Allergy to Chemical Odors.

I love being in nature, breathing fresh air, away from those smells that with time one can avoid. For many years certain chemical odors have caused symptoms in my person, even on two occasions I have had to go to a hospital emergency. After those health events, after a medical evaluation, I was diagnosed with allergic rhinitis, caused by some chemical products.

When I am exposed to the smell of some chemicals, my nose starts to itch instantly, with mucus, nasal congestion, watery eyes, and burning, soon after with a sore throat to the point of being hoarse. But the most severe symptoms are the sudden rise in blood pressure and a severe headache, one of those that give you the feeling that it will burst and break you in two, those that are called migraines.

Migraine makes me sensitive to light and sound. The pain is so sharp in the front of my head that I can't even think. After a strong analgesic, I have to lie down without moving, I put a towel over my eyes so as not to see any light and to be in absolute silence.

I am going to tell you in which situations I have felt bad because of allergic rhinitis.

1.- Chlorine smell or any strong detergent:

• I cannot clean using too much concentration of bleach. I use it with some caution. When I use it, it has to be in small quantity, diluted in water. I put the bleach on the surface to be cleaned and walk away as soon as possible. Then I return to remove it, but first I hold my breath for a while, holding my nose. If I breathe in the chlorine fumes, I instantly get allergy symptoms. I once put a clothespin in my nose, but I didn't like the idea because it hurts so much. My nose is very small. The same thing happens to me with powdered laundry detergents. In commercial establishments I can't pass by where there are big bags of detergent.

2.- New tires smell:

• On one occasion I visited a hypermarket, one of those that sells items for vehicles. Without realizing it, I was walking down an aisle where they were displaying a variety of new tires. Innocent of me, I didn't walk away, but started to look at the prices. The smell of latex was very strong in that aisle. Almost instantly my nose started to get stuffy. When my nose started to itch I realized the mistake of going through that aisle and I quickly moved away from there, but I already had the symptoms of allergic rhinitis.

3.- Smelling oil paint:

• On two separate occasions, but both at the facility where I worked, they painted the walls with oil paint. This was done during staff working hours. When they painted the environment was permeated with that strong smell of paint. And the result of inhaling those strong fumes was to go to the hospital as an emergency. On those two occasions I was taken almost fainting to the hospital. My blood pressure got so high that they put a pill under my tongue, the kind that lowers blood pressure, and my head was about to explode. Twice it happened to me with the smell of paint. That's where I was diagnosed with allergic rhinitis. Now when they paint with oil paint in any place where they are going to do it, I know that I should not be near that area until the paint dries completely.

4.- Smell of strong fragrance perfume or talcum powder with strong odors:

• I cannot use perfume that has a strong odor, nor with a floral fragrance. I have tried to use it but I can't stand the allergy and I bathe immediately to eliminate the fragrance from my body. I use mild fragrances. My favorite fragrance, which I love, is soft and does not cause me allergy is the fragrance J'adore by Dior. Mild and special for me. I love it.

I have tried not to take so much loratadine or any other allergy medications. I substitute it with medicinal plants from my own garden, when the allergic rhinitis is not too strong. I can prepare and drink peppermint tea, good herb tea. Sometimes I mix a little bit of ginger with honey. Also, turmeric is a spice in the preparation of some dishes. Also, green tea is very good.

Once I was able to research the subject of chemical odor allergies and found out that allergies are hereditary. According to what I could read there is a higher probability of suffering from them if both parents suffer from it. Now if the mother is the one who suffers from the allergy, there is a greater probability that the children will suffer from it. And in my case, my mother was also allergic to strong smells. I remember when I was a child that on her birthday and on mothers' birthdays, she was always given scented talcum powder for her body and she could not use it. And she would let us, her daughters, use it. She always had a collection of scented powders in her personal closet. She could never wear perfume anyway. She also had symptoms with chlorine and gasoline, just like me. From her, I inherited my allergy to chemical odors.

And you, are you allergic to any food, medication, or chemical smells?

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