So to preface this, I have had cats a lot in my life. I grew up with a cat in the house, I have had cats with a couple of my exes, all shorthair female cats. And while I developed an allergy in my teens, it was never debilitating. Most of my symptoms would come after holding the cat too close or petting and then putting my hands on my face. Occasional sniffles and sneezing but nothing too life altering, especially if I took a daily allergy med.
Now.. I had been longing to have a cat again after my last one passed away about two years ago and I finally broke down and got one because I figured, well my allergies aren't too bad and I'll just take some Zyrtec or whatever.
Well the first couple days with her were ok and then it just got progressively worse. I wake up every day with watery eyes and a plugged up nose. I'm going through a box of tissues every few days and my nose is raw. My eyes get sooo itchy that I want to scratch them out of my face. The worst part is that it's affecting my asthma and now I'm having shortness of breath as well. This all usually lasts throughout the day now that I have to be home with her 24/7 with the quarantine. The weirdest thing is that when she gets close to me, I can feel my nose start to tickle. So I'm assuming either I'm more allergic to her than other cats or my allergies have gotten worse. I'm losing my mind and I feel like such an idiot for putting myself in this situation.
I've tried everything. I got cat wipes, cat "dander reducing" stuff that you rub on them, got a very expensive air purifier, switched my allergy meds, clean my bedspread and sheets every weekend and do a very thorough cleaning of the house then as well (which usually helps for about a day or two). My one last hope is a fish oil that I've just started putting on her food in hopes that it helps her coat somehow and makes her have less dander. I feed her the best food I can afford so I'm hoping this works but I'm at a loss at this point.
I don't consider giving her back an option but I'm suffering intensely. I can barely breathe throughout the day. I love her so much and I would feel like such an asshole to bring her back, especially since when we got her she was absolutely terrified and took a week to adjust to her new life. Any advice is appreciated. Please don't be mean because I got a cat knowing I'm allergic, I know it was dumb but we're past that now.
TL;DR: I used to have cats and I've always been allergic but not too bad. Got a new cat after not having one for 2 years and I'm having the worst symptoms of my life.
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from Pets https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/fqkxgw/i_got_a_cat_knowing_im_allergic_and_my_bodies/
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