"Did you give DS his allergy meds today?"

[ASusan]

NOPE! We've been using Bioallers for 5 days. I've been taking the Tree Pollen version, and DS nurses 2-3 times a day. I give DS the Children's Allergy version directly about 3-4 times a day.

DS has food and environmental allergies. The environmental allergies kicked into high gear about 2 weeks ago, with runny nose and wheezing and red, itchy eyes. He also was waking a few times a night to scratch his eczema (caused by who-knows-what). We were giving him Benedryl at least 2 times a night to get through the cough-wheeze (and itch) cycle. (Preferable to nebulizing him.) We've picked him up early from daycare a couple of times because he was coughing/wheezing. We started giving him generic children's claritin 4 day ago. (The same time we started bioallers - so take this report with that in mind.) I haven't given him the claritin all weekend - and he slept until 4am on Friday night (before coughing awake and joining us in bed). Last night, he slept until 5:50am! This afternoon, DH asked if I had given him the claritin today, because DS is doing great! A few coughs during his nap, but nothing that turned into a wheeze. He's been running around outside for 2 days, playing with his grandparents and new basketball - no coughing or wheezing!

I was going to wait to post this success until we had a longer night and at least a few more cough-wheeze-free days, but DH asking me that prompted this post!

[lil_miss_understood]

Hope the success continues! Please keep us posted!

[dannic]

Yes, keep us posted...I've been sneezing my head off this spring.

[ASusan]

I posted too soon, as we've had a set-back. It started at Easter dinner last night. DS started coughing violently at the beginning of the meal. He either choked on a piece of lamb chop or bone OR he had a reaction to the mint in the marinade. Everything else in the marinade he's had regularly - the mint was picked over a year ago by our friend, from his garden. I used only a little, but...

He coughed through the entire meal. He couldn't really eat. I gave him some pancakes, which are bread-like, as you're supposed to eat some bread when something is stuck in your throat. He ate one, but the coughing continued. I let him have chocolate pudding, and he ate a second dish of it. We also gave him Benedryl at the same time, in case it was an allergic reaction. BUT, the coughing didn't progress to wheezing like a typical allergy cough does for him. He then ate half an orange, and another half after his bath. I gave him another dose of Benedryl at bedtime because he had started scratching his hands. He woke at 2am for some more scratching, so more Benedryl. Slept fine after that.

So, there is evidence for-and-against an allergic reaction. We dosed him with Claritin before daycare because he was completely stuffed up and starting to cough in the morning. I also dosed him with the Bioallers, but I'm not sure it's had any effect today. The Claritin didn't work as well as it did last week, either, as he coughed and snuffled his way through daycare. He's upstairs getting a nebulizer treatment as I type this.

But, I hold out hope! (and if anyone suspects he's proving the bioallers remedy, please say so!)

And bioallers has a version for wheat! I've liked the way he responded to the indoor allergy one (a few months ago, via my breastmilk), and I also tried the dairy one, with less success. The dairy version has both milk and egg in it. DS seems to tolerate milk now, but still has an IgE reaction to egg.

[WuWei]

How often did you dose the Bio-Allers? Doubt it was a proving and we are antidoted easily with mint, here.


Pat

[ASusan]

Dosing 3-4 times a day with the bioallers, which is not the acute dosage, but the maintainance dose, according to the label. Acute dosing is every couple of hours.

Thank you for the thought that I'm not proving him with the remedy. The thought bugs me that I would be increasing something that I'm trying to treat. Even bothers me more that I wouldn't know the difference - that I would see a proving as evidence that the treatment doesn't work. But I can't possibly be giving him enough for that.

Antidoted by the mint? REally? I had heard about this with flouride, but didn't know it happened with mint. (or had forgotten) But it was such a SMALL amount of mint - we could barely taste it, LOL! (Duh, as I was typing that, I realized that we're talking about homeopathic remedies here, DUH. So dumb that I had to leave it in.)

Ah - I so like that there is an explanation that possibly ties it all together. Huh.

[ASusan]

Just wanted to report an update. We're back on the Bioallers train - and it's chugging along in the right direction. We continued to dose DS 3-5 times a day with Children's version, and myself about twice a day with Tree Pollen version (a few hours before I think I'll be nursing him - if anyone has a suggestion for a different time frame - chime in!).

So, Sunday evening he "reacted" (or antidoted) with mint, coughed uncontrollably for a couple of hours, required Benedryl at night...Monday we gave him Claritin in the morning; he coughed at daycare, especially at nap, and he had a nebulizer treatment in the evening and some Benedryl at night. But Tuesday, no Claritin, no coughing/wheezing in the day, and he made it through the night just fine!! (a little coughing at midnight, and a wake at 4am - but he settled down again easily).

And, I've noticed that he isn't as needy with his nursing. I've night-weaned, but he doesn't like to be reminded of this at 4am when I tell him that we nurse in the morning. In the past (just last week), he'd protest this verbally and by fussing and by needing to be walked around/sung to in order to go back to sleep. And upon being allowed to nurse at 6am, he'd switch sides numerous times and not really go back to sleep. NOW, (when the Bioallers seem to be working), he settles right back down at 4am into the crook of my arm, and with the am nurse, he does one side or maybe both and settles back down to sleep.

In the afternoons, we typically nurse when he comes home from daycare (pretty much the instant we walk into the house). Prior to Bioallers, when I try to put him off for a minute (to use the restroom or start a pot of pasta water on the stove), he protested wildly. Monday and yesterday, he was just fine with me grabbing a drink, etc. before we nursed. Of course, this could be maturity, but it's an interesting coincidence.

[WuWei]

The KEY with homeopathy is to ONLY USE AS NEEDED. not on a schedule, not r.e.g.u.l.a.r.l.y. Not on a schedule (not like every x hours or daily)

So, if he is resting well through the day, don't repeat the dose UNTIL there are symptoms resuming. Then only use as needed. After the first few doses, it might be again in 5 hours or 15 hours or 28 hours or 48 hours. Then, at anytime, he might need a dose AS needed again in 1 hour or 6 hours, ONLY AS NEEDED.

If antidoted, then repeat as needed. Might be again in 30 minutes and again 30 minutes, or maybe one dose will hold for a whole day or more.

I find that the more stressors or exposures, the faster the remedy seems "used up" and needs to be repeated. The bucket effect. But, sometimes the remedy will last for weeks and weeks, depending upon stressors and exposures (and antidotes).

HTH, Pat

[ASusan]

OK, Pat. Good to know, because the bottle has an acute dose, and a maintainance dose, and we were sort of doing the maintainance dose.

I guess I should stop dosing myself with the Tree Pollen remedy? Wait until he has symptoms? (or do you all not think that there is any benefit via breastmilk?)

I picked him up from daycare and his nose was runny, but they said he hadn't coughed or wheezed all day. "It's like you jinxed us when you left that bottle of Benedryl here on Tuesday morning. He's been fine since then."

I did give him a dose before dinner, because of the runny nose, but I won't dose him again until he needs it. (I think that he will be stuffy again by morning, at least, because the 4am wake-up and stuffy nose in morning has been happening regularly.)



Going back to a discussion we had eons ago in this forum, I think the 4am wake-ups are liver-related (thus, "allergy" related). There was a connection to meridians (TCM) and circadian rhythms, and a certain waking time at night was liver-related. My conclusion/interpretation at the time was his night-waking was allergy-connected via this mechanism. (but I can no longer the exact reference or mechanism.)

Thank you!!

[WuWei]

I would not dose yourself, unless you are having pollen symptoms yourself, directly. (And you aren't telling your husband about your "woo-woo" liver meridian theories and homeopathy, right. )

Just give him a dose in the middle of the night, if needed. You could add a bit to water and just have him take a sip in the middle of the night, IF needed. ***do not sip repeatedly***


Pat

[ASusan]

DH is so doped up on Benedryl, he has no idea what is going on these days. Tree pollen allergies hit him hard. Poor guy.

[ASusan]

Bumping this up to say that things are still going fairly well. DS has a runny nose, but the itchy eyes and, most importantly, the coughing and wheezing seems to be kept a bay.

He had an exposure to something at a restaurant this weekend, and had a total reaction in his gut - the worst BMs he's had in a long time. Not that they were really, really bad, but they were frequent (4-6 times a day) and had undigested matter in them. But his hands didn't increase in itchyness, and seem to have improved (I've cut back/eliminated dairy again). So, it would appear that the Children's Allergy formulation of Bioallers is specific to environmental sensitivities. He's had about 1 dose in the past 4-5 days. I may dose him again tonight because DH said he was stuffy as soon as he laid down, but I"ll only dose him if he wakes.

[WuWei]

Any chance dh will give the BioAllers a go? He'd feel better too!

I gave some to our (adult) babysitter who is allergic to our cats. He was amazed!


Pat

[naturalmom08]

I think that the homeopathic rememdies for allergies are wonderful as well (along with many of the other homeopathic remedies). I'm glad you seem to be finding some measure of success with it. I've never used the BioAllers, but the Children's Allergy Relief by Natra-Bio is wonderful. It's great to have on hand this time of year when the allergies really flare up. We do not have any problems with indoor allergies, but this product says that it works well for those as well. I don't know if that includes food, but if there are any problems with dust, mold, pet hair, etc., then this one should work well also. Definitely look into it.