Hello to all. Blazing hot here. I will not complain. My air conditioner
is working well. All is cleared off from the tornado and heavy winds
and rains here. But I still have the baby Ralf. I have not heard yet
from the family. I guess I will call them today. She is doing very
well, and just a joy to hold and care for.

I never had allergies until about 15 years ago...I am probably allergic
to ferrets in some manor. It can turn into a serious problem. I end up
bruising my ribs from coughing. So I have to keep on top of it. But I
get busy and forget.

Cleaning the bedding and floors makes a huge difference. Dust from the
litter and the dust they drag out from under everything and all the fur
creates a situation where vacuming and washing the floors is critical.
I am amazed at ALL the fur in the dryer collector.

I put the dust mite covers on my bed and pillow cases. This makes a
huge difference.My ferrets are free roam and spend more time in my bed
than I do. I cough much less with the covers on now.

Holmes clean air machine is on all night every night. That cut down on
my coughing to a large degree.

I change the air filters in the furnace room every 2 weeks. They are
coated grey from all the kitty litter.

I switch on meds for the allergies. Allegra from doc I take one day.
The next I take this cheap over the counter stuff from Sams for
allergies. This has to be taken twice a day. You may just need the
cheap stuff. I was doing fine with just that until yesterday.The
familiar restriction of the throat and cough are back. Now I am back
on the Allegra. If one med makes you sleepy...try another.

I spray the door knobs and handles in bathroom with disinfectant at
least once a week, and every day in my office to keep colds away.
Allergies AND colds combined are killer. You need to stay well to
care for the babies.

I have a very expensive steroid I inhale twice a day when things
have gotten out of hand...because I have not cleaned enough or have
forgotten my allergy meds or have a cold. There is no generic. I hope
you never have to buy it. $170 a month is insane. Steroids are to be
avoided whenever possible.

Flu Resist is a spray up the nose I take when I start to wake up in
the middle of the night coughing my head off.

Wash your hands frequently. Realize that with all the pollution in the
air and allergies and viruses out there... a few precautions go a long
way to make breathing and swallowing a concern.

My easy way to clean the floor: I take rags and soak with water and a
little soap and put them on the floor and skate with them. I get my
legs some exercise. Then two more rags...one on each foot...and I dry
the floor. The rags are black every 3 days. I have all ceramic or tile
flooring now. I live alone. I think it is just air pollution, litter,
oil from the ferrets, and dirt on the bottom of my feet bringing in
groceries or litter. But 4 minutes, and I am done. I change litter and
vacume first.

Lots of help for allergies. Do not give up on your babies because of
them.

[Posted in FML 5723]