like flowers? Either way, not a good choice for anyone that might be sensitive to smells.

Again, it's just going to be a matter of trial and error to see what works best and both a nasal spray and a pill medication might be needed in combination. It can also take several days for these meds to really get into your system and start working at full strength. And fair warning, even though those pills are supposed to be non-drowsy, they can effect people differently. Though I'm surprised her doctor didn't recommend anything when she saw them. You should probably make sure she's open to trying something other than Benadryl and Mucinex before going out and spending money. Good luck, and you have my sympathies.

[Rhomberg Rabbit]

A 12 hour pseudoephedrine is usually all I need.

[SneezyKateM]

Like people said above, it's all about experimenting to find the right one, or ones, for you.  I take a combination of things, but we are always looking for some combination that works better.  

Benadryl works well for me, but I always fall asleep, so it might just knock me out more than get rid of my allergies.  So I only use it when I need to sleep and my allergies are bad.

[Luisa39]

I have a big preference for Flonase and use it on a regular basis.  Claritin D makes me hyper, but I will take it if my ears happen to need unclogging (as my allergies tend to cause ear problems).